United States

Carribean

Caribbean Islands Brace for Irma as Florida Prepares

As Houston and East Texas recover from Hurricane Harvey, an even stronger hurricane has formed in the Atlantic Ocean, headed to the Caribbean Sea, and likely Florida by this weekend, though there is uncertainty where it goes next.

September 6, 2017 - Guardian

Bronx Apartments

Mom and Pop Make Way for Institutional Investors in the Landlord Business

Mom and Pop Make Way for Institutional Investors in the Landlord Business

September 5, 2017 - The New York Times

San Francisco

Houston and San Francisco: Urban Development Patterns Gone Awry

With the media rightfully pointing to Houston's sprawling urban development patterns that exacerbated the epic flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey, Paul Krugman also finds fault with cities where urban development is too tightly regulated.

September 5, 2017 - The New York Times - Opinion

Federal Building

Making the Most of the Federal Government's Vast Portfolio of Commercial Properties

As the largest commercial property holder int he United States, the federal government's development plans can contribute to the economic and cultural success of communities.

September 5, 2017 - Governing

Scott Pruitt

EPA's Scott Pruitt Dismisses Global Warming Connection to Houston Flooding

While any one event can not be attributed to global warming, climate scientists have long acknowledged a connection to extreme weather. Pruitt, a climate denier, dismisses any such connection with the amount of rainfall from Hurricane Harvey.

September 5, 2017 - Talking Points Memo

Uber Driver

Uber Releases Trip Data in Select Cities

Uber Movement makes publicly available data for two billion trips taken on the transportation network company. Uber says the data should benefit urban planners.

September 5, 2017 - TechCrunch

High Line

Richard Florida: 'The Urban Revival Is Over'

The author of the "The Rise of the Creative Class" and the "New Urban Crisis" says cities have had their moment.

September 5, 2017 - The New York Times

Beverly Hills

Report: The 'Retail Apocalypse' Is Fake News

Reports of the death of brick and mortar retail have been greatly exaggerated, according to a new analysis.

September 4, 2017 - St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Texas Flood

The Culprit of Houston Flooding: Sprawl, Not Lack of Zoning

As Houston's flood waters recede and attention turns from rescue to recovery and soon rebuilding, critics have pointed to the city's lack of zoning as the cause of the devastation. But are they looking in the right direction?

September 4, 2017 - New York Magazine

Meet the New 'Neighborhood Stereotyping Tool'

'Hoodmaps' are here, but the crowdsourcing map tool is attempting to improve on the "Judgmental Maps" that came before.

September 4, 2017 - Curbed LA

Houston Bayou

Rebuilding Houston After Harvey: 'Bigger and Better'

Those were the words President Trump expressed before his first trip to Texas while Hurricane Harvey was ravaging Houston. But experts worry that the rebuilding won't be better due to the recision of an Obama-era environmental regulation.

September 2, 2017 - NPR

Chicago Commute

Watch Transit Move With These Animated Maps

The variables in public transit service have never been so brightly and kinetically illustrated.

September 2, 2017 - Mapzen

Wind

Of 11 Offshore Wind Energy Farms in the World, Only One Is in the U.S.

Though the United States is lagging other parts of the world in offshore wind energy capacity, that trend could be set to change in the coming decade.

September 2, 2017 - Smart Cities Dive

U.S.-Mexico

Four Companies Selected to Build Prototypes of Trump's Border Wall

In what was called a "significant milestone" by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials, Trump's controversial border wall project has shown its first tangible results.

September 1, 2017 - The Washington Post

Stockton Foreclosure

Subprime Loans Are Back—Now They're Called Nonprime Loans

Some say that "nonprime" loans will create the same financial ruins as their "subprime" predecessors. Others say the housing market needs ways for more people to buy homes and drive the industry.

September 1, 2017 - CNBC

Durham, North Carolina

Not All Mid-Sized Local Economies Are Alike

The research director of the National League of Cities explains the defining characteristics of local economies—namely that of five distinct kinds of local economies, three serve to distinguish the nuances between mid-sized cities.

August 31, 2017 - CitiesSpeak

Traffic

U.S. Drivers Continue Mileage Increase for Sixth Consecutive Year

Americans have increased their driving every year since 2011, and the first six months of 2017 were no different, increasing 1.6 percent compared to last year, according to data released Tuesday by the Federal Highway Administration.

August 30, 2017 - Federal Highway Administration

Metro Bus

Time to Worry About Declining Bus Ridership Again

The news about the decline of bus ridership around the country is making the rounds again. The future of bus transit as we know it seems to be in question.

August 29, 2017 - The Wall Street Journal

San Francisco Construction

Time Is Money for Housing Developments (and Residents)

While strict, suburban-style regulations often get a bad rap for the lack of housing in high demand cities, the red tape and other obstacles that delay development could be the worst culprit.

August 29, 2017 - Sightline Institute

Warning restrictions

Getting Creative to Reduce (or Increase) Beach Access

Communities and municipalities have deployed a surprisingly creative menu of policies to increase or restrict access to beaches. The Public trust doctrine, it turns out, is in the eye of the beach-holder.

August 29, 2017 - Next City

FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.

Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold

The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.