United States

Coit Tower

Beyond the Big One: Real Recovery in San Francisco

What does it mean to be a Chief Resilience Officer for one America's largest cities? Doggerel spoke to Patrick Otellini, Chief Resilient Officer for San Francisco, to find out what it takes to make a truly resilient city.

September 29, 2015 - Doggerel

Water Dripping

How the Internet of Things Can Help Solve Water Woes

New tools and technologies of the so-called Internet of Things are helping cities get a better handle on water scarcity and overabundance.

September 28, 2015 - Data-Smart City Solutions

The Unkickable Can: Toward a 'Livability Synthesis'

Ben Brown points out the potential political upside to the aging population.

September 28, 2015 - PlaceShakers

Sunday Funny: The Pope Blesses Ailing U.S. Infrastructure

The Onion notes the effusive compassion of Pope Francis by imaging that his trip to the United States this week included an act of healing for the nation's infrastructure.

September 27, 2015 - The Onion

China to Start Cap-and-Trade to Limit Greenhouse Gas Emissions in 2017

President Xi Jinping announced a landmark commitment on Sept. 25 to commence a cap-and-trade program in 2017, going further than the U.S. to limit emissions.

September 26, 2015 - The New York Times - Asia Pacific

Eliminating the Dangerous 'Waze Left'

Vocal users of the wildly popular navigation app Waze have pushed the company's developers to look for a solution to its routing algorithm's tendency to send drivers turning left through crowded intersections.

September 25, 2015 - The Atlantic

Detroit - Renaissance Center

White Population Shifting Decades-Long Trends in Cities

The Census has confirmed what many trend stories and liberals have been saying for a while now—white people are moving back to cities.

September 25, 2015 - The Washington Post - Wonkblog

Meter

A Counterpoint in the Great Uber Dialogue

An op-ed counters concerns about the social equity consequences of Uber by allowing the possibility of public benefits arising from transportation network companies.

September 24, 2015 - William Riggs

No Luxury Condos

Report: There's a Right Way to Do Inclusionary Zoning

A new study from the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy makes the case for well-timed, thoughtful use of inclusionary zoning as a tool to support diverse, affordable communities.

September 24, 2015 - At Lincoln House

Thoughts on the Dynamic Cities Sector

After spending more than a decade in government and real estate development, Brian Swett recently joined Arup in the role of Director of Cities and Sustainable Real Estate in the Americas. We asked for his thoughts on urban expansion and development.

September 24, 2015 - Doggerel

Seaside Entrance

Thoughts on Seaside at 35

Seaside, Florida: what’s possible when vision, tradition, creativity, adaptation, and, yes, time converge in ways that allow for careful study and consideration.

September 24, 2015 - PlaceShakers

'Beyond the 710' Seeks Multimodal Alternatives to Filling Freeway Gap

A coalition in Los Angeles County wants to reframe the debate about closing the gap in the 710 Freeway, asking Metro to look "beyond the 710"—and toward a multi-pronged, multimodal approach to transportation problems in the region.

September 23, 2015 - The Planning Report

Volkswagen Caught Cheating on Emissions Testing

A toxic revelation about the use of software to cheat emissions testing, found in 11 million Volkswagen vehicles, has taken down the company's CEO and could cost the company around $7.3 billion.

September 23, 2015 - The New York Times

High School Football

Op-Ed: Stop Attacking My Suburb!

A proud suburban resident defends her neighborhood from the criticisms of city-dwellers. It's not walkable, it's not perfect, but it's home.

September 22, 2015 - Star Tribune

Office Building

Why We're Not Meant to Live in Boring Cities

Features like blank street facades literally turn us off, decreasing mental stimulation and bringing on restlessness and stress. Research points to worrying consequences for people who find their city, well, boring.

September 22, 2015 - Aeon

Study: 'Severely Cost-Burdened Renters' Could Increase 25 Percent

A study by Enterprise Community Partners and Harvard's Joint Center on Housing Studies includes dire predictions about the future of an already-deeply-troubled rental market.

September 22, 2015 - Bloomberg Business

Suburban Rowhouses

Visualizing the Housing Stock of American Cities

A simple chart allows an easy comparison between the varieties of housing that comprise the housing stock of U.S. cities.

September 22, 2015 - The Washington Post - Wonkblog

Fire

On the Altered Landscapes of the Wildfire West

The heightened intensity of wildfires in the Western United States, along with other human factors, are short-circuiting the natural processes of rebirth.

September 21, 2015 - The New York Times

Mercedes-Benz Developing Self-Driving Limousines

Manifesting predictions that many self-driving vehicles will serve as a new form of taxi service, Mercedes-Benz recently revealed some of its plans to develop a fleet of on-demand limousines.

September 21, 2015 - Quartz

Suburban Dead End

Poverty Less Rural Than 50 Years Ago

It used to be that the nation's rural areas suffered from the highest poverty rates. Today, nearly half of the American poor live in mid-sized counties.

September 21, 2015 - Pew Research Center

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.