Coronavirus and the Future of Cities: A Final Pre-Election Tour of the Issues

This is Planetizen's seventh collection of articles on the subject of the future of cities in the wake of the pandemic, and how cities and communities are changing plans to respond to the many changes that world has experienced in 2020.

6 minute read

November 3, 2020, 5:00 AM PST

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell

Voters wait for their chance to cast their ballots on October 15, 2020 in Wake Forest, North Carolina. | Sharkshock / Shutterstock

The sad and surreal sight of businesses boarding up windows and doors in anticipation of social unrest has become increasingly common as the United States hurtled toward Election Day, November 2020.

It's safe to say that when the calendar changed to 2020, back on the January 1, few, if any of us, anticipated anything but the election being the biggest story of the year. Now, anxious voters and the international community are forced to simultaneously navigate the brutal intersections of numerous, massive societal shifts. Planning ahead involves hunkering down until the dust settles from the election. Who could have planned for that?

Throughout the pandemic, Planetizen has been documenting the ongoing debate about the future of urbanism, planning, transportation, etc., so far sharing six previous compendiums of articles on the subject, with many more examples mixed in over the course of the year.

Do We Know Any More About the Future of Cities Than We Did in April 2020? (October 2010)
The Media Can't Stop Talking About the End of Cities (August 2020)
The Great Debate: Will the Pandemic Alter the Course of Urbanism? (July 2020)
Debating the Future of Cities After the Coronavirus, Volume 3 (June 2020)
Density Debate Rages Alongside the Pandemic (April 2020)
Debating the Future of Cities, and Urban Density, After the Pandemic (March 2020)
Coronavirus and Urbanism (Planetizen Tag)
Coronavirus and Transportation (Planetizen Tag)
Coronavirus and Density (Planetizen Tag)

We share this latest compendium of articles on Election Day, because it's clear that everything that comes after the votes are counted will mark a new chapter in the pandemic and for the United States.

If you're looking for a planning narrative within the pandemic narrative on this most auspicious of occasions, it is time to acknowledge that data have begun to confirm the anecdotal evidence about a surge in demand for non-urban lifestyles. While rent falls in the nation's densest locations (i.e., San Francisco and New York City), rent is climbing in suburban locations. Meanwhile, the price of for-sale homes spiked at a record rate over the summer.

But the trends are driven by very different economic situations that still must be disaggregated from the larger trends. Some pandemic trends are driven by people with the privilege and means to make decisions to work from home, buy cars, and buy homes on the regional periphery, and other trends are driven by people making choices out of the necessities of survival. The long-term effects of the choices made by Americans during the pandemic will only be easier to anticipate when we know more about which kind of change is happening, where, and at what scale. An effective planning response also depends on a more complete understanding of these distinctions.

Community / Economic Development Environment Housing Infrastructure Land Use Social / Demographics Transportation Urban Development Coronavirus and Urbanism Coronavirus and Density Coronavirus and Transportation Coronavirus COVID 19 Planning View More

James Brasuell

James Brasuell, AICP is the former editorial director of Planetizen and is now a senior public affairs specialist at the Southern California Association of Governments. James managed all editorial content and direction for Planetizen from 2014 to 2023, and was promoted from manging editor to editorial director in 2021. After a first career as a class five white water river guide in Trinity County in Northern California, James started his career in Los Angeles as a volunteer at a risk reduction center in Skid Row.

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Get top-rated, practical training

Start Learning

Advertise with us

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.