Community / Economic Development

#TimesUp

Urban Design Professor Suspended for Harassment and Intimidation

The field planning and urban design has seen relatively little in the way of controversy or consequences since the #MeToo movement gained a foothold in the public consciousness. The status quo ended this week.

August 21, 2018 - The San Francisco Chronicle

Hawaii

Honolulu, Pittsburgh Lead the U.S. in Livability

Honolulu and Pittsburgh have made a cottage industry of leading the United States on the quality of life index produced by The Economist.

August 20, 2018 - The Economist Intelligence Unit

A Black woman stands in front of a home holding an umbrella and smiling.

Lessons From Cities With Majority Black Homeownership

Locations with majority black homeownership have plenty to teach about closing the country's home ownership gap.

August 19, 2018 - Pew

Secret Stairs

A Stroll With Los Angeles' Own 'People Walker'

A cartoon strip captures the essence of Chuck, the creator of The People Walker in Los Angeles.

August 18, 2018 - The Nib

Hollywood Welcomes Carbon Neutral Complex Amid Revitalization

Kilroy Realty Corp. has broken ground on Academy on Vine, a long-anticipated campus of offices, apartments, and stores in the heart of Hollywood.

August 16, 2018 - The Planning Report

Community enagagement

Empowered Through Design: How a Purposefully Rudimentary Activity Sparks the Imagination

Memory can be an intensely powerful tool when planning for the future.

August 16, 2018 - James Rojas

Los Angeles Residential

Trulia's New Feature Shows How Much Home Buyers Care About Location

Real estate site Trulia has launched a new tool that acts as a one-stop shop for information on neighborhoods.

August 15, 2018 - Curbed

One World Trade Center

Lack of Affordable Housing Could Stunt New York's Economic Growth

Concern about the city's supply of affordable housing is one of the key messages from the recent "geography of Jobs" report published by the New York Department of City Planning.

August 9, 2018 - The Real Deal

Seattle View

How Setting Makes a Place: A Seattle Retrospective

Chuck Wolfe reflects on his rapidly changing hometown, arguing that Seattle’s signature location and setting—however rearranged by the regrades of the past, Freeway Park, or a pending James Corner-led waterfront remake—remains for all to see.

August 7, 2018 - Crosscut

Anchorage Officials Take on Code Scofflaws After Decade of Inaction

Anchorage officials have started to take a more assertive effort toward the clean up of nuisance buildings and properties that have become magnets for crime and other problems. This is the first clean-up of this scope since 2007.

August 7, 2018 - Anchorage Daily News

Commercial and Retail Uses

Chicago Considering a 'Pop-Up' Storefront Program

The new program would allow short-term use of vacant properties, and provide new incubation capabilities to small, start-up businesses.

August 6, 2018 - The Architect's Newspaper

Skyline

NYC Planning Director Marissa Lago Touts Regional Planning

Marisa Lago pens in an opinion piece supporting a regional approach to planning, timed for the release of a new "Geography of Jobs" report.

August 6, 2018 - Medium

Delivering Food to the Rural Poor with a Rolling Food Bank

Food banks in urban settings have long served communities in urban areas, now mobile food banks can truck food to the poor in sparsely populated counties.

July 31, 2018 - Pew Charitable Trusts

Kentucky

Seeking 'Opportunity Zones' Investments

The city of Louisville is making the most of the Opportunity Zone program in the early stages of the new federal program.

July 31, 2018 - Insider Louisville

Twitter Headquarters

San Francisco Could Zone Out Workplace Cafeterias

Large corporations providing on-site cafeterias are considered a threat to local restaurant business.

July 31, 2018 - San Francisco Examiner

Prospect Hill Park, Waltham, MA

Housing Crunch Provokes Debate in Boston Suburb

The city of Waltham, Massachusetts has added over 11,000 jobs since 2010, but only a few hundred homes. Developers see a prime opportunity, but city officials are reticent.

July 26, 2018 - The Boston Globe

Derelict Commercial Buildings

Optimism and Investment, Not 'Managed Decline," for the Rust Belt

Managed decline assumes that struggling cities will continue to struggle indefinitely. Is there a better way to plot neighborhood stabilization?

July 25, 2018 - Notes from the Underground

Brisbane, CA

San Francisco Suburb to Vote on Massive Project to Double Population

Brisbane, a city of about 4,700 on the southern border of San Francisco, will vote on a controversial ballot measure in November to approve or reject a mixed-use development including up to 2,200 residential units on a 660-acre vacant brownfield.

July 24, 2018 - San Mateo Daily Journal

Vacant Lot

Greening Vacant Lots Improves Depression

According to new reaearch, the power of green space where vacant lots previously stood includes mental health benefits, especially in low-income neighborhoods.

July 24, 2018 - NPR

New York City

Zoning Didn't Stand a Chance Against the Economy in New York's Garment District

Zoning can only be so effective in holding off market forces, according to this column. New York City seems to have finally learned this lesson in the Garment District, but will it inform decisions in other parts of the city?

July 24, 2018 - Crain's New York Business

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.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.

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.