Government / Politics
Misuse of Environmental Laws Betrays Their Intent
How laws written to protect natural resources and biodiversity are being reinterpreted by NIMBY groups to block development.
Do Environmentalists Confuse Oil Production With Oil Demand?
Samantha Gross, the director of the Energy Security and Climate Initiative at the Brookings Institution, argues that the key to reducing emissions is to do the hard work of reducing oil demand rather than focusing on ending U.S. oil drilling.
Election 2024: California Voters to Decide on $6 Billion Homelessness Bond
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed two ‘behavioral health’ bills that put Proposition 1 on the March 2024 ballot, targeting the housing, mental health, and substance use treatment needs of homeless residents living in encampments. Opposition has arisen.
Missoula Approves Tax Increment Financing for Workforce Housing
The funding mechanism exchanges public funding for a certain number of affordable units.
Restoring Solvency to the Highway Trust Fund
The Highway Trust Fund, the nation's source of road and bridge funding, went bankrupt in 2008 and has since relied on transfers from the General Fund to supplement fuel taxes. Republican Senators have proposed a new funding source: an EV fee.
‘Luxury Beliefs’ and Urban Planning
Conservative pundits are using the term “luxury beliefs” as a means of criticizing progressives. But can the concept be applied to urban planning? And can it be applied in a nonpartisan way?
California Impact Fees Reach Supreme Court
An upcoming ruling could have a major impact on building and development in California and around the country.
New Book Sheds Light on Rural Governance
Learn more about a new book that provides some overdue attention to public governance and administration in small towns and rural communities.
How the Informal Economy Can Build Resilience
Building sustainable, equitable cities of the future, must take into account the important and often overlooked tasks performed by informal workers.
Could an ‘Urban Innovation Lab’ Spur Downtown Revitalization?
In his fifth article for GeekWire, Chuck Wolfe asks whether an onsite “living lab” could spur more entrepreneurship and impact downtown regeneration in Seattle.
West Virginia Tackles Vacancy With Tax Reform
The Center for Community Progress made recommendations for tax reform in West Virginia to address vacancy. Guided by CCP's suggestions, the state auditor’s office has passed two laws to change its tax sales process and keep properties in use.
How L.A. Failed to Stop Landlords From Turning Low-Cost Housing Into Tourist Hotels
Fifteen years ago, Los Angeles passed a law to preserve residential hotels as housing of last resort. Now, amid the homelessness crisis, Capital & Main and ProPublica found some hotels may be violating that law by offering rooms to tourists.
California Cities Continue Fight Against State Preemption
Lafayette City Council Member Susan Candell penned an op-ed in support of a lawsuit to invalidate Senate Bill 9 by four Southern California cities, highlighting a recent supportive court filing by UCLA economic geographer Michael Storper.
Community Engagement at L.A. County Parks
The L.A. County Department of Parks and Recreation is hosting over 60 public meetings in September to connect with the public and gather input to inform decision-making and resource allocation.
Court Ruling Overturns Texas’ ‘Death Star’ State Preemption Bill
The Texas government’s attempt to keep bluer local governments in check has been delt a setback by the state’s judicial system.
Utah Oil Shale Extraction Dealt Major Setback
The Surface Transportation Board's approval in 2021 of a proposed 85-mile Uinta Basin Railway in Utah that would have enabled increased extraction of the world's largest source of oil shale was partially vacated by a federal appeals court last month.
Edmonton Considering Sprawl Control Measures
Under a proposed standard, developing neighborhoods in Edmonton would be required to fully build out infrastructure and community facilities, like retail and amenities, before the city approves additional development.
New Park Space for an Old City
After 3,400 years, Athens will soon get its first large urban park. When completed in 2030, Ellinikon Metropolitan Park will be 600 acres (243 ha), about three-fourths the size of New York City’s Central Park, an enormous addition of green space.
U.S. Transit Agencies Still in Need of a Long-Term Solution to the Looming ‘Fiscal Cliff’
San Francisco and New York exemplify the political challenges in finding long-term finding solutions for public transit in the post-pandemic United States.
State Supreme Court Clears Way for Defunct Airport Redevelopment in Maryland
The legal controversies over a zoning amendment approved in 2019 went all the way to the top court in the state of Maryland, but by the time the court ruled, the Bowie City Council had already repealed the amendment in question.
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.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
City of Moreno Valley
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service
City of Cambridge, Maryland
