Government / Politics

San Diego Harbor

San Diego Passes New Vacation Rental Regulations

The city passed a proposal to limit the number of whole-home vacation rentals and implement new regulations and fees for rental property owners.

March 1, 2021 - Voice of San Diego

DART Dallas

Dallas Council Begrudgingly Keeps Downtown Streetcar Alive

Council members complain that the Oak Cliff Streetcar is a "vanity project" that drains money from other potential transit improvements.

March 1, 2021 - D Magazine

University of Pennsyvlania

Philadelphia Leaders Dream Big With New Transit Plan

The plan, which looks more than two decades into the future, seeks to modernize the city's transit system, address inequities, and improve regional connectivity.

March 1, 2021 - WHYY

Salt Lake City, TRAX Red Line

U.S. DOT Grant Program to Allocate Funds for Climate and Environmental Justice Projects

The Infrastructure for Rebuilding America program will, for the first time, support projects aimed specifically at reducing emissions and fighting the effects of climate change and environmental racism.

February 28, 2021 - TechCrunch

Plane and Train

Noise Pollution Harms the Heart, Too

New research shows that excessive noise levels have significant negative impacts on heart health.

February 28, 2021 - The Atlantic

Washington State Ferry

Washington State Considering New Gas Tax, Transit and Bike Fees

The state legislature is weighing three proposals that seek to fund improvements to aging infrastructure and upgrade the state's transportation network.

February 26, 2021 - Seattle Times

Multi-Modalism in New Orleans

New Orleans Weighs Regional Transit Plan

A new proposal would improve wait times for area buses and bring more households within walking distance to transit stops.

February 26, 2021 - NOLA.com

Helicopter New York City

What About all the Helicopter Noise?

New York's busy airspace can be an inescapable nightmare for residents who experience noise pollution on a daily basis.

February 26, 2021 - StreetsBlog NYC

Concert crowd

How Independent Music Venues Became a Powerful Lobbying Force

A group of venue owners formed in response to the pandemic successfully got a $15 billion support bill passed to help small venues stay afloat during the pandemic.

February 25, 2021 - Bloomberg CityLab

Yield Sign

Virginia Lawmakers Won't Let Cyclists Roll Through Stop Signs—Yet

The state legislature passed a bill calling for a study of the proposed law and its effects in other states.

February 25, 2021 - The Washington Post

Houston Sprawl

How to Fix Racist Housing Policies: Sue the Suburbs

Strengthening U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's civil rights enforcement could send a powerful signal to communities resistant to changing discriminatory housing rules.

February 25, 2021 - Vox

Train platform

Boston-to-New York High-Speed Rail Project Hopes for Federal Support

If completed, the North Atlantic Rail project could transform New England's transportation landscape.

February 25, 2021 - Bloomberg CityLab

Texas Wind

Lone Star Grid

The Arctic blast that shut down power to millions of Texas households last week has brought renewed attention to the isolated Texas power grid that prevented the operator from importing out-of-state electricity.

February 24, 2021 - Austin American-Statesman

Chicago Dog Park

Boston Leaders Want A Dog Park in Every Neighborhood

City leaders want to build more off-leash dog parks, partly as a response to the trend of "pandemic puppies" that has led to a sharp spike in urban dog ownership.

February 24, 2021 - The Boston Globe

Six Corners

Chicago Planning Department Rejects 'Overparked' Six Corners Proposal

In a decision that is still impossible in most of the country, Chicago's Department of Planning and Development is requiring housing and reduced surface parking to approve a retail project.

February 24, 2021 - Streetsblog Chicago

Proposed Midtown Connector plan

Atlanta Weighs 'Midtown Connector' Freeway Cap

The billion-dollar project would create a 25-acre park and 3.5 miles of new bike and pedestrian routes.

February 23, 2021 - Urbanize Atlanta

Wheelchair user on sidewalk

What the Livability Index Shows About Housing

A new report highlights inequalities in accessibility and affordability.

February 22, 2021 - Harvard Center for Joint Housing Studies

HEB Grocery Store

Blaming ERCOT

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), the nonprofit, independent power grid operator for 90 percent of the nation's second-largest state, has become the convenient fall guy for the epic power failure caused by an extreme weather event.

February 22, 2021 - Austin American-Statesman

Environmentalism

U.S. Officially Rejoins the Paris Climate Accord

Rejoining the international climate accord is the first step into a long journey back into the good faith of the international community working to curb emissions and prevent the worst effects of climate change.

February 22, 2021 - The Washington Post

Summer

Public Drinking in America

Regulating alcohol in the public realm.

February 22, 2021 - Diana Ionescu

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.