The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

The Robert Moses Nexus to Amazon's Cancellation of Queens HQ2
Last week, Amazon abruptly canceled its decision to invest about $2.5 billion and bring 25,000 high-paying jobs to Queens. A scholar blames their abrupt decision on an arcane state bureaucracy tasked with preventing Robert Moses-like takings.

Housing Discrimination Still a Vast Problem, Survey Finds
In a survey conducted last October, Zillow found that 27 percent of respondents believe they've experienced housing discrimination. National Fair Housing Alliance president Lisa Rice discusses why that is.

Philadelphia Sees Record Housing Production
An influx of millennials is driving population and housing growth in the Center City neighborhood.

Obama Presidential Center Dealt Legal Setback
There are more than a few reasons to think that the Obama Presidential Center won't go the way of the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, which gave up and decamped for Los Angeles.

Keeping the Dream Alive of a Downtown Freeway Cap in Atlanta
Advocates and experts are still working to further the idea of capping a Downtown freeway connector in Atlanta—a project called "The Stitch."

Momentum Builds for Public Housing in California
A "white supremacist" law that blocks public housing in the state is up for repeal—again.

Connecticut Transportation Funding Debate: Toll Trucks or Toll All Vehicles?
New Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont has reversed the position of his campaign, when he pledged to toll only heavy trucks to tackle traffic congestion. In an op-ed, Lamont explains why all vehicles must be tolled. He also rules out a gas tax hike.

Lyft Goes Greener With EVs
Lyft will add electric vehicles to its rental fleet and offer riders the option to request hybrid and electric vehicles.

Storefront Service Centers Put Transit Agencies on Solid Footing
During a time when there are apps and websites for just about everything, some transit agencies are turning to storefronts to better serve their customers.

Oregon to Consider New Densities for Transit Adjacent Neighborhoods
The Oregon Legislature is already considering one of the most sweeping and ambitious statewide land use reform bills in the country. A new bill would allow even more density around transit stations.

Steady Loss of San Francisco Bay Area Affordable Housing
Skyrocketing rental costs are hitting low-income residents even harder as available subsidized housing continues to disappear.

Major Street Redesign Coming to Pittsburgh's Historic Strip District
Five blocks in Pittsburgh's Historic Produce Terminal Strip District will gain wider sidewalks, public spaces, and traffic calming according to a recently released final design concept.

Affordable Housing Tipping Point in Charlotte
Charlotte saw the writing on the wall, and decided to act decisively in addressing its lack of affordable housing options.

San Antonio's Draft Climate Plan Receives Relatively Warm Reception
The public had its first chance to weigh in on a draft climate plan released in January, sending signals about the political viability of climate change action in the state of Texas.

BLOG POST
Seeing the Urban Forest for the Trees
It is important to focus on forests rather than individual trees when evaluating trade-offs between infill and sprawled development.

What President Trump's Border Wall Can't Stop
William H. Frey, a demographer with Brookings, argues that racial diversity is a good thing for the country by many measures. Trump's wall would make it harder to benefit from demographic changes, but changes is still coming.

Reaching the People: Taking an Innovative Approach to Public Engagement
This article features the innovative outreach work of the Broward County Metropolitan Planning Organization, the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority, and California High-Speed Rail, among others.

Taking the Carbon Emissions Out of Buildings
Much of the focus on decreasing carbon emissions is on the electrical grid and vehicles. But, buildings are a huge contributor, and California is leading the way in making electrification a priority.

Gentrification in Post-Katrina New Orleans
An analysis of New Orleans before and after Hurricane Katrina shows that the neighborhoods most damaged were also the most likely to gentrify.

Explained: The Common Look of the Contemporary Mid-Rise Apartment Building
Last week's urbanism social media landscape was dominated by discussion of an article that digs into the historical and technical origins of the contemporary mid-rise apartment building type.
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