North America
Making Regulatory Reform Work in Seattle
Although Seattle's downtown redevelopment may be receiving plaudits, Chuck Wolfe describes efforts underway to rethink land use regulations on a broader level in the city, with jobs in mind.
Using Cartoons to Explain Smart Growth
Consider adding this animated video, which explains how past planning practices created sprawl and how smart growth policies can help solve multiple problems, to your family's Sunday morning cartoon rotation.
Top Emerging Art Scenes Unveiled
Earlier this month, Good asked its readers to submit picks for cities full of emerging talent and creativity. In this piece Colleen Wormsley compiles the results.
Parenting in the Post-McMansion Era
As oversized homes fall out of fashion, is Junior's private lair disappearing? And is that really so bad?
Appreciating The Legacy Of Planning Pioneer Charles Haar
Comprehensive planning is customary in a great many American cities these days, but it wasn't long ago that the concept was foreign to most planners. Attorney and scholar Charles M. Haar was one of the figures who revolutionized the field.
Housing: Fundamentals, Imbalance, and Solutions
Is the dream home for the New Era compact, connected and mortgage free?
Why Is Sustainable Urbanism Illegal?
Writing for Alternet, Sara Robinson reports on the Sightline Institute's efforts to compile a list of what she calls "zombie laws" that prevent people from living sustainably.
Is the Era of the Big-Box Ending?
Marina Strauss reports on the changing retail landscape, in which retailers such as Wal-Mart and Staples are counting on smaller stores to draw customers. As McMansions lose their luster, are over-sized retailers the next victim of changing tastes?
Revisiting Retrofitting Suburbia
Matt Bevilacqua speaks with Ellen Dunham-Jones, renowned co-author of Retrofitting Suburbia, about the key factors impacting suburban redevelopment and the recent retrofit projects across the country that have caught her eye.
Growing a Green Roof Movement in America
Metropolis blogger Joseph G. Brin interviews Charlie Miller, P.E., of Roofmeadow, to find out why green roofs have been slow to catch on in the United States.
The Once and Future Urbanism of Sandwich Boards
Chuck Wolfe traces the comeback of sandwich board signage in cities, explains how associated regulations work, and offers reasons why such signage should be carefully fostered.
Foursquare Allows Users to See (and Search) Into the Future
Google and Yelp have changed the way people navigate their urban environment over the past several years by utilizing GPS to help users locate nearby goods and services. But what do you do when you want to search where you will be, not where you are?
Financing Post-Recession Development
Building in the New Economy isn't business as usual. Howard Blackson lays out policy, planning, land assembly and financing tools to help us with our task at hand.
Waiting for the Subway
When compared to China's accomplishments in completing subway lines, North America's cities look exceedingly timid, where construction timeframes can stretch into decades. Will Doig examined why.
Innovation when Good Planning Policy Has Become the Norm
Scott Doyon argues for a stripped-down, back-to-basics 'punk rock' approach to urban growth and development to replace the 'rock and roll' excesses of planning during the housing boom; and he profiles the new innovators who are doing just that.
North America Rethinks Its Strip Malls
As the strip malls ubiquitous across the suburbs of the United States and Canada lose favor and become increasingly derelict, planners and developers debate whether there is anything about the 'retail relics' worth salvaging.
The Ten Best Preservation Projects in the Last Five Years
Writing in Urban Land, Ron Nyren highlights his top ten historic preservation projects from the last half-decade.
Six Trending Urbanist Themes for the New Year
Chuck Wolfe analyzes his 2011 articles which appeared on Planetizen and in other sources, and derives his urbanist trends to watch for in 2012.
Rules for Planning Successful Retail Developments
Hazel Borys discusses how several key form-based guidelines for retail can encourage success in the most risky of all development types.
Life in the Slow Lane
After decades of building for speed, cities are rediscovering the virtues of slow: walking, biking and streetcars are taking over from freeways.
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.
City of Albany
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
