Debates
Urban Planning and the Democratic Debate Field
The Democratic Party will hold a two-day debate event, starting tonight. It's time to brush up on the positions of the leading candidates on policies and politics relate to housing, climate change, and infrastructure.
Debating the Qualities of a Changing New York
Is the gritty, diverse New York of yesteryear dying, vanishing, or otherwise ceasing to exist? Depends on who you ask and where you look.
Weekend Watch: Video Makes the Case for Light Rail Over Bus Rapid Transit
Here's another entry in the ongoing debate over which public transit mode reigns supreme.
It's the Tech Industry vs. the Sierra Club in California's Big Housing Debate
California State Senator Scott Wiener made a big splash this month by announcing a package of pro-development bills, and now interest groups are taking sides in a heated debate over housing and density.
Reexamining Notions of Placemaking
Surveying the public discussion for answers about how to make sense of placemaking.
The Archaeology of Public Memory and Civic Identity
The Confederate monuments debate invites a broader interdisciplinary conversation about the nature and planning of public commemorative landscapes and, by extension, the identity and soul of a community.
The Left Critiques YIMBYism
There are two fundamental flaws with the emergent "YIMBY" approach to planning and development politics, according to this article in an influential magazine of the American left.
In a Perfect World, Maintenance Is the Coolest Trend in Infrastructure
The New York Times opinion section includes a call for society, politicians, and business leaders to recognize the importance of maintenance.
Op-Ed: To Lower Housing Costs, Make it Cheaper and Easier to Build Housing
The argument in the headline, put more specifically: inclusionary zoning, fees, legal challenges, and minimum apartment sizes are counter-productive. The only policy that will add housing stock, is to make it much cheaper to add housing stock.
Inclusionary Zoning Proposed for Buffalo—Will it Help or Hurt the Housing Market?
Buffalo is considering policies to support affordable rental housing as demand rises. While inclusionary zoning is controversial everywhere, specific questions about the policy's effectiveness arise in cities with little to no population growth.
'Plansplaining' and its Discontents
Yes, planners have expertise to share, but according to this rather pointed critique, they also sometimes forget that other people do too.
Has Placemaking Become Cliché?
There’s very little that differentiates proposals by four distinguished planning and design firms to better connect my university to its immediate neighborhood and the wider city. Why is that, and does it have to be that way?
Debating Los Angeles' Proposed Affordable Housing Development Fee
A proposed affordable housing development fee has inspired a debate about how far developments fees can go in generating funds for affordable housing before they finally stop development altogether.
Debating the Role of Amazon Delivery Service in the Future Built Environment
The team at Strong Towns is taking an in-depth look at Amazon, with a week of events, including the point-counterpoint series shared here.
Ten Ways to Frame Constructive Housing Messages
There are lots of arguments available for people that want to oppose new housing projects, but what are a few guiding principles for framing a supportive and constructive housing conversation?
Leading San Francisco Architect Picks a Fight With the City's Planning Department
Architects and planners have to work together, as everyone on both sides of the equation knows. Even though the fields often speak the same language, there still seem to be many moments and ideas lost in translation.
Debating the Local-Federal Transit Funding Mix
Devolution—or the end of federal funding for local or regional transit projects—is back on the table, thanks to the Trump Administration. Articles in two prominent media outlets debate the idea.
Know of Any 'Suburbs in Name Only'?
No cities are entirely urban, or even similar from one neighborhood to the next. The Corner Side Yard has some fun thinking about which Chicago neighborhoods we "Chicago in Name Only" and which of its suburbs are "Suburbs in Name Only."
Friday Funny: The Infinite New York to Los Angeles Feedback Loop
A satirical New Yorker article nails the perpetual debate between New York and Los Angeles.
District DOT Considering Stop Consolidation to Speed Up Transit
The tough task of removing bus stops to speed up travel times is on the table in Washington, D.C.
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.
Caltrans
Smith Gee Studio
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service
