Regional Planning
Why the Infrastructure Bank is Right On
Columnist Neal Peirce throws his weight behind the Obama Infrastructure Bank proposal.
'The Valley' Gets Place-Making Power
A new joint powers authority comprised of cities and county supervisorial districts will help planning efforts in the San Fernando Valley--a sub-region often lost in the shuffle of the sprawling Los Angeles metropolis.
Regional Housing Plan Trumps Growth Control Ordinances
A court has ruled that, contrary to its zoning laws, the bedroom community of Pleasanton must add more bedrooms. The ruling wipes out local, voter-approved growth control ordinances.
Freeways Responsible For Emptying Out Cities
A recent study shows that for every significant freeway that gets built in a major city, population declines by about 18%. Nathaniel Baum-Snow, author of the study, talks with Planetizen.
The Problem With Thinking Regionally
Carol Coletta is a believer in the new emphasis in regional government, but worries that it may be at the expense of the local.
Are States Outdated?
Alan Greenblatt reports on increasing chatter among liberal blogs over whether states as a form of government are obsolete, while regional interests are more valid and under-represented.
Toward an Ethic of Place: Experiments in Regional Governance
Matthew McKinney argues that regional governance is essential to address transboundary issues like climate change, wildlife corridors, shared water resources, and energy development.
New Jersey Bills Called Threat to Planning and Environmental Protection
Environmental groups in New Jersey have warned that state legislators are planning to bring forth a series of bills that could negatively affect local planning powers and state environmental controls.
A Tale of Two Niagaras
Niagara Falls, NY and Niagara Falls, Ontario are a study in contrasts -- Ontario's a success story of good governance and planning, New York's the complete opposite. Rob Gurwitt has the story.
MPOs Have Scope, But No Power
As the regionality of urban planning issues becomes more clear, metropolitan planning organizations are uniquely suited to shape the policy response. But, according to this piece from Citiwire, they lack the power to do it.
California Cities Object To Greenhouse Gas Law
California's SB 375 attempts to require cities to develop in a way that reduces greenhouse gas emissions. But some cities say the new law is misguided, and the state should focus on zero-emission vehicles instead.
Retrofitting for Regional Government
Anthony Flint says that we have a lot of work ahead of us to retrofit America for the next century, from replacing water heaters to replacing old government structures with new, more regional ones.
Florida Looks At High-Speed Rail Plan
Richard Florida compares the Obama administration's suggest HSR corridors to the mega-regions they will serve and likes what he sees.
Portland Region Tries to Decide What to Develop, What to Preserve
Officials from three counties in the Portland region are trying to work together to decide where to locate regional urban reserves of land for future development and rural reserves for preservation.
Time for Real Estate to 'Get Real'
Ventura, CA, City Manager Rick Cole Op-ed argues for a comprehensive paradigm shift in the real estate and development industries.
Whither the Regional Planning?
Over a year ago I blogged about a conference of urban historians where the group debated a talk, titled "Whither the Region?," where historian Greg Hise observed the group was talking about regional history less. In my response, I suggested several causes: limited decision-making at the regional level in America, center city biases among historical sources like newspapers, and metropolitan areas growing to encompass entire regions due to urban sprawl. I also observed that although it may go unstudied by the group, a good number of regional planning organizations and agencies do exist.
Innovative Regional Government
Envisioning a form of government more efficient to strategically invest scarce local, state and federal dollars is at the heart of such a proposal.
California's Biggest Land Use Story Is Not The Housing Market
The deepening of the housing market crisis is certainly a big deal in California. But the land use story of the year was the Legislature's passage of a measure mandating regional planning.
Make No Little Plans, 100 Years Later
As the 100-year anniversary of the writing of the Burnham Plan for Chicago approaches, the city and its suburbs are thinking big about how to improve the city.
The Origin of New Urbanism's Persistent Image Problem
Decades after its founding, New Urbanism design movement retains a serious reputation problems among American urbanists.
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.
Clanton & Associates, Inc.
Jessamine County Fiscal Court
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
