Suburbs

Can a Net Zero Cottage Work in the Suburbs?
In its first year alone, Zero Cottage has produced 22 percent more energy than it consumes. But can such an urban project be replicated in a suburban setting?

Are Single Family Teardowns a Sign of Suburban Gentrification?
Luxury condos are often identified as the culprit in urban gentrification, but could it be that teardowns of single family homes that give way to much larger single family homes is a driver of suburban gentrification?
Charlotte Suburbs Plan for Balanced Growth
Although growth in Union County outside of Charlotte has subsided, county officials aim to balance a legacy of unplanned growth with new opportunities for commercial development and countywide transportation.

Optimism for the Suburbs
The Bacon's Rebellion blog focuses on the potential of suburbs to meet the demands of a growing population with different lifestyles and expectations for their communities than previous generations.

Ferguson Conflict Provides Lessons in Suburban Poverty
A post by Brookings explains how the racial tensions and violent clashes between police and protestors in the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson are a symptom of common contemporary archetype: the impoverished suburb.

A Parking Paradox
Minimum parking requirements affect developer behavior most where they are most controversial: in downtown neighborhoods. In suburbs where they may just mimic the market, the arguments for such rules are paradoxically even weaker.

A Transit Boom in Minneapolis' Southwest Suburbs (Summer-Long Bike-Share Included)
SouthWest Transit, amidst a period of increased ridership, has added new express routes, new buses, and even a new bike-share program. Motivating the agency, in part at least, for are the changes due if and when light rail arrives to the suburbs.
The Need for Services for Denver's Suburban Homeless
Like in many other metro areas in the country, homelessness and poverty are spreading to the suburbs in Denver. And like in other suburban areas, homelessness hides better in the suburbs, so services can be scant for a problem that is large.

Can the Garden Suburb Save the Suburbs?
“Can Paradise be Planned?” asks Allison Arieff in a recent op-ed. The article discusses new books by architect Robert A.M. Stern and photographer Christoph Gielen to look for reasons for optimism with regard to suburbs and planning.
Charting the 'Urban Shift' Among Technology Start-Ups
Once upon a time, tech start-ups located almost exclusively in the suburbs. New data reveals the extent to which this pattern has been reversed.

On the Land Use and Transit Implications of 'Take Me Out to the Ballgame'
The decision of where to locate ballparks, and to what extent the public should subsidize that location, can have ripple effects throughout the land use and transportation systems of a region.
Ranking America's Safest Suburbs
Movoto Real Estate figured it was time to see just which suburbs can still claim to be safer than their big city neighbors.
Seattle's Growth Patterns Buck Century-Long Trend
According to Census data, the city of Seattle's population is growing faster than its King County suburbs—for the first time since 1910.

One Failure of Suburbia
Are suburbanites less fearful of crime than city-dwellers? Maybe not.

Arizona’s Suburb of the Future
Atlantic Cities details the new urbanist vision of a master planned community called Eastmark in Mesa, Arizona. The development’s mix of uses, form-based code, and walkability create “an uncommon sales pitch for car-dependent Arizona.”

Ranking the '10 Most Exciting Suburbs'
Ranking suburbs on metrics of excitement? That’s a zesty response to the suburb-bashing parlance of the times, and the Movoto Real Estate Blog has done just that.
Is Suburban Exploitation to Blame for Camden's Decline?
Are failing cities like Camden, New Jersey, to blame for their own downfall? Or are they the victims of a regional exploitation in which the suburbs foist their problems onto the nearest urban center?

Large Companies Moving Back to Cities
The movement stems from demographic changes in the work force. For companies seeking younger hires, they need to go to where they prefer to live. Suburban campuses may be replaced by urban headquarters or the addition of satellite offices in cities.
A Model for a Smarter Suburban Streetscape
Half a century of auto-oriented suburban development presents a massive challenge to planners hoping to create more sustainable and livable communities. In South Miami's Hometown district, Kaid Benfield finds a model for how to begin this transition.
"Distress 'Burbs" are the Hot Political Battlegrounds of Today
Forget swing states, Richard Florida says, suburbs are today’s political battlegrounds.
Pagination
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