Urban Renewal

Largest Ever Philadelphia Housing Authority Redevelopment to Seize 1,300 Vacant Properties

Philadelphia Housing Authority will use eminent domain to redevelop a huge swath of vacant properties in the Sharswood neighborhood.

June 12, 2015 - Philadelphia Inquirer

Remembering Urban Renewal on Jane Jacobs's Birthday

Some think of May 4 as Star Wars day, others remember May 4 as the birthday of Jane Jacobs. Charles Marohn suggests that May 4 should now be known as "Urban Renewal Remembrance Day."

May 4, 2015 - Strong Towns

Cleveland Aerial

Developer in Cleveland Can Tax Patrons Directly

Lines between public and private blur as Flats East Bank takes on the mantle of a special tax district. If the measure goes through to completion, revenue will be used to fund public improvements.

February 25, 2015 - Cleveland Plain Dealer

Runners in D.C.

Washington, D.C.: A City Held Hostage

A neutral capital "district" may have sounded like a fine idea in the early 1800s. Today, Washington, D.C.—the burgeoning city, not the political fabrication—is crippled by the whims of Congress and a host of anti-urban policies.

February 6, 2015 - Next City

A Survey of Recent Research in 'Urban Regeneration'

Journalist's Resource provides a one-stop shop for research on the subject of policies to regenerate urban areas once in decline.

February 4, 2015 - Journalist's Resource

Can Atlantic City Rebound as a Family-Friendly Destination?

An ambitious Florida real estate developer has a plan to remake Atlantic City into a family-friendly destination by investing $500 million of his own money.

January 15, 2015 - The Wall Street Journal

Downtown Cincinnati

60 Years of Midwestern Urban Renewal

Researchers at the Institute for Quality Communities at the University of Oklahoma prepared a set of images to show the indelible impact of mid-20th century urban renewal on Midwestern cities.

December 18, 2014 - Institute for Quality Communities

The Promise of Renewal in Massachusetts Gateway Cities

Massachusetts is funding a placemaking initiative to renew its old industrial gateway cities. Available funds are only $16 million, but there's a plan to make the money go a long way.

December 5, 2014 - Boston Globe

Op-Ed: Reintroduce California's Historic Restoration Tax Credit

Despite a veto by Governor Jerry Brown, California’s Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins should keep trying to pass legislation to encourage preservation, says Bay area preservation architect Jerri Holan.

October 24, 2014 - UrbDeZine

A Call to Protect Cultural Institutions from Urban Renewal

While considering plans for a large urban renewal project in Hollywood, Los Angeles struggles to avoid throwing out the baby with the bathwater—that is, saving a place for small cultural institutions when redeveloping neighborhoods.

September 29, 2014 - The Architect's Newspaper

New Development Projects Boost San Francisco's Northern Waterfront

The historic Fort Mason, along with several other development projects, has helped alter the landscape of the city’s northern waterfront, according to Jim Chappell, former head of the San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association.

September 17, 2014 - UrbDeZine

Developer Pins Los Angeles' Infrastructure Problems on Bureaucratic Bloat

According to developer and consultant Michael P. Russell, the city of Los Angeles has a chronic shortage of funds for infrastructure due to a bloated bureaucracy, small district city council elections, and term limits.

September 15, 2014 - UrbDeZine

Mixed-use waterfront

6 Ways Urban Renewal Misses the Livability Mark

Despite spending millions on urban renewal projects, municipalities often miss a common group of opportunities to make their communities more livable and walkable, according to William Adams, a San Diego-based land use attorney.

September 12, 2014 - UrbDeZine

Pittsburgh Reaches Deal for 'Transformative' Redevelopment of Lower Hill District

The old Civic Arena site, formerly the home of the Pittsburgh Penguin NHL team, will be redeveloped with the help of the city's largest-ever tax increment financing district.

September 10, 2014 - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Planned Epicurean District in Paris Raises the Specter of Gentrification

A new corridor planned as a haven for local gourmet food in the quiet Haut Marais neighborhood of Paris concerns residents with the threat of gentrification.

August 23, 2014 - New York Times

Buffalo Light Rail

Editorial: Streetcar Funding Better Spent Elsewhere

The Economist introduces the concept of the streetcar in America—its history and its recent revival—before laying the arguments in support of, and against, the role of streetcars in urban revival.

August 16, 2014 - The Economist

Study uses Google Street View to Assess Gentrification

By assessing three different groups of indicators, researchers were able to tour thousands of blocks in Chicago through Google Street View and compare visual signs of reinvestment and renewal between 2007 and 2009.

August 7, 2014 - Gizmodo

The Risks and Conflicts of Interest in San Diego's Proposed Redevelopment Scheme

Before San Diego adopts a proposal to continue redevelopment using profit-based concepts, it should pause to consider the perils, argues Murtaza H. Baxamusa, an affordable housing developer and planning professor.

August 3, 2014 - UrbDeZine

Let Love Rule: Resilience in Mesquite

Are your local planning tools supporting a thriving and resilient future? Andrew von Maur shares a little inspiration from Las Cruces, New Mexico.

March 3, 2014 - PlaceMakers

With TOD Planning, Boston Suburb Embraces a Different Brand of Urban Renewal

With the long-awaited extension of Boston's Green Line train to Somerville expected to arrive in a few years, the city has embraced a planning and development process much different from the one that "left behind some of Somerville’s worst spaces."

December 6, 2013 - The Boston Globe

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.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.