Housing
New Homes Being Built In Wildfire Zones
New development in Southern California's wildfire zones are required to provide safety features such as special landscaping and fireproof materials. Critics say cost to society is high.
New Urban Projects Faring Well In Declining Market
New Urban and transit oriented developments are showing better financial health compared to other types of development as the housing market declines nationwide.
Friday Funny: Disney's 'Urban Adventure'
As the Disney Corporation and the city of Anaheim, California, squabble over a proposal to build affordable housing near the Happiest Place on Earth, Morris Newman suggests turning the affordable housing project into an "urban theme park".
Affordable Housing Projects Demolished But Never Replaced
A rash of building demolitions has erased more than 700 units of affordable housing in the Washington D.C. area, but replacement buildings have not been constructed.
The 'Ad-Hoc' Redevelopment of New Orleans
Rebuilding and redevelopment continues is New Orleans, with a wide variety of architectural styles creating a patchwork in the city. Some say this free-form redevelopment is good for the city, but others are calling it a mistake.
The World's Skinniest House
Take a tour inside what may be the skinniest house ever built -- the bite-sized answer to the McMansion.
Shhh, Don't Share This News About Portland
After a New York Times real estate article points out that on top of being one of America's most livable cities it is also one of its most affordable, there could be mass migration to Portland.
Despite Congratulations, Completed Affordable Housing Falls Short Of Need
As public officials in New York tout their own work to build affordable housing, housing advocates are filing lawsuits against them arguing that they have fallen way short of the amount of units their cities need.
Pricing Blue Collar Workers Back Into The Housing Market
As part of a new effort to increase access to housing, advocates are working in three target areas to try to find the best ways to create affordable workforce housing in areas that are typically too expensive for many blue-collar workers.
What L.A. Can Learn About Homelessness From Other U.S. Cities
Strategies used by cities such as Miami, Philadelphia, New York, St. Louis, Seattle, & Denver for reducing homelessness are working.
The 'Horror' of Gentrification
The recurring theme in horror movies of newly-arrived tenants being haunted by former tenants and vengeful spirits may be seen as a metaphor for gentrification, writes Sam Miller.
Cottages, Not Trailers, Set For Louisiana's Jackson Barracks
Already lagging behind Mississippi, Louisiana has finally approved the construction of 75 "Louisiana Cottages" (AKA Katrina Cottages) as an alternative to FEMA's temporary trailers, long thought to be a sub-standard and undignified form of housing.
The Other Firestorm
While catastrophic, the California fires will not have nearly the destructive impact as the other firestorm still in progress: the subprime meltdown.
Use It Or Lose It
Housing activists are pushing city officials to adopt a type of eminent domain to take over neglected buildings and turn them into affordable housing. That idea is easier said than afforded by city coffers.
Border Towns Share More Than Boundary
The border towns of El Paso, Texas, and Juárez, Mexico, are increasingly becoming more and more alike -- from demographics, to land development types, to housing prices.
Energy Efficiency Grants Under Scrutiny
Government programs that subsidize energy-efficiency improvements in houses are being reconsidered as some claim the effort isn't worth the benefit.
Condos Keep Vancouver's Market Hot
Now Canada'a most expensive housing market, downtown Vancouver is attracting more and more big-spending buyers and watching its property values skyrocket.
Growth Pushes People Into Fireplace
Increased development in wooded and fire-prone areas is one of the major causes of California's recent "megafires".
If The Youth Can't Rent, They Probably Won't Stay
Low vacancy rates are threatening to push younger populations out of Vancouver.
Instant Shelter For Disaster Areas
This slideshow from Wired shows some examples of temporary, quick-build housing that can be used in post-disaster situations.
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.
EMC Planning Group, Inc.
Planetizen
Planetizen
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service
