Urban Development
Closing Schools Opens Doors
On the tail of a recent announcement that Washington D.C. would decommission up to two dozen public schools, columnist Roger K. Lewis suggests that the closings can be a good thing, and that they open the door for adaptive reuse.
Selling The Garden City That Isn't A Garden City
This article from the Warsaw Business Journal looks at how the concept of the Garden City is gladly embraced by developers to market their housing projects, but rarely are its design characteristics included in the actual development.
Report Says Growth Management Plans Make Housing Unaffordable
In this new report from the Cato Institute, Randal O'Toole writes that regional growth management plans make housing unaffordable and that states with these laws should repeal them.
Munich: A Marvel Of Smart Growth and Urban Planning
Urban planners and developers in the Western United States could learn a lot from Munich, Germany, argues one online commentator.
'Complete Streets' Movement Gaining Momentum
The new slogan for bicyclists and pedestrians across America is gaining attention, as well as weight, from a number of municipalities.
Bankrupt Developer Leaves Chicago Exurban Area Desolate
The first new residents of the Clublands subdivision were promised a neighborhood. Instead they live among half-finished homes, unpaved roads, and darkened street lights as the community's developer wrestles with bankruptcy.
Trendy Transit
Subways are proliferating across the globe as metro status symbols and attracting new forms of urban investment.
Brad Pitt Announces Plans To Build Eco-Friendly Homes In New Orleans
The actor-turned-developer announced plans to build 150 environmentally-friendly homes for low-income families in New Orleans's Lower Ninth Ward.
College's Makeover Of Downtown Leaves Residents Sour
A $40 million gift from a wealthy alumna helped Wells College transform the small town of Aurora, New York into a postcard perfect setting. But while enrollment is up, residents say the change hasn't been good for them.
Building A Museum Any Planner Could Love
A storefront museum dedicated to the history and development of Reston, Virginia -- one of the nation's first planned new towns -- is set for a major expansion.
Developing Affordable Housing In The Suburbs
With more low-income households settling outside of urban centers, planners are faced with the challenge of getting affordable housing built in traditionally upscale suburban communities where zoning has all but forbid low-cost homes.
Japanese Urban Centers Fading In Rural Prefectures
Smaller cities in rural areas of Japan are being gutted out, as big box centers continue to sprout up outside cities.
Planners Object, But Courts Approve Housing Development
When developers made plans for a housing development on land an Israeli kibbutz had to sell off, planners said the required rezoning was out of the question. But five years later and still without planners' approval, the courts have allowed project.
Holding The Line On Miami-Dade's Urban Development Boundary
Citing strained resources, Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Alvarez has vetoed a number of development projects located outside of the County's ever-tenuous urban development boundary.
The Catalyst For Urban Renewal
Urban cores have undergone a long period of depopulation and depression. But with cities across the country attempting to bring these areas back, a few simple strategies are laying the groundwork.
Commercial Developers Finding Value In Mixed Use
A tax-increment financed mixed-use mall redevelopment is showing signs of success in suburban Salt Lake City, Utah, raising nearby property values and indicating a trend amongst commercial developers who are finding profit by mixing uses.
Heat Islands or Hot Air?
Sprawlmeisters take warning, advises Rob Steuteville's red-sky-at-night commentary from New Urban News. Your days of high pressure spin are numbered.
TOD Should Not Be Transit Agency's Business
This editorial from the Rocky Mountain News argues that the Denver-area Regional Transportation District needs to stay true to its promise that it will not use eminent domain to acquire land for transit oriented development.
Criticism Causes San Diego Politicians To Rethink Plan
California Attorney General Jerry Brown's criticism of San Diego's regional transportation plan has some politicians in the area considering a major revision of the region's smart growth strategy.
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
