Illinois

Chicago's 606 Bike Path Made Gentrification Inevitable, Expert Claims
Because the rails to trails project left housing up to the market, rising rents were inevitable, claims a new report.

Chicago Ordinance Focuses on Equitable TOD
Transit-oriented development has ramped up in Chicago, but racial and economic inequities have come along with it. A proposed ordinance would expand TOD zones while also preventing displacement of residents.

Early Reviews of Elon Musk's Boring Co. Tunnel
Take a tour of Elon Musk's idea for fixing Los Angeles congestion.

A System For Identifying the Opportunity Zones Most Likely to Deliver on the Triple Bottom Line
Some "Opportunity Zones" will deliver more social end environmental benefits than others.

Construction Contracts Awarded for Chicago Transit Authority's Largest Project Ever
A flyover to clear a bottleneck of trains serving the Red, Brown, and Purple lines is a key component of the massive modernization project planned by the Chicago Transit Authority.

Theaster Gates Brings Together Planning and Art to Empower Communities
His work in Chicago has created spaces that protect and celebrate black lives and experience.

HUD's Spotty Record on Inspections
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is desperately in need of reform in its system of inspections and enforcement of living conditions in public housing.

Fans of Transit and/or Chicago: We Have a Card Game for You
The card game LOOP was made by people who obviously put in some serious time hanging from straps on the L.

Planning Finally Gets a Role in the Ballet
We've seen planning take the Broadway stage and turned into an Oprah, but perhaps the ballet is the most surprising place to see planning ideas on the stage.

Virgin Trains, Formerly Brightline, Planning Eight Expansion Corridors
November's bombshell news about the partnership between Virgin and Brightline has now yielded ambitious plans for private investment in intercity rail service.

Plan Changes for Chicago’s Lincoln Yards Project
The massive proposed development project on the Chicago River is facing a host of questions about density, open space, and infrastructure.

Price Triples for Keeping Asian Carp Out of Lake Michigan
It's been expensive year for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' efforts to prevent environmental catastrophe in Lake Michigan.
'Don't Be a Turkey: Ride Transit'
The Regional Transit Authority took to the streets of Chicago to drum up support for transit, and transit funding, this Thanksgiving.

An Argument for a Graduated Real Estate Transfer Tax in Chicago
As it exists today, Chicago's real estate transfer tax is a flat tax that charges the same percentage for modest homes and mansions.

The Problems With Tax Increment Financing and How to Fix Them
Tax increment financing (TIF) districts are common in municipalities across the country. However, the economic development tool is also poorly understood and often the target of criticism.

Study Finds Fewer Young People Want Cars
Driving is often marketed as fun and liberating, but millennials aren’t buying it.

Chicago Parklet Designed to Be Flexible and Cost Effective
A newly installed parklet in Chicago is part of a larger program to engage the city’s public spaces.

Post-Amazon Chicago: Mayor Seeks $1.7 Billion in Subsidies for Downtown Developments
Making the case that proposed developments won't come to fruition with support from tax increment financing, Mayor Rahm Emanuel is moving quickly to shore up development plans now that Amazon has moved on.

Are Chicago's Transit Oriented Developments Generating Enough Affordable Housing?
Chicago's Logan Square neighborhood is the scene for a very contemporary land use policy debate: how much affordable housing can cultivated from the development opportunities in proximity to transit lines?

Chicago Wants Bike Sharing to Reach All Parts of City
The city recently received a grant that will help it grow its bike-share network, particularly into areas that have been underserved.
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.
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