Michigan
Shrinking Cities, On Purpose
Flint, Michigan is another ailing city that is considering demolishing entire neighborhoods and returning them to nature as a way to save the rest of the city from blight.
Can Detroit Come Back?
As Time Magazine observes, Detroit is the icon of the failing American city, but 'vast swaths of it don't look like a city at all.' Some say 'missing teeth' of Detroit make it a prime candidate to infill appropriately, and 'right-size'.
GM Shake-Ups Frazzle Factory Town
Ypsilanti, Michigan, has been a GM factory town for more than 50 years. With the recent ouster of GM CEO Rick Wagoner by the federal government, many in the oft-shaken town are worried about its future.
Can Detroit be Reinvented?
The near-bankruptcy of the American auto industry is just the latest in a long history of challenges Detroit has endured.
Rebirth Through Art in Abandoned Detroit
This piece from NPR looks at what artists are doing in Detroit to snatch up abandoned homes and convert them into community centers and art spaces.
Habitat Tears Down Shrinking City's Houses
Habitat for Humanity, known for building low-cost, affordable houses, has taken to deconstructing homes in Saginaw, MI. Reselling the materials and building smaller homes in their stead make more sense than rehabilitating an old house, they say.
Regional Rail Chances Getting Brighter in Detroit
With a recent infusion of $44 million and hopes for more from the federal stimulus package, regional light rail is gathering momentum in Detroit. Advocates see more than mobility in the struggling city's future.
The Power of Public-Private Partnerships
Indianapolis is a thriving job market, while Detroit is rapidly decaying and drying up. What's the difference? Policies encouraging public-private partnerships, according to this article from Next American City.
Detroit's Bike Path Connection
This piece from Metropolis looks at a rail line that was converted into a bike trail in Detroit, and how it has become a well-used neighborhood connector.
Commercial Vacancies Hit Tax Rolls Hard
As commercial vacancies increase, cities are feeling the pain of lower tax revenues.
Piecing Neighborhoods Together Out Of Foreclosures
In Detroit, a couple bought a foreclosure for $1900. They've been steadily piecing together a community out of their neighborhood ever since.
Auto Town on Path to Takeover by State
The state of Michigan is getting ready to institute an emergency manager to effectively take over the financial operations of the auto industry city of Pontiac, which has struggled economically for more than a decade.
Does Detroit Have a Bright Transit Future?
Jon Zemke ponders the many possibilities for building a world-class transportation network throughout metro Detroit.
The Courage of Detroit
Mitch Albom writes about the ghosts of Detroit, and the undying belief that someday the city will come back.
Census Reveals Recession’s Effect On Migration
The U.S. Census Bureau released its report for the year ending July 1, 2008. It showed that the effect of the recession was to reduce domestic migration from the Northeast and Midwest to the West and Sunbelt. Utah was the fastest growing state.
Blogging the Blight of a Deteriorated Detroit Neighborhood
Amid the citywide blight of Detroit is the City Airport neighborhood -- rife with crime and virtually deserted by residents. But now former residents have begun to write and blog about the neighborhood, its better times and its possible futures.
Shrinking City Planning
Detroit's population is rapidly declining, but the answer to revitalizing the city may lie in part in urban farming.
From Motor City to Metaphor City
Detroit's decay epitomizes the collapse not just of the American auto industry, but the entire American consumer economy as well, writes Jennifer Wells.
Bike Racks as Public Art Gaining Popularity
Quirky, artistic bike racks are cropping up in cities around the country--a trend that benefits more than just cyclists.
Hospitals Flee Poor Areas
Unable to bear the financial burden of serving the community's poor, inner-city nonprofit hospitals have been shutting down while investing in suburban hospitals, where patients are more likely to be insured.
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
