United States

Water Bottles

Clean Water Crisis Exacerbated by Coronavirus

Communities have demanded access to clean water for decades, in some cases. The coronavirus pandemic is compounding the struggle and illustrating the inadequacy of most local government responses.

April 22, 2020 - Vox

Apartment Construction

Increase Housing Supply Softened Rent Increases in D.C., Study Says

A study recently published by the District of Columbia offers supporting evidence to a supply-side approach to housing affordability in high-demand markets.

April 22, 2020 - District of Columbia Office of Revenue Analysis

Highway Construction

Opinion: Don't Allow Highway Boondoggles in Stimulus Spending

Instead of doubling down on the unsustainable planning and building practices, the current crisis offers a chance to hit reset, according to this article.

April 21, 2020 - Frontier Group

COVID-19 City

Large Cities Were Already Losing Population. Then Came the Coronavirus.

"Cities of all sizes may soon look less alluring, if drastic drops in income, sales and tourism tax revenue leave gaping holes in budgets," according to this article, which encapsulates a popular school of thought as the pandemic rages.

April 21, 2020 - The New York Times

Paris Street

Is it Time to Revive the Pattern Language?

Software and other fields have made brilliant progress with the pattern language methodology, while built environment fields lag badly, mired in parochial debates over the massive book that invented the methodology.

April 21, 2020 - Michael Mehaffy

Road Closure

State and Local Border Restrictions Draw Legal Scrutiny

Some call restrictions at state and county borders necessary to protect the public health of communities. Others call them unconstitutional.

April 20, 2020 - The Washington Post

Drive-Through Coronavirus Testing

U.S. Needs to More Than Triple Testing Before States Can Open, Study Says

The United States currently tests about 145,000 people daily. A Harvard study calls for a minimum of 500,000 daily, but that's on the low end if the country wants to prevent shutting down again due to a second wave of the coronavirus.

April 20, 2020 - The New York Times

Helena, Montana

President Trump's Plan to Reopen the Economy Rests with States

After initially saying that he had total authority on how and when to reopen the economy, Trump handed the responsibility to the 50 governors to make their own decisions and offered guidance in the form of a three-phase plan that relies on testing.

April 20, 2020 - The New York Times

Dry Lake in Arizona

Once-in-a-Millennium Megadrought—Happening Now in the Western United States

The Western United States is experiencing a drought the scale of which has only been seen once before in the past 1,200 years, according to a new study. Climate change is not a future problem, say the researchers responsible for the study, it's here.

April 20, 2020 - The Washington Post

Case Study Program

AIA National Conference Canceled

The conference had been postponed with the potential of being rescheduled later this year.

April 20, 2020 - The Architect's Newspaper

Construction

Demand Expected to Slow in U.S. Rental Market

Analysis from the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University predicts the pandemic will reduce rents, but only at the top of the market.

April 20, 2020 - Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University

Coronavirus Lock Down

The Geography of Low-Income Job Losses

The historic job losses of the past two months have hit the most vulnerable workers harder than others, so far. The Urban Institute estimated and mapped where more low-income jobs have been lost.

April 19, 2020 - Urban Institute

New York Public Transit

Why, and How, to Cut Public Transit Service

There wasn't a playbook for this kind of emergency at the beginning of the year.

April 19, 2020 - Human Transit

COVID-19 Mobility

Watch: The Future of Cities After COVID-19

An expert panel convened to discuss the effect of the coronavirus on the foundations of society and contemporary life. The future, both the remaining time dealing with the pandemic and after, is becoming more clear with every passing day and week.

April 17, 2020 - Planetizen Courses

Electric Car Charging Stencil

The U.S. Passed a Clean Energy Stimulus in 2009—Can the Same Happen in 2020?

The Obama-era American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 funded clean energy and created jobs during the Great Recession. Will clean energy be considered in a future stimulus bill to mitigate economic strain cased by the coronavirus pandemic?

April 17, 2020 - Los Angeles Times

Coronavirus Economy

Layoffs Sweeping the Construction Industry

Halted construction work has contributed to a growing number of layoffs in the construction industry during the month of April.

April 17, 2020 - Smart Cities Dive

Texas Commercial Real Estate

How One Commercial Real Estate Landlord Assesses the Market

The complete upheaval of the commercial real estate market seemingly happened overnight, but the pandemic followed years of structural changes, so the recovery could take much longer.

April 16, 2020 - The Dallas Morning News

New York Housing

Expanding Housing Choice Vouchers Would Strengthen the Safety Net

An expanded housing voucher program is needed to address the medium- and long-term economic consequences of COVID-19.

April 16, 2020 - Shelterforce Magazine

Mississippi River Flooding

America's 'Most Endangered River' in 2020: The Mighty Mississippi

Heavy flooding are expected to strain the Mississippi and Missouri rivers in Spring 2020, just as resources are stretched thin by the coronavirus.

April 15, 2020 - American Rivers

U.S. Census Bureau

Census Bureau Seeks Delay

Citing complications from the coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. Census Bureau is seeking a 120-day delay in concluding the Census process, with potential consequences lasting into 2021.

April 15, 2020 - Associated Press via ABC 7 News

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.