Cities & Planning

Recently I was talking to some housing activists about how buildings with flat roofs are perceived to be taller, even when they’re not. I…

Vacant homes are a waste of resources and an insult to those lacking housing.

Missing middle housing — fourplexes, townhouses, etc — is great for most places. However, in places like Palo Alto, where land is north of…

The housing crisis isn’t just a big city problem. Rural areas also don’t have enough homes — for example, California’s Imperial County has…

The debate over who pays for the cost of running the electric grid in a world of more rooftop solar (Assemblymember Lorena Gonzalez’s…

In many North American cities, as more housing is built, it’s limited to a few places: downtown and along busy streets. This is known as…

Recently, Berkeley has rediscovered an apartment building type that’s common in much of the world: the 8-story block on a small lot.

California invested heavily in solar and wind starting more than a decade ago. So far in 2024 renewable sources have met 100% of the state's...

The author explores the emotional case for postgrowth versus degrowth as movements, practices and policies in our path moving forward

by Scudder Wagg Louisville, Kentucky is the largest city in Kentucky and one of the faster growing regions in the state for the last decade. On the border between North and South and on the Falls of the Ohio, Louisville has long been a crossroads of the country and a major transportation hub. Today it […]

In this episode, we discover how potassium silicate is being transformed into a sustainable alternative to lithium-ion batteries.

Form Energy is building the world's largest battery in Maine, USA, which will support the grid with 100 hours of power at 85 MW.

The largest solar grazing project in the U.S. will reduce mowing costs and emissions — and make for some happy sheep.

From technological innovations, to environmental challenges and societal structures, the change is coming faster than ever before…

#Doug Trumm August 5, 2024 What is a 15 minute city and how might Seattle be able to get closer to achieving it? Other cities around the world offer a model.

People are looking to ditch screen time in exchange for a low-key drink and conversation

Our maps show current zoning information for properties and neighborhoods in Seattle.

A generalized version of the City of Seattle's land use zoning symbolized at the zoning group level with 28 categories.

Louisiana utility companies still want to charge customers for the costs of a new energy efficiency program and for the electricity no longer needed due to that program.

Carmel-by-the-Sea is known for its white-sand beaches, storybook buildings and famous former mayor, Clint Eastwood.

#Ryan Packer July 30, 2024 To prevent a 19-story apartment building long in the works, a group of Belltown residents are trying to stop code updates to Seattle's Living Building pilot program. The purported risk of bird deaths headline the group's laundry list of concerns.

#Shaun Kuo July 31, 2024 Three years after the opening of Northgate's Link light rail station, Simon Properties broke ground on the first residential development within their Northgate Mall property, which they have renamed "Northgate Station." The mall operator and developer's July 11th groundbreaking of 234 new homes took place as construction completions are peaking in the Seattle area. Since

#Ryan Packer July 30, 2024 Carrying nearly 20% of King County Metro boardings, the trolley fleet has been a workhorse of Seattle transit for 84 years. But oddly, trolleybuses have not been a focal point of Metro's plan to electrify its fleet.

#Ryan Packer July 31, 2024 Shoreline has seen significant growth in housing around its two light rail stations, but this week the Shoreline Council showed clear reluctance to allow increased density throughout the rest of the city.

Rising block tariffs and national energy guarantee systems are almost unknown in Europe – but are flourishing elsewhere

Solar, an energy source that gets cheaper and cheaper, is going to be huge

#Rubén Casas July 24, 2024 In 1873, Tacomans considered laying out their fledgling city according to a unique Frederick Law Olmsted plan. The city ultimately discarded most of the plan, walking away from a greener, more park-oriented Tacoma. Rubén Casas July 24, 2024

#Ryan Packer July 25, 2024 A "Safe Systems" motion from King County Councilmember Claudia Balducci would prompt county government to harness the power of every department to help reduce deadly and serious-injury traffic crashes. Ryan Packer July 25, 2024

Warehouses are magnets for truck pollution.

Explore the interactive map and learn how people get around in 794 cities