Edmonds anti-streatery: Edmonds’ new streatery policy appears to be scaring businesses off and risks the future of a permanent program ($).
Manhattan rezones: New York City finally approved a rezone of Soho and Noho.
Ocean Drive drives again: Miami’s Ocean Drive will partially reopen to cars after a Covid-era conversion to a people street.
Amtrak progress: Amtrak has proposed a Detroit-Toronto route. Agreements with CSX may also bring positive changes to New England service. Plus, Amtrak service is now faster between Chicago and St. Louis.
T TOD: A new Massachusetts state law would require TOD districts around MBTA stations.
Dodge promotes violence: A viral Dodge ad was taken down this week after outcry over its aggressive use of “predator” language.
DeJoy is a climate-killer: The USPS has a weak decarbonization plan and advocates aren’t happy about it.
Bike lane sweeping: A street sweeper on your bike?
Interborough Express: New York will study a new rail line in New York City.
Highways a dead end: Washington’s transportation secretary said that highway expansion is “a dead end.”
Goodbye, Guild 45th: The Guild 45th’s iconic marquee in Wallingford is gone.
15-minute city, sorta: Utah is building a 15-minute city of sorts, but it has some big drawbacks.
Botched: Promised aid for renters and landlords is still lagging under botched King County administration ($).
Net-zero housing: Ann Arbor has a new net-zero housing project that isn’t just for the rich.
New transpo leader: The Stranger profiled Marko Liias, the Washington State Senate’s new transportation committee chair.
Cash out: Washington, D.C. has a new law requiring that employers pay workers who turn down company-sponsored parking benefits.
Con job: Elon’s pet projects are doing so well.
Expanded digs: Meta is expanding footprint around light rail in Seattle.
Ferry woes: Washington State Ferries’ staffing problems predated the pandemic.
ADU boom: Washington has an opportunity to encourage backyard cottages, but will the state legislature do the right thing?
No expansion: In the New York City area, opposition is mounting against expanding the Holland Tunnel, a car tunnel connecting New Jersey with New York City.
Assertive law breaker: Tesla has an “assertive” driving setting that begs the question of how such an unsafe technology is even allowed.
Speed cameras work: A Chicago study affirms the efficacy of speed cameras in reducing driver speeds and improving safety.
Downsizing golf: Toronto could change direction on city-owned golf courses, slimming them down and converting some to park space.
Joint venture: The Low Income Housing Institute and New Hope Community Development Institute have teamed up to purchase an affordable housing apartment building on S Jackson Street.
Delayed and pricey: The Purple Line light rail projects around Washington, D.C. is headed for more delays and increased costs.
Don’t fetishize old homes: Old homes have a place, but M. Nolan Gray argues they shouldn’t be fetishized.
Builder less parking: Sightline argues that to stop building heat islands, stop overbuilding parking lots, through the lens of Portland.
Staffing low: Seattle’s police force has hit its lowest staffing level in decades .
Redevelopment plans: The next design review for Capitol Hill’s Safeway redevelopment is coming in February.
New station tenant: Capitol Hill Station could get a new tenant soon.
Bronx fire: An apartment building in the Bronx caught on fire and killed 19 tenants last week.
Pandemic redesigned cities?: Wired discusses how the pandemic may permanently redesign cities.
Fare-free transit: Albuquerque has gone fare-free for the year.
Road pricing punt: Vancouver will decide on road pricing after the election this fall.
Philly apartment boom: Philadelphia is on track for a record number of apartment units being constructed this year.
New management: With Eric Adams gone, Borough Hall Plaza in Brooklyn has become car-free.
New zoning laws: California’s new zoning laws are already bearing housing fruit.
Keeping Edmonds down: Anti-housing activists lined up to oppose a downtown Edmonds housing project.
Climate costs: Because of ongoing wildfire risks in California, insurers are looking at raising rates.
Capital bus priority: Washington, D.C. has a bold bus priority plan.
New horizons: Santa Monica has a new program to welcome people back that were evicted by the construction of I-10.
End one-ways: One-way streets are killers.
Filling the gap: Governor Jay Inslee’s proposed budget would cover most of the funding gap for SR-520 projects, including the Portage Bay Bridge and Roanoke Lid.
Upgraded LIPH: Private developers will upgrade a ton of public housing units in New York City.
No public EV-charging?: In an op-ed for NYC Streetsblog, an author argues against buildling EV-charging infrastructure to discourage car ownership.
Affordable housing tech: 3D printing technology could aid in building more affordable housing.
BC favors owners: British Columbia stands alone in how it subsidizes homeowners over renters.
Backyard homes: Portland could make backyard homes more common, but what’s holding them back?
Suburban sprawl crisis: CityLab explains how the pandemic has set off a suburban sprawl boom.
Stephen is a professional urban planner in Puget Sound with a passion for sustainable, livable, and diverse cities. He is especially interested in how policies, regulations, and programs can promote positive outcomes for communities. With stints in great cities like Bellingham and Cork, Stephen currently lives in Seattle. He primarily covers land use and transportation issues and has been with The Urbanist since 2014.