• Code organizes growth into walkable neighborhoods

    A large new development area in Missoula, Montana, will be built out according to new urban principles.
    The City of Missoula recently adopted a master plan and form-based code for a new growth area that could accommodate about half of the city’s growth in the next 15 years. The Mullan area, larger than Missoula’s downtown, is located just west of the city and southeast of the regional airport. The...Read more

  • The state of the art of suburban retrofit

    Two retrofit experts have a new book that is an essential reference for transforming suburban landscapes.
    Case Studies in Retrofitting Suburbia: Urban Design Strategies for Urgent Challenges , the latest book in a series by June Williamson and Ellen Dunham-Jones, is about creating real value from underutilized places. The volume focuses on automobile-oriented, conventional suburbs, which comprise about...Read more

  • The Pandemic Toolkit

    A manual for rebuilding community health and opportunity in the post-COVID world.
    Faced with budget shortfalls, growing to-do lists for routine tasks delayed by the emergency, and general uncertainty about a “new normal,” how might governments address the uncertainty and respond effectively to COVID challenges? Answering that question is the goal of Placemakers' Pandemic Toolkit...Read more

  • The Princeton roots of New Urbanism

    The New Urbanism grew out of an open-minded educational environment, where students were encouraged to read and think for themselves rather than follow a particular design approach.
    An interesting piece in the Princeton Alumni Weekly outlines educational roots of New Urbanism founders and early leaders, and it turns out that Princeton University played a significant role. Four of the six architectural founders (Peter Katz, a nonarchitect who was the first Executive Director of...Read more