Big bike rollout: Toronto has approved a major bike program to parallel transit lines in response to COVID-19.

Ineligible: The SNAP food assistance program is designed to help families in need purchase food, but why can’t it be used for hot food?

WSCC: Should the Washington State Convention Center expansion project get a big bail?

Stay-at-home orders: The Supreme Court of the United States says that states can enforce stay-at-home orders, including differing requirements ($).

Point Wells: A major highrise project near Shoreline and Woodway appears headed–again–for rejection after failure to demonstrate regulatory compliance ($).

#BlackLivesMatter: In Washington, D.C., a big mural with “Black Lives Matter” was painted on 16th St NW, which leads to the White House.

Lessening the pain: What actions can we take to reduce the unemployment crisis in Washington during the epidemic?

UBI: Stockton will continue its $500 per month universal basic income pilot program.

Fight racism: Urbanism-oriented organizations across the country are speaking out against racism and white supremacy.

Forget the small guy: After years of incredibly profits, commercial property owners want a tax break and the King County Assessor bizarrely wants to assist them ($) in that request to the state.

Tax hike: To cover declining tax revenues from COVID-19, Dallas is eyeing a property tax increase.

Urban oppression: Many American cities were designed to oppress people, an architect argues.

Hurting: At the height of looting last week, businesses were damaged. Will they reopen ($)?

Mayors’ reactions: Across the country, what are mayors saying about the George Floyd protests?

Not a battleground: A Dallas architecture critic lays out his opposition to the police militarization of public spaces.

Deescalate: Closure of transit systems can escalate protest tensions.

Offloading costs: How are some American cities offloading costs that engender police brutality?

Wild fire summer: With the coronavirus raging across Washington, some wildfires could be left to burn this summer.

Highway of injustice: In Minneapolis, a major interstate was taken over for the George Floyd protests. This highway is just one of many unjustly built in communities of color and is representative of systemic racial injustice.

Potty crisis: With a dearth of open public bathrooms, mobility is being greatly impacted during the pandemic.

Defunding LAPD: Los Angeles is moving to cut the city’s police budget, but what is the story behind the movement for this change?

Yikes: Up to $650 million may have been stolen from Washington’s unemployment system ($) by an international crime ring.

Parks FTW: Public parks are showing their worth during the pandemic and protests. Can they be a key to urban recovery?

Restricted movement: Streetsblog talks about how police have unjustly limited the movement and freedom of black people in public spaces.

Phase 1.5: King County has moved forward to a modified Phase 1 under Governor Jay Inslee’s Safe Start Washington program. Pierce County and Snohomish County are now in Phase 2.

Get it together: The Centers of Disease Control has revised guidance on transit, dropping ill-advised incentives to drive.

Death Star governance: Washington and Oregon are fighting back against the Trump administration’s malevolent and scientifically flawed attempt to rollback car emission regulation.

Comeback ahead: John Talton says that Downtown Seattle may wounded from COVID-19, but it’s not forever ($).

Article Author

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.