Urban Design | Planetizen Courses

At its core, urban design is the process of deciding how a city will be organized. More than just the physical layout of roads, buildings, open space, and transportation networks, urban design includes decisions about land use, urban form, and neighborhood scale that affect citizens’ access to urban amenities and healthy living environments near amenities and transportation.

Urban Design Courses

rendering of neighborhood

The DIY Form-Based Code: Research and Development

66 Mins

aerial view of new york city

The American City, Part 4: Complexity and Pattern in the City

Mark David Major

53 Mins

AIA CES

church surrounded by city buildings

Federal and State Religious Land Use Statutes

61 Mins

AIA CES
AICP CM

aerial of Houston with houses and buildings

Planning for Racial Equity

55 Mins

CIP
AIA CES
AICP CM

A roadway and an Amtrak train during golden hour.

Roadways for People, Part 2

Lynn Peterson, Elizabeth Doerr

54 Mins

CIP
AICP CM

street with storefronts and living spaces

Form-Based Codes 101: Introduction

Mary Madden, Victor Dover

74 Mins

AIA CES
AICP CM
CNU-A

3D model created in CityEngine for urban planning course

CityEngine for Planners 1: Introduction

47 Mins

AICP CM
SACPLAN CPD

closeup of a hand holding a pencil and architectural drawings on a desk

The Site Plan

55 Mins

storefronts with different building heights

Right-Sizing Zoning for Better Outcomes

129 Mins

AIA CES
AICP CM

cyclists navigate two-phase turn on dutch intersection

Principles of Intersection Design

Lennart Nout, Nick Falbo

51 Mins

CIP
AICP CM

ink drawing of buildings and people in foreground

Drawing in the Landscape: Pen, Pencil and Watercolor

57 Mins

AICP CM

runners and bicyclists in park

Comprehensive Planning for Healthy Communities

78 Mins

AIA CES
AICP CM
CNU-A
SACPLAN CPD

cars and buses on busy street with metro train in background

Transportation Planning: The Role of Transportation Systems in Social and Economic Life

Richard Willson

47 Mins

AIA CES
AICP CM
CNU-A
SACPLAN CPD

historical buildings with pedestrians on a walkway

The Government’s Role in Historic Preservation

Meredith Johnson

61 Mins

CIP
AIA CES
AICP CM
CNU-A
SACPLAN CPD

people viewing wayfinding map

Planning a Municipal Wayfinding System

57 Mins

CIP
AIA CES
AICP CM

rendering of city aerial

The DIY Form-Based Code: Testing and Refining

81 Mins

person getting on bus for urban planning course

Transit Planning: The First/Last Mile

83 Mins

AIA CES
AICP CM
CNU-A
SACPLAN CPD

map view of mixed housing types

The YIMBY Movement: Opportunities and Challenges for Planners

Mark Vallianatos

66 Mins

AIA CES
AICP CM
CNU-A
SACPLAN CPD

redlining map

Race, Space, and Planning

66 Mins

AIA CES
AICP CM

A city with digital icons.

Planning in an Era of Disruptive Change

47 Mins

AICP CM

tree lined neighborhood

Form-Based Codes 101: Learning How To Look

Geoffrey Ferrell

71 Mins

AIA CES
AICP CM
CNU-A

3d model created in CityEngine for urban planning course

CityEngine for Planners 2: Coding in Computer Generated Architecture (CGA) and Exporting

70 Mins

AICP CM
SACPLAN CPD

still from the movie of two people walking on sidewalk with trees and buildings in the background

Lewis Mumford on the City 4: The Heart of the City

29 Mins

AICP CM

people sitting on a bench overlooking new york skyline

The Theory and Practice of Culture and Placemaking

71 Mins

CIP
AIA CES
AICP CM

Top Urban Design Instructors

Emily Talen

Emily Talen is Professor of Urbanism at the University of Chicago. Her research is devoted to...

Richard Willson

Richard Willson is a professor in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning at California State...

David Dixon

David is well known for helping create new, mixed-use urban districts (in both cities and suburbs)...

Eliot Allen

Eliot Allen, certified, LEED AP-ND, is an urban planner and Principal with Criterion Planners of Portland...

Kristin Faurest

Kristin Faurest is a public garden education and outreach professional, author, and landscape architecture educator, committed...

Jeff Speck

Jeff Speck is a city planner who advocates internationally for more walkable cities.

Jason Luger

Jason Luger is a lecturer in City and Regional Planning at UC Berkeley, College of Environmental...

Daniel Parolek

Daniel Parolek is a nationally recognized thought leader in architecture, design, and urban planning, specifically in...

Lennart Nout

Lennart is an urban mobility design consultant, specializing in design and planning of bicycle networks and...

Katrina Johnston-Zimmerman

Katrina is a lecturer, researcher, and advocate for heart-centered cities. Her work focuses on human behavior...

Meredith Johnson

Meredith is the owner of Johnson Planning and Preservation LLC, a boutique firm that works to...

Chris Holtkamp

Chris Holtkamp is a certified planner and is an Assistant Professor of Environmental Planning at the...

Donald Shoup

Donald Shoup is Distinguished Research Professor in the Department of Urban Planning at UCLA. His research...

Chase Mullen

Chase is the Director of Design Visualization at MIG. With an acute eye for graphics and...

Elliot Hartley

Elliot Hartley is an internationally recognised geodesign and Esri CityEngine expert.

Mark David Major

Dr. Mark David Major, AICP, CNU-A is a Professor of Urban Design at the Savannah College...

Norman Wright

Norman Wright is the Director of Neighborhood Services for Adams County, Colorado. In his career as...

Darryl Jones

Darryl Jones is an artist and filmmaker based in Oakland, CA.

Adam Fine

Adam is the Director of experiential graphic design at Nova Scotia-based Fathom Studio and has worked...

Geoffrey Ferrell

Geoffrey is one of the originators of the modern practice of Form-Based Codes. His work ranges...

Mary Madden

Mary Madden has nearly 20 years of experience in the fields of urban planning and design...

Elizabeth Doerr

Elizabeth Doerr is a writer with expertise and awareness around social and racial justice issues and...

Lynn Peterson

Lynn Peterson is a nationally recognized transportation and land use integration expert.

David Rouse

David is a consultant, educator, and author with over 40 years of experience in urban and...

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All Urban Design Courses

CityEngine for Planners 4: Sharing Your Work

Instructor: Elliot Hartley

Learn about the range of options for sharing your work, from web viewers to a simple VR experience.

4.03

77 Mins

SACPLAN CPD

CityEngine for Planners 3: Integration and GIS

Instructor: Elliot Hartley

Learn how to import real-world data from satellite imagery and terrain to GIS data.

4.14

70 Mins

AICP CM

SACPLAN CPD

CityEngine for Planners 2: Coding in Computer Generated Architecture (CGA) and Exporting

Instructor: Elliot Hartley

The second course of the City Engine for Planners track dives into coding in Esri CityEngine’s proprietary Computer Generated Architecture (CGA) code.

4.22

70 Mins

AICP CM

SACPLAN CPD

CityEngine for Planners 1: Introduction

Instructor: Elliot Hartley

This course is designed for beginners seeking an introduction to 3D procedural modeling and CityEngine software.

4.35

47 Mins

AICP CM

SACPLAN CPD

The DIY Form-Based Code: Publishing and Expanding

Instructor: Norman Wright

In this fourth and final course of the DIY Form-Based Code series, learn to visually communicate publishable form-based code by using SketchUp and InDesign.

4.45

87 Mins