Outdated or ugly building blighting your skyline? Maybe what it needs is a "facade graft".
A group of architects in Australia have proposed a flexible, media-intelligent textile that can be wrapped around buildings to create a newer, more visually appealing facade.
"The 'Tower Skin' concept is a transparent cocoon made of high performance composite mesh textile that is wrapped around an existing structure to act as a high-performance 'micro climate'. Surface tension allows the membrane to freely stretch around walls and roof elements achieving maximum visual impact with minimal material effort. The skin is also easily repairable, is removable and upgradable and features a self-cleaning coating."
FULL STORY: Using a skin graft to give city eyesores an eco-friendly face-lift
Using Drones to Inspect Urban Building Façades
Many cities require the owners of multistory buildings to regularly inspect their façades, looking for problems that may lead to injury or property damage. Drones can potentially help ease the process and cost of doing so.
Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Chicago’s Ghost Rails
Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.
Bend, Oregon Zoning Reforms Prioritize Small-Scale Housing
The city altered its zoning code to allow multi-family housing and eliminated parking mandates citywide.
Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail
The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.
LA Denies Basic Services to Unhoused Residents
The city has repeatedly failed to respond to requests for trash pickup at encampment sites, and eliminated a program that provided mobile showers and toilets.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
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