A master-planned town in Quebec built by an American industrialist as a "workingman's utopia" is being touted as a potential UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Arvida was once an experiment hailed at the time as "the city built in 135 days". To recognize this legacy, a group of boosters is hoping to have the town named a World Heritage site.
According to the Globe and Mail:
"[Arvida] was to be no ordinary boom town. By the 1920s, [aluminum magnate Arthur Vining Davis] recruited a New York planner and shaped both a company town and a model metropolis, 240 kilometres north of Quebec City. A century on, his 'utopia' is still standing. The tidy 'workmen's' homes built as part of Arvida's original scheme still rise on spacious lots on winding, tree-lined streets – no grid-like monotony here. Each house was built with a garden and distinctive architectural style. Arvida was planned down to compulsory dog licences. The town got schools, churches and a way of life that included free Saturday night dances for the workers.
This month organizers will present their case for [recognizing Arvida as a World Heritage site] to Parks Canada, a critical first step before reaching UNESCO."
FULL STORY: Town that aluminum built hopes to join World Heritage list
The Mall Is Dead — Long Live the Mall
The American shopping mall may be closer to its original vision than ever.
The Paradox of American Housing
How the tension between housing as an asset and as an essential good keeps the supply inadequate and costs high.
Report: Las Vegas, Houston Top List of Least Affordable Cities
The report assesses the availability of affordable rental units for low-income households.
Anchorage Leaders Debate Zoning Reform Plan
Last year, the city produced the fewest new housing units in a decade.
How to Protect Pedestrians With Disabilities
Public agencies don’t track traffic deaths and injuries involving disabled people, leaving a gap in data to guide safety interventions.
Colorado Town Fills Workforce Housing Need With ‘Dorm-Style’ Housing
Median rent in Steamboat Springs is $4,000 per month.
City of Yakima
City of Auburn
Baylands Development Inc.
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Birmingham, Alabama
City of Laramie, Wyoming
Town of Zionsville
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.