Detroit is the darling of the media.
Politics
The Politics of the Public Christmas Tree
Leon Neyfakh of The Boston Globe examines the unexpectedly cohesive political roots of the controversial civic symbol.
The Boston Globe
Partisanship Stalls Infrastructure Investment, Says Blumenauer
Congressional support for transportation and infrastructure projects has traditionally been bipartisan. In an interview, Rep. Earl Blumenauer of Oregon discusses how political tantrums in Congress may handicap the US in the long run.
The Planning Report
Berlin Wall Site Now a Hot Neighborhood
The Berlin Wall was constructed 50 years ago by Communist East Germany. Parts of the wall remain as a remembrance, but much of the area has been transformed into hip neighborhoods and parks.
NPR
Politics vs Progress in Australia
The new Government for the State of Victoria in Australia is attempting to reverse basic initiatives pursuing the integration of land use and transport, brought on by NIMBY influences.
The Age Newspaper
Sorting Out The Jargon of Planning
So what exactly is "sustainability"? Well, then, how about "civic engagement"? "smart growth”? Bill Barnes of the National League of Cities says that planning is overrun by verbiage with vague definitions, to the detriment of the process.
Nation's Cities Weekly
Whither City Planning In Los Angeles?
With the retirement of City Planning Director Gail Goldberg and ongoing budget problems gutting the department, a group of planners, developers, politicians, and advocates add their voices to the discussion on the future of planning in L.A.
The Planning Report
The Planetizen News Brief - 11/12/09
4:28 minutes (4.1 MB)
Planners vs. politics, California's statewide growth strategy and Denver's light rail budget woes-- all on this week's Planetizen News Brief, airing weekly on "Smart City".
A Low Cost Way to Learn About the Future of China
Sun, 09/13/2009 - 03:01
During my first week in China, I have spoken to dozens of people and toured all over Beijing. I even have a map listing the locations of all of the McDonalds in Beijing. Spatial theorists need to write down a model to explain how a uniform distribution of McDonalds is what we observe.
While I am quite happy to be here, this is not a low cost trip. The flight over was literally a pain in the neck. I'm in trouble with my wife
Pittsburgh Preps for its Debut on the World Stage
Why the decision to host the next G-20 summit in Steel City is a good one.
Forbes.com
A Vote for the City
Thu, 10/16/2008 - 08:21
The answer is: “Because people today would rather not work and instead just sit at home collecting welfare checks.”
And the question? If you guessed, “What should you not say in a room full of city planning students?”, congratulations! You win. We would have also accepted, “FDR began a ton of new federal programs during the New Deal. As long as we have a $700 billion financial bailout, what programs would you enact or not enact as part of a New Deal today?” Thanks for playing. We have some lovely parting gifts for you.
McCain Votes Against Transit
John McCain was one of two dozen senators to vote last week against a bill that included $1.5 billion to fund D.C. transit.
Washington Post
Liveblog from the MICD Santa Rosa Technical Assistance Team Session
Fri, 07/18/2008 - 13:40
In early 2008, the Mayors' Institute on City Design received a generous gift from the Edward W. Rose III Family Fund, directed through the National Endowment for the Arts, to support technical assistance teams going into the communities of alumni mayors who have already attended one of our traditional Mayors' Institute sessions. The four cities that we selected for the pilot phase of this work were Santa Rosa, CA, Lincoln, NE, Cincinnati, OH, and Tulsa, OK.
