Design Observer

Mark Dery looks back at the birth and death of the mall, from Victor Gruen to the present collapse, then beyond to proposals for reusing and revitalizing mall spaces.

Suburban Nation co-author Jeff Speck cracks the new New York Street Design Manual and finds a lot of useful material and some that falls short.

In response to an essay on restricting outdoor advertising in L.A., designer and lawyer Lawrence Barth argues that putting these decisions into the hands of groups -- whether city- or activist-led -- can lead to unintended consequences.

L.A. is at war with outdoor advertising. Though activists have urged the city to make moves to block video billboards, it's not really clear which side is winning the war, according to this piece from Design Observer.