Exclusives

BLOG POST

<p class="MsoNormal"> I had heard of “dense sprawl” and “density without walkability” in the past, but before spending a week in Jerusalem last month, I had never really lived through these problems. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> My parents (who I was staying with) rented a unit in a high-rise condo complex called Holyland Tower.  Although Holyland Tower was the tallest building in the area, there were numerous mid-rise buildings, and lots of two-and three-story apartment and condo buildings.  While walking through the idea, I saw nothing resembling a single-family home.  In sum, this area was a pretty dense neighborhood in a pretty dense city (Jerusalem’s overall density is roughly comparable to that of the city of San Francisco). </p>

January 1 - Michael Lewyn

BLOG POST

I am sorry to report that, Canada, my chosen country (I immigrated here in 1993), recently withdrew from the Kyoto Accord, which sets international climate change emission reduction targets. It’s worth noting that this decision was made...

December 30 - Todd Litman

BLOG POST

<span style="font-size: small; font-family: 'Times New Roman'"> </span> <p style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in" class="MsoNormal"> <span style="font-size: small"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'">Planning students are often interested in finding examples of planning practice, particularly good examples. Several free online sources list projects that have won awards or been the subject of magazine articles. While winning an award doesn’t mean a project is perfect, such projects are typically m some of the more interesting examples of planning.</span></span><span style="font-size: small; font-family: 'Times New Roman'"> </span> <br />

December 21 - Ann Forsyth

BLOG POST

<span style="font-size: small; font-family: 'Times New Roman'"> </span> <p style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in" class="MsoNormal"> <span style="font-size: small"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'">It’s winter break for many northern hemisphere planning students so time to start planning for next summer’s internship. I have previously blogged about &quot;making the most of an internship&quot;: <a href="/node/51287" target="_blank">http://www.planetizen.com/node/51287</a>. Here I briefly talk about the practicalities of getting one.</span></span> </p>

December 18 - Ann Forsyth

FEATURE

December 15 - Michael Mehaffy

FEATURE

Transportation expert Norman Garrick reports on the amazingly effective transit system of Zurich, Switzerland. Garrick says the system is one of the factors that makes Zurich one of the most livable cities in the world.

December 12 - Norman W. Garrick

BLOG POST

<p> <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: 'Courier New'">Last week, at an event attended by over 300 Vancouverites, we announced the winners of our re:CONNECT Open Ideas Competition regarding the future of our Viaducts and Eastern Core. If you missed my past posts on the steps leading up to the big night, it might help to read <a href="/node/52012" target="_blank">here</a> and <strong><a href="/node/52571" target="_blank">here</a></strong> first. </span><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: 'Courier New'"> </span><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: 'Courier New'"> </span> </p>

December 5 - Brent Toderian

BLOG POST

Bad planning simply extrapolates past trends: “We experienced 2% annual growth during the last decade, so we’ll assume that will continue into the future.” Good planning attempts to understand underlying factors that affect change.

December 4 - Todd Litman

BLOG POST

<p> This morning I embarked with three dozen volunteers to plant 10 trees in Pigeon Town, a neighborhood in western New Orleans. The group was completing an eight-hour training on urban greening initiatives, learning everything from pruning methods to how to work with municipalities to find funding for beautification projects—which have been proven to improve everything from <a href="http://www.pennsylvaniahorticulturalsociety.org/phlgreen/seeinggreen.htm">real estate values</a> to <a href="http://www.uphs.upenn.edu/news/News_Releases/2011/11/more-green-crime/">crime statistics</a>. </p> <p> The training did not, however, cover what we were supposed to do when we heard gunshots ring out. That we had to improvise. </p>

November 30 - Jeffrey Barg

BLOG POST

<p> After reading <a href="http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/ct-met-rta-surveys-riders-20111129,0,908396.story">this story</a> about a transit agency surveying their customers, I thought to myself: do riders really want another survey asking whether they are satisfied or how clean the stations are?  Although clean stations are certainly better than unclean stations, I suspect that these are not transit riders&#39; major priorities.  (And when I say &quot;transit riders&quot; I really of course mean &quot;myself&quot;). </p>

November 30 - Michael Lewyn

BLOG POST

<p style="text-align: justify; margin: 0in 0in 10pt" class="MsoNormal"> <span style="font-size: small"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman">Go ahead, define sustainability.<span>  </span>Everyone knows countless, tangled and unconvincing definitions for this word which is quickly losing steam.<span>  </span>The problem is that we’re not sure about how sustainability relates to us except in planetary ways. We’re bombarded with many concepts that if we reduce this by 20% <span> </span>then we’ll get that in 30 years which helps the earth survive. All’s well, except we’re almost numb because we won’t feel the aggregate effects for quite some time. Obviously, we’re an impatient lot.<span>  </span></span></span> </p>

November 29 - Rick Abelson

FEATURE

Stuart Meck and Rebecca Retzlaff call the attention of AICP certified planners to an upcoming change to the certification process which they believe will "degrade and cheapen" the AICP designation.

November 28 - Stuart Meck

FEATURE

November 28 - Tim Halbur

FEATURE

Planetizen’s tenth annual list of the best books in urban planning, design and development ranges from a crowdsourced compendium of ideas for upgrading New York City's built environment to a personal report from the streets of Karachi.

November 21 - Michael Dudley

BLOG POST

<p> <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: 'Courier New'">As my <a href="/node/52012" target="_blank">last post profiled</a>, Vancouver is creatively working to define the future of our Georgia and Dunsmuir Viaducts - infrastructure that I&#39;ve referred to as &quot;the asterix&quot; beside the statement that Vancouver has no freeways within our city.</span><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: 'Courier New'"> </span><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: 'Courier New'">One of several inputs into that process is an open ideas competition called <a href="http://vancouver.ca/commsvcs/planning/reconnect/index.htm" target="_blank">re:CONNECT</a>.</span> </p>

November 21 - Brent Toderian

BLOG POST

<p class="MsoNormal"> An important current policy debate concerns whether the next U.S. federal surface transportation reauthorization should require spending on “enhancements,” which finance projects such as walkways, bike paths, highway landscaping and historic preservation. This issue receives considerable attention, despite the fact that enhancements represent less than 2% of total federal surface transportation expenditures, because it raises questions about future transport priorities, particularly the role of walking and cycling. In other words, should non-motorized modes be considered <em>real</em> transportation. </p>

November 16 - Todd Litman

BLOG POST

<p> Last summer, most of the nation was justifiably outraged when<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/25/raquel-nelson-this-will-never-end_n_908448.html"> Raquel Nelson was convicted of vehicular homicide</a> because her four-year old son stepped off a median into <a href="http://www.ajc.com/news/cobb/pedestrian-convicted-of-vehicular-1014879.html">oncoming traffic and was killed</a>. Common sense alone should have kept this case from going to trial, but I believe this case should have raised a bigger and more encompassing issue for planners and a question of social ethics: What is the responsibility we take as individuals for the choices we make living in an urban environment? </p>

November 16 - Samuel Staley

BLOG POST

<p class="MsoNormal"> The PAB is proposing a substantial revision of the standards and criteria for accreditation of university planning programs.  A public comment period on the proposal has just opened and lasts through 15 December.  Here&#39;s what PAB says about the changes: </p> <p> &quot;PAB is pleased to introduce a comprehensive revision of its accreditation standards and criteria. <strong>The goals of the change process include:</strong> </p>

November 15 - Bruce Stiftel

BLOG POST

<p> <span style="color: #2a2a2a"><span style="font-size: small"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman">After reading an article on the misuse of CEQA in California,* I took a short look at New York law.<span>  </span>In New York, city planners must prepare an environmental assessment when property is rezoned, and must prepare a more detailed environmental impact statement (EIS) if property has a significant effect on the environment. </span></span></span><span style="color: #2a2a2a"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small"> </span></span> </p>

November 14 - Michael Lewyn

FEATURE

Long known as a land of sprawl and disconnected communities, Los Angeles has emerged as a leader in transit investments, providing forward-thinking leadership for how infrastructure finance can and should continue, even in difficult financial times, writes Allison Brooks and Darnell Chadwick Grisby of Reconnecting America.

November 14 - Allison Brooks