Land Use

Back from a recent field trip to L.A., Sarah Karlinsky, Deputy Director of SPUR, the San Francisco Planning + Urban Research Association, explores the benefits and challenges offered by the region's size, and what lessons it can provide the Bay Area.

August 17, 2012 - The Urbanist

Stewart M. Patrick looks at the convergence of trends in natural disasters and urbanization in the developing world and sees a dire threat to the world's urban populations growing.

August 17, 2012 - The Internationalist

Already the hottest major American city, Peter O'Dowd describes how planners in Phoenix are preparing for the increased sizzle brought on by global warming.

August 17, 2012 - NPR

Emily Badger explains how a Minneapolis-based non-profit organization is working to break the cycle of gentrification within artist communities by helping to create and preserve affordable space for artists and arts organizations.

August 17, 2012 - Fast Company

Getting along is much easier when the fronts and backs of buildings are rational: public activities out front, private out back, and a street wall to keep them orderly.

August 17, 2012 - PlaceShakers

Since it was so much fun when it occurred half a century ago, artist Flavio Trevisan has decided to create a way for you to play Moses (Robert, that is) with the fate of Toronto’s Regent Park neighborhood, in the comfort of your home.

August 16, 2012 - Architizer

As the new federal transportation bill, known as MAP-21, moves to the implementation stage, major finding decisions will ride on the nuances by which the U.S. DOT defines and measures "congestion," "roadway performance," and "cost effectiveness".

August 16, 2012 - Streetsblog Capitol Hill

Once seen as the vanguard of hip and cutting-edge, Facebook is either bucking the trend once again or being left behind with their plans to bring the city to its suburban Menlo park campus to lure employees.

August 15, 2012 - Chicago Tribune

A proposed waterfront apartment building received final approval from Philadelphia's Historical Commission last week, disappointing waterfront advocates and preservationists who claim its design violates the city's new waterfront master plan.

August 15, 2012 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

August 14, 2012 - Fanis Grammenos

Stanley Kurtz traces the mechanisms by which he believes President Obama intends to "abolish" the suburbs in a possible second term, and the roots of his desire, stretching back to his training as a community organizer.

August 14, 2012 - National Review

In the latest article from Better Cities & Towns' series on healthy, walkable town centers, Geoff Dyer offers insight into the ways that locating office space in mixed-use centers can improve economic vitality.

August 14, 2012 - Better Cities & Towns

As the world turned its attention Sunday from London to Rio, host of the next Summer Olympics, Theresa Williamson and Mauricio Hora penned an op-ed for The New York Times arguing how the city's preparations are threatening its history.

August 14, 2012 - The New York Times

The Crossrail train service being built in London will not only drastically decrease commuter travel times, it is also expected to catalyze the transformation of areas along its route, reports Graham Norwood.

August 14, 2012 - Financial Times

Elsa Brenner looks at the boon for developers, and residents, that a city-and-state-funded effort to daylight the Saw Mill River has provided for the New York City suburb of Yonkers.

August 13, 2012 - The New York Times

As part of a Foreign Policy magazine special report on cities, Peter Calthorpe examines the form of China's urban growth, which is beginning to resemble the car-oriented development of the United States in the 1950s and 60s.

August 13, 2012 - Foreign Policy

Mirroring a nationwide trend, office parks in suburban Chicago are emptying out as companies increasingly favor urban locations. As a result, developers and local officials are having to think creatively about possibilities for office park reuse.

August 13, 2012 - Chicago Sun-Times

Seeking to rival the Broadway theater district in New York and the West End in London, DreamWorks Animation SKG recently announced plans to develop a $3.1 billion cultural and entertainment district in Shanghai.

August 13, 2012 - The New York Times

The rise of the innovation economy is driving fierce competition between cities across America to attract medical facilities and universities as job providers and engines of development.

August 13, 2012 - Urban Land Magazine

By opening nine new homeless shelters in just the last two months, the Bloomberg administration has responded quickly to an 18% increase in the number of people entering NYC's shelter system in the past year, much to the dismay of local officials.

August 13, 2012 - The New York Times