Land Use
Malls: Old vs New
A fight over a new development in suburban L.A. accentuates not only the tenacity and bitterness of local politics, but also two radically different visions for 21st century retail: large enclosed shopping malls or smaller New Urbanist templates.
All Eyes On Air District's Sprawl Fee Litigation
California's Central Valley, where farms are rapidly being converted to tract housing, has the worst air quality in the state. A new "sprawl fee" on developments based on vehicle trips they would generate has spawned a legal challenge from builders.
In Monterey California, It's Slow-Growth Advocates Versus Developers and Immigrants
What to do with an area that produces some 80 percent of the nation's lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, and spinach that lacks in housing for migrant workers? Why build more housing of course. Not so fast say "slow-growth" advocates.
UK Government Accused Of Violating 'Protective Planning' Laws
Environmentalists in England are charging local and central government officials with bending their own rules to allow various developments in scenic, rural areas and environmentally-sensitive lands.
Growth Makes Town A City
The town of Columbia, Maryland, is on the verge of transforming into a full-blown city. Pushing a broad redevelopment plan, officials are trying to ease the transition while some residents resist.
The Cul-de-Sac Backlash
Some communities are limiting or outright banning cul-de-sacs, but residents still value the privacy and security they provide.
Six Achievable Steps To Confront Global Warming
A new report from U.S. PIRG identifies achievable strategies for the United States to reduce global climate impacts by 20 percent.
Houston's Growing Pains
Planners are using public participation to overcome past haphazard development and create a vision for the city's transit corridors.
Major Foundation Engaged In Land Conservation Effort
The Mellon family foundation has a land preservation conservation campaign that started in the late 1970's. It has saved 3.6 million acres of endangered or historically significant sites in all 50 states.
Small Oregon Town Cuts UGB Acreage
The city planning commission in the Southern Oregon town of Jacksonville recently passed a motion to reduce the acreage of a proposed urban growth boundary to more accurately reflect the town's population growth trends.
Miami Beach Struggles With The Cost Of Parking
To compensate for the rising cost of providing parking structures, the city is proposing to hike its impact fee to $35,000 per space.
Will Florida's Growth Management Controls Encourage Sprawl?
Home builders in Florida say that the state's plan to make developers pay for new infrastructure will promote development on cheap land away from cities.
China's Cities Told To Guard Against Sprawl
The country's leaders warn against the environmental problems that urban sprawl patterns generate, and call for compact urban development.
Farmers Use Easements To Protect Land
Housing developments are threatening centuries-old agricultural land in Western North Carolina, but farmers are fighting off developers with the help of conservation easements.
'Self-Inflicted' UK Flooding Could Be Planners' Fault
Leading British scientists are warning the country that forecasted high tides could flood many low-lying areas. They caution that the coming devastation could have been prevented by better floodplain planning and more environmental considerations.
Bicycles No Longer Welcomed In China's Cities
China's pell-mell race towards modernization reduces reliance on bicycle for transportation.
Denver's New Rail Line Is Successful At Attracting Development
As renters increasingly value access to transit, more and more new apartment and mixed-use developments are springing up around the city's new light rail stations.
Upstate New York Towns Slow Down Growth Of Wind Farms
Commercial wind farms are to many small towns in rural, upstate NY what the Cape Wind proposal is to Cape Cod -- highly controversial. Moratoriums play key role in developing land use regulations to quell citizen opposition.
Suburbs Are Making Canadians Fatter
A new study in Canada provides additional evidence linking the obesity epidemic in North America with suburban sprawl.
Pagination
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.
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