The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Jim Oberstar was elected 18 times to Congress, serving Minnesota's 8th Congressional District from 1975 to 2011. He died suddenly in his sleep on Saturday, May 3, 2014.

May 5 - Streets.MN

The MyFigueroa project, long-delayed and almost-dead on more than one occasion, will move ahead free of local opposition. The project, which includes the city's first separated cycle track, will become Los Angeles' "premier complete street."

May 4 - LA Streetsblog

Via competing bills, California's Legislature is holding a surprisingly quiet debate on what redevelopment was for in the first place and what aspects of it may be worth reviving.

May 4 - California Planning & Development Report

Bay Area preservation architect Jerri Holan recounts the happenings at the 2014 California Preservation Conference.

May 4 - UrbDeZine

Having lost their CEQA appeal with the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, the "tech bus" opponents are taking their case to the court, arguing that environmental impacts from the large, luxury private buses using public bus stops must be addressed.

May 4 - The San Francisco Examiner

New York City is lagging behind cities like London, Paris, and Tokyo in implementing Communications-Based Train Control (CBTC). A recent report provides recommendations on how to speed up the process.

May 4 - Next City

AAA recently announced that it would offer roadside assistance for bikers in need in Southern New England and Colorado, joining similar programs in Oregon, Idaho, Washington, New Jersey, and British Columbia.

May 3 - Boston Globe

"Shared streets" guru Ben Hamilton-Baillie has shown in the U.K. that there are a lot of better ways to manage traffic than stoplights. CNU asked Ben, as he prepares to come to the United States, if shared streets could work here.

May 3 - Congress for the New Urbanism

A new report finds that "house flipping"—one of the more conspicuous signifiers of the last real estate boom—has slowed on average in recent months. Does that mean the residential market has found a sane balance?

May 3 - World Property Channel

The derailment of the CSX oil unit train in downtown Lynchburg, Va. on April 30 and subsequent fire and oil spill into the James River caught Lynchburg, Va. officials off-guard, who were unaware of the oil shipments, let alone how to handle crashes.

May 3 - The Wall Street Journal - U.S.

China's rapid urbanization has been built by a class of citizens called "nongmin," or peasants, many of which have migrated to urban areas for work but retain their legal status as residents of the countryside.

May 3 - China File

"Parks Forward," a report authored by an independent commission, takes an honest look at the challenges facing California State Parks and Recreation Department and provides recommendations for a parks reform in California.

May 2 - Los Angeles Times

Electric car companies such as Honda are creating smart homes by integrating built-in energy- and money-saving features.

May 2 - FastCompany Exist

BLOG POST

Opposition to NYC's bike infrastructure improvements was loud, emotional, and ultimately ineffective. But can planners like Janette Sadik-Khan learn from seemingly unhinged opponents? Planetizen Blogger Josh Stephens decided to ask.

May 2 - Josh Stephens

A judge's ruling provides a way forward for the proposed Ashby high rise development in Houston—a 21-story residential building that provoked a lawsuit by neighbors who have little recourse to protest developments in their city.

May 2 - Houston Chronicle

The Hollywood Park horseracing track in Inglewood, California, follows the path of racetracks in Sam Mateo and Queens that have recently given way to large housing developments.

May 2 - The Architect's Newspaper

Acknowledging that rising sea levels are a major concern for waterfront cities in Washington, the Municipal Research and Services Center (MRSC) non-profit put together a review of the current policy and planning efforts to meet the challenge.

May 2 - MRSC Insight

The Social Computing Group and the MIT Media Lab have launched the "You Are Here" project, mapping data points from cities where participants have lived. The project has colorful maps of bicycle crashes, coffee shops, and permanent visa applications.

May 2 - You Are Here

A quick city planner's guide to the voluminous Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report out earlier this month.

May 2 - PlaceShakers

Street trees add an interesting dimension to the built environment, providing shade, visual relief and more. They frame the public realm so well that we might be shocked to witness our Main Streets without them. This series of images does just that.

May 2 - Community Builders