The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

As its neighbor to the north considers merging its planning department, San Diego is headed in the opposite direction. The departure of the city's Development Services Director clears the way for Mayor Bob Filner to reestablish a planning department.

May 13 - Voice of San Diego

All-electric vehicles - those without tailpipes or gas tanks, are entering the marketplace, particularly in California, but unlike other models from the same manufacturers, they are not expected to sell well. So why are they even being manufactured?

May 13 - USA Today

Robin Finn looks at New York's "Stratospherians", vertical lifestyle fans with deep pockets that are driving the city's residential tower construction, and prices, to new heights.

May 13 - The New York Times

Addressing Minneapolis business leaders last week, Katherine Loflin, lead consultant to the Knight Foundation's Soul of the Community Project, explained the key factors that drive people's attachment to a city and how to lure young professionals.

May 13 - MinnPost

A new report has sought to quantify the annual costs of America's assorted environmental protection efforts for the first time.

May 13 - Los Angeles Times

The Chinese government has been employing a bottom-up approach to sustainability through pilot programs in individual cities, boosting investment in clean energy by 20 percent since last year.

May 12 - GreenBiz

One theme unites the winners of the My LA2050 competition: a desire to reinvigorate Los Angeles’s vacant and underused spaces.

May 12 - Curbed LA

Cities and companies are catching on to the economic impact of expanding bicycling amenities, writes Carolyn Szczepanski, who shares the growing body of research and anecdotal examples of the attraction between bikes and businesses.

May 12 - Momentum Magazine

A recent report from the Centers for Disease Control analyzing America's last decade of traffic-related pedestrian deaths reveals the inequitable impacts of the country's "public health epidemic."

May 12 - DC.Streetsblog

Fracking opponents scored two major court victories In New York State on May 2 when an Appellate Division court panel ruled unanimously that two towns can use zoning to ban fracking. Paradoxically, it could also be good for energy companies.

May 12 - The Oneonta Daily Star

A new study by two professors from University of Warwick in England suggests that higher homeownership levels correlate to higher unemployment, a finding contrary to long-held beliefs in the unmitigated benefits of owning a home.

May 11 - The New York Times

In recent years, Los Angeles has embraced mass transit as a solution to the city's legendary traffic woes. This embrace has historical precedent, however, says Sam Lubell, who examines six of L.A.'s unbuilt proposals for transit systems.

May 11 - Good

The Vancouver Sun looks at the fees that the city charges developers, such as the community amenity contribution, and finds them much higher than neighboring areas. Even though costs are higher, so are developer profits.

May 11 - The Vancouver Sun

A series of tactical urbanist interventions inspired by a recent talk given by Mike Lydon, Principal of the Street Plans Collaborative, have raised the ire of the powers that be in the Canadian city of Hamilton.

May 11 - Raise the Hammer

With recent developments in Astor Place, Hudson Yards, and Midtown East, Fred A. Bernstein sees a danger in New York City becoming just another a homogenous city of glass facades like Shanghai or Dubai.

May 11 - Architectural Record

In a send-up of the inane nature of city listification, the satirical newspaper The Onion has compiled a list of the "Top 10 Best Cities To Move To Today." Check out the article to find out why Blarnard, ND and Clara Vista, CA are hot destinations.

May 10 - The Onion

Data collection and analysis promise to make our cities better, and more efficient, places to live. Though many cities are expanding their digital integration, several obstacles remain to realizing the full potential of the urban data revolution.

May 10 - Governing

One of the most valuable graphics in the planner's toolbox is the scale comparison. However, producing such graphics can be a tedious process. A web-based tool utilizing Google Maps seeks to make cartographic “mixtures” much easier to produce.

May 10 - The Atlantic Cities

As the housing market recovered nationwide, home values rose 5.1% across the U.S. between February 2012 and February 2013. In 10 of the major markets analyzed by Zillow, values rose more than 13%. In five of those, home values rose more than 20%.

May 10 - 24/7 Wall St.

Michael LoGrande, Director of the L.A. Department of City Planning, discusses plans to merge his department with the L.A. Department of Building and Safety to approach the planning and development process from a more holistic and efficient angle.

May 10 - The Planning Report