The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

The Microsoft Sphere

Microsoft has introduced a spherical computer display that lets users touch the globe to interact with it. There are many likely applications for planning and public participation.

August 13 - YouTube

NYC's New Green Escalators

Escalators are major energy wasters, so many cities are looking for greener solutions. 35 new green escalators were recently installed in the New York Subway, with mixed success.

August 13 - The New York Times

Rare Show Of Unity on Growth Legislation in CA

An unusual coalition of environmentalists, builders,and city leaders announced their support for a controversial land use and transportation bill that aims to involve the CA Air Resources Board in setting reduction targets.

August 13 - Capitol Weekly

Talking Head Designs Bike Rack

David Byrne, an avid cyclist in Manhattan, was asked to judge a bike rack design contest. Instead, he made his own designs, which have quickly gone up around the city.

August 13 - The New York Times

Media Outlets Need Auto Industry Ads to Survive

More than a quarter of all local TV ad revenue comes from car companies. Could plummeting profits from SUVs mean even worse local news?

August 13 - Streetsblog


The Man Behind Secret Corporate Tax Deals

The practice of secret bidding that goes on between cities vying for business to locate in their town has been going on since the 1920s- and there's one man responsible for it all.

August 13 - Governing Magazine

Americans and Business Curb Energy Use

American businesses and consumers are changing their habits and finding ways to save energy.

August 13 - Wall St. Journal


Can Colorado Cope with Growth?

With the prospect of million more residents by 2015, Colorado will need to be creative to address the infrastructure and environmental consequences of growth.

August 13 - University of Denver Magazine

Couple Exploits Broken Transit Ticket Machine for $800k

In the wake of a recent scandal with MIT students hacking the subway comes a story of a Long Island couple who stumbled into a glitch in a ticket machine and exploited it for $800,000 in free tickets.

August 13 - Newsday

Did Enviros Misjudge The Effect Of High Gas Prices?

The public has relegated global warming well behind other issues, including high energy prices. This article examines the role of environmental groups in this backslide as the public warms to more drilling to reduce gas prices.

August 12 - Politico

Safety in Design - CPTED in the News

A columnist in Saskatoon, after a robbery at his office, takes a look at CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design).

August 12 - The StarPhoenix

Tech Mogul's City Plans Progressing Slowly

Plans are moving forward in India for Nano City, the planned city brainchild of Hotmail mogul Sabeer Bhatia.

August 12 - The San Francisco Chronicle

Smart Growth or Smart Food?

"Locavores" hoping to promote more sustainable agriculture through urban gardening are facing a new hurdle: infill housing projects.

August 12 - The Berkeley Daily Planet

Megapolitans Rise in the Mountains

This column from Neal Peirce looks at the new megapolitan stronghold of the Intermountain West.

August 12 - Citiwire

BLOG POST

The Great American Fallacy Machine

<p>When it comes to urban policy issues such as public transit andsmart growth, self-identified &quot;Conservatives&quot; and Libertarians have turned&quot;straw man&quot; argumentation into an art form. Many of their positions are sotransparently fallacious that I feel compelled to take them down, (asI&#39;ve done in previous Planetizen op-eds [<a href="/node/25437">here </a>and <a href="/node/24107">here</a>])by systematically identifying their fallacies and documenting their misleading use of data sources. </p><p>It&#39;s easy and it&#39;s fun! </p>

August 12 - Michael Dudley

Flaunting Lawn and Order With Astroturf

Upkeep and Water Consumption Prompt Reviews of the Esthetics of Faux Turf

August 12 - The Los Angeles Times

The First U.S. Monorail Wasn't at Disneyland

The Ohio Mechanical Handling Co. reflects back on designing and building the first commercial monorail in the United States for a park in Akron, Ohio.

August 12 - Akron Beacon Journal

High Gas Prices Breathe New Life into DC's TOD

The cost of commuting is beginning to trump federal policies favoring exurban development, and transit ridership is at a fifty year high.

August 12 - The Washington Post

NYC Planning Director Walks the East Side with a Tape Measure

New York City planning chief Burden took the Daily News on one of her many walks. She showed how zoning can work to preserve the way of life on the storied Lower East Side and East Village, where she has worked diligently with the community on a plan to encourage affordable housing, ignite positive reinvestment, and prevent out-of-character high structures from impacting the neighborhood again.

August 12 - The NY Daily News

Peds and Bikes Clash on Popular Path, Traffic Cops Imminent

Its pathway system increasingly congested with users, the city of Calgary has announced it is going to start ticketing speeding or reckless cyclists.

August 12 - The Globe and Mail

Post News

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.

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.