The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

<p>The National Trust Main Street Center profiles community sustainability strategies from Seattle and other Washington State communities.</p>

January 6 - Main Street News

<p>Public libraries are increasingly being called upon to provide disaster services and support for those chronically in need, such as the homeless and seniors, yet their budgets continue to be cut.</p>

January 6 - Utne Reader

<p>Caltrain, the nation's oldest commuter rail system west of the Mississippi, unveiled a plan to electrify the line that operates 96 daily trains from San Francisco to San Jose using technology that requires changes in federal and state regulations.</p>

January 6 - Redwood City Daily News

<p>As rebuilding continues in New Orleans, many homes are being built in the floodplain without raised foundations, leading many to believe that the tough lessons learned during Hurricane Katrina have already been forgotten.</p>

January 6 - The Washington Post

<p>After several long delays, Taiwan's new Shinkansen bullet train begins commercial service, linking the island's two major cities.</p>

January 6 - Associated Press via Forbes

<p>The domestic diva Martha Stewart is putting her stamp on a New Urbanist style community in Central Florida.</p>

January 5 - The Orlando Sentinel

<p>A company town near Seattle leveraged former Boeing property to attract new residential and commercial development, and is even luring the city's sports teams and the Seattle branch of the Federal Reserve Bank.</p>

January 5 - The New York Times

<p>Streetsblog explores the transportation situation in the rapidly growing emirate.</p>

January 5 - Streetsblog

<p>A debate over who should be responsible for the costs incurred by wildfires is raging between the Federal government and state and local officials.</p>

January 5 - The New York Times

<p>A 65-ft tower in San Diego is being redesigned as a piece of modern art.</p>

January 5 - The San Diego Union-Tribune

<p>At over 4 million square feet, Manila's new mega-mall is part commercial palace and social square.</p>

January 5 - PopMatters

<p>Sales of high-priced playhouses that replicate real-life homes are increasing.</p>

January 5 - The Oregonian

<p>As Minneapolis rushes to complete design on a new ballpark for the Twins, access to an extension of the city's light rail line and new Northstar Commuter Rail could be jeopardized.</p>

January 5 - Minneapolis Star Tribune

<p>While many people believe that there is a zero sum game between increasing safety and preserving or enhancing aesthetics, a recent post on Streetsblog offers a different perspective.</p>

January 5 - Streetsblog

<p>Planners and local officials want to see the city's height restrictions lifted and the city's skyline accentuated with new high-rise buildings.</p>

January 5 - USA Today

Covering the cleanup efforts after Hurricane Katrina, Robert Bullard examines why the government neglects the problems of the poor, and in fact, makes them worse.

January 4 - The Next American City

<p>Forget good housing or easy access to transit -- one New York writer chose to move to the Queen's neighborhood of Jackson Heights for its incredible selection of food.</p>

January 4 - The New York Times

<p>With the increasing adoption of eco-friendly design and construction practices, green building is becoming all the rage.</p>

January 4 - E/The Environmental Magazine

<p>Anti-growth sentiment has led to new building moratoriums in the suburbs around Washington D.C., but they only serve to drive up home prices and keep out middle income families.</p>

January 4 - The Free Lance-Star

<p>Food shortages and economic decline have forced Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe to rescind his 2005 land reform decision to seize all farmland from white farmers. Land has already been returned to 19 white farmers, while more await lease approval.</p>

January 4 - The Guardian Unlimited