The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Developers To Pay For Air Pollution Caused By Sprawl

Air pollution control meant looking at tailpipes and smokestacks. Not anymore. San Joaquin Valley is first in nation to take into account air pollution created by urban sprawl.

December 16 - The Fresno Bee

Tokyo's Unfolding Construction Scandal

A scandal is unfolding in Tokyo as 57 buildings are identified as likely to fail in a moderate earthquake.

December 16 - Engineering News Record

Hurricane Katrina Swept Away Environmental Rules

In the name of rebuilding, government agencies waived environmental rules in the hurricane-hit Gulf Coast.

December 16 - Abhijeet Chavan

The Benefits Of Immigration

A new report by the Center for the Continuing Study of the California Economy finds that immigration -- legal or illegal -- produces a net economic benefit for the country.

December 16 - The Los Angeles Times

'Absent-Urbanism' And Urbanism Awards

Susan Barnes-Gelt reviews good and bad examples of urbanism in Denver.

December 16 - The Denver Post


The Intriguing Promise Of Treasure Island

San Francisco's proposed Treasure Island development might be the new model for urban growth.

December 16 - The San Francisco Chronicle

New Eminent Domain Ballot Measures In California

Voter initiatives have been filed that address the issues brought up in Kelo V. City Of New London.

December 16 - League of California Cities


Building Big, Living Small

Doug Rucker builds large, spacious residences, but lives -- and works -- in a modest 710 square foot house.

December 16 - The Los Angeles Times

EPA Considers Easing Clean Air Act

To reduce its "regulatory burden" the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency considers exempting some companies from reporting small releases of toxic pollutants.

December 16 - The Washington Post

Tidal Power In Canada

Built in the 1980s, a Canadian experimental station in the Bay of Fundy is one of the few operational tidal power plants in the world.

December 16 - BBC News

BLOG POST

Web Content Syndication For E-government

<img src='http://www.planetizen.com/tech/files/20051215_tennnessee_feeds.jpg' alt='Tennessee.gov RSS Feeds' align="right"/><br /> <br /> The popularity of blogs and podcasting is partly driven by the simple concept of web content syndication and aggregation using RSS and ATOM feeds. Yet, a study by Yahoo suggests that <a href="http://searchenginewatch.com/searchday/article.php/3555521">RSS is still not widely adopted</a>. The study reports:<br /> <br /> <blockquote>"...27% of users actually consume RSS on personalized start pages without realizing that it's the underlying technology enabling what they read. Sites such as MyYahoo, MyMSN, and the Firefox browser with its active bookmarks provide easy access to regularly updated RSS feeds with little or no effort from users."</blockquote>

December 15 - Abhijeet Chavan

New Orleans' Uncertain Future

Between the diaspora of its residents, the prospect of a "Disney-fied" redevelopment plan, and the need to involve residents in planning processes, New Orleans is the site of an immense tug of war over its future.

December 15 - Yes! Magazine

Is Petrocollapase The Only Way To Control Overpopulation?

A columnist examines the challenges of overpopulation, food planning, and the housing bubble, and concludes that the only event that can correct our environmental overindulgence is a collapse of the oil industry.

December 15 - Culture Change

Farmland or McMansions?

Suburban and exurban developments are pushing traditional land uses aside at a rate of more than a million acres of rural land per year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

December 15 - Common Dreams

Pre-Fab New Urbanism For 40% Less?

The manufactured homes are tailored to an appropriate historic or neighborhood look, and will likely play a big part in rebuilding on the Coast.

December 15 - Sun Herald

Federal Role Needed in Rebuilding America's Infrastructure

Felix G. Rohatyn and Warren Rudman say opponents of "big government" must realize that private enterprise has always been made possible by federal investments in physical infrastructure, and that this federal role needs to be reconceived and refined.

December 15 - The Washington Post

BLOG POST

Living in glass data houses

Even though I knew this data existed, seeing it spatially displayed so I could easily get the scoop on all my neighbors made me uneasy. Straight from DirectionsMag.com: <br /> <br /> <ul><br /> <a href="http://newsletter.directionsmag.com/users/link.php?LinkID=26199&UserID=71070&Newsletter=401&List=1&LinkType=Send ">Mathew Kane, a doctoral student in the Indiana University School of <br /> Informatics</a>, has generated an interesting Google <a href="http://newsletter.directionsmag.com/users/link.php?LinkID=26198&UserID=71070&Newsletter=401&List=1&LinkType=Send">mashup</a>.

December 15 - Ken Snyder

Planning Versus Property Rights In Oregon

The WSJ editorial board sounds the alarm over the loss of property rights and a judicial system run amok in Oregon.

December 15 - The Wall Street Journal

How Richmond's Downtown Redevelopment Theory Failed

The city of Richmond, Virginia has tried everything to spark an economic revival on East Broad Street, but nothing has worked. The problem: it has refused to help the businesses already there that already call it home.

December 15 - Style Weekly

Kotkin Responds To Los Angeles Mayor: LA Doesn't Want Density

Joel Kotkin criticizes Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa for re-imagining Los Angeles. Kotkin says that Angelenos want to live in a place more like Manhattan Beach than Manhattan.

December 15 - The Los Angeles Times

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