The Daily Source of Urban Planning News
Environmental Groups Sue to Stop Sprawl in the Inland Empire
On the fringes of the built environment in Southern California, comes a turn of events much more common in the urban core: the California Environmental Quality Act has been invoked to put the brakes on a general plan update.
3D Printed Vehicles, the Future of Personal Mobility?
A revolution is happening in the automotive industry. Self-driving cars, electric vehicles, and car sharing programs are disrupting the traditional car manufacturer's industry. Could personalized, 3D printed cars, be the next trend?
On the 50-Year Legacy of the New York City Landmarks Law
This past April, the Landmarks Law turned 50. Its legacy and impact has been inconsequential for shaping the urban environment.
Oil Woes: Houston Housing Prices Falling Quickly
The price of oil has been on a steady decline since 2014, and the housing markets of oil industry towns are on their own, similar slide.
New Evidence of the Superiority of Bike Lanes Over Sharrows
A study presented last week to the Transportation Research Board shows that the quality of the bike infrastructure has a significant effect for commuting rates and safety.
NIMBYs at Center of California's Housing Shortage
Sacramento Bee's political columnist, Dan Walters, writes that NIMBYs are among the main reasons for the state's chronic housing crisis, and one of their main tools is the California Environmental Quality Act, which must be reformed by politicians.
Vehicle-to-Vehicle and Vehicle-to-Infrastructure Tests Coming to Colorado
The Colorado Department of Transportation's RoadX pilot project will test early alerts to drivers on Interstate 70.
Ten Planning Career Growth New Year's Resolutions
Planner Clement Lau shares his New Year's resolutions: ten professional development and career growth goals for planners and urban design professionals.
Report Identifies 12 'Highway Boondoggles'
A new report by U.S. PIRG and the Frontier Group identifies the highway projects most likely to break the transportation funding bank.
City Nixes Idea to Shut Down More Streets for Cubs Games
Any open streets benefits for a proposal to shut down Clark and Addison streets near Wrigley Field would have been secondary to security concerns—but it's all conjecture after the Mayor's Office nixed the idea.
New York's Biggest Challenge for Emission Reduction Goals: Green Building
About 80 percent of New York City's greenhouse gas emissions come from its building stock, so the city's goal to cut emissions 80 percent by 2050 will hinge on aggressive retrofitting requirements in addition to new green building standards.
Calgary Ends the 'Sprawl Subsidy'
An op-ed by the mayor of Calgary, Canada celebrates the adoption of a new off-site levy that will change the financing formula for new development and the necessary infrastructure that comes with it.
Mortality Rate Increases Dramatically Among 25-34 Year-Old White Men and Women
Similar to a recent Nobel Prize-winning study that showed increased deaths in middle-aged whites from heroin, opiates, and alcohol, a New York Times analysis shows that deaths for whites aged 25 to 34 from drug overdoses has reached historic levels.
Targeting Another Gap in the System, L.A. Metro Looks to Expand Eastward
The potential 2.8 mile expansion of the Metro Green Line would connect light rail to the Norwalk MetroLink Station, opening up new transit options to users throughout the region.
A Critique of the Built Environment: How We Built Unhappiness
One writer's view of the modern city goes negative. If our environment affects our happiness, surely we're all suffering from depression.
Carrots and Sticks: Making Driving Alone the Worst Option
The build out of mass transit and bicycle infrastructure hasn’t been the cure-all for shifting commuters from single-person autos to alternate modes of transit, as many had hoped. Maybe it's time we start looking at how to disincentivize driving.
6 Ways Local Governments Can Prepare For the Arrival of New Migrants
At the UN’s Habitat III conference taking place this fall in Quito, Ecuador, the role of cities in addressing the movement of migrants will be a primary topic of discussion.
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How Lizards Can Teach Planners About Designing Cities
Ecologists offer scientific lessons in how to better build cities for humans and wildlife.
Detroit’s Rosa Parks Transit Center Not Living Up To Its Name
Inside the efforts to clean up and improve the centerpiece of Detroit’s transit system.
On Plans That Turn Out Like News Years’ Resolutions
A Dallas area writer finds parallels between the city’s planning processes and the New Years’ resolution practices of most human beings.
City of Thousand Oaks
City of Wisconsin Rapids
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
