The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Gas Tax or VMT Fee? Experts Debate How to Fund Transportation

In this special "Energy: Squaring Off" section, experts take opposing sides on six energy issues - the first being how best to pay for transportation. Carl Davis of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy vs. Robert Poole of Reason Foundation.

April 17 - The Wall Street Journal

Buenos Aires Confronts its Crumbling History; But is it Too Late?

The retirement of Buenos Aires's beloved wooden train cars are emblematic of the city's struggle to preserve its physical heritage amid underinvestment, widespread demolition, and uninspired redevelopment, reports Emily Schmall.

April 17 - The New York Times

Skywalk Plan Threatens Cleveland's Budding Street Life

A downtown Cleveland casino is pushing to build a skywalk to connect to its parking garage located across the street. Recognizing the anti-urban implications of the plan, an unlikely activist has organized opposition to the project.

April 17 - The Atlantic Cities

Broken Bus

Are Corporations Imperiling America's Public Transportation Systems?

Chris Hedges warns that corporate consolidation of public transportation is leading to increasingly dangerous conditions for both drivers and passengers, especially in intercity bus systems.

April 17 - AlterNet

New York Gets to Know its Subway Riders...Intimately

Anyone who's ridden the New York City subway will inevitably pick up on the odd social patterns that develop in the slim tube hurtling beneath the city. A new study identifies and quantifies those unique behaviors.

April 17 - The New York Times


Resurrecting Ancient Cities from the Dead

Rather than continually build new towns on the outskirts of today's cities or struggle with creating a sense of place in newly constructed environments, could we resurrect old settlements to connect the old with the new?

April 17 - Humanitarian Space

BLOG POST

Which cities are (perceived as) safest?

A Gallup poll asked residents of each Congressional district whether they felt safe walking alone at night in their city or area. Although city residents feared crime more than suburbs, there were some surprises.

April 16 - Michael Lewyn


Cincinnati Public Staircases: A Walking History Abandoned but not Forgotten

A disappearing part of Cincinnati’s urban history is the subject of a new book, which portrays urban staircases as reflective of neighborhood histories and the urban experience.

April 16 - Global Site Plans - The Grid

Atlanta Artist Paints Suburban Ennui

Today's suburbs have discarded the human-scaled patterns they once promised. This newly resurfaced series of paintings from Atlanta artist Meg Aubrey will leave you longing for the world we neglected to build.

April 16 - PlaceShakers

Federal Law Change Pays Dividends for NYC Co-Op Residents

Offsetting property taxes and maintenance fees, newly authorized market-rate ground floor retail provides a lucrative source of income for co-op owners in NYC.

April 16 - New York Times

Olympics Earn a Gold Medal in Displacement

Lawrence Vale and Annemarie Gray compare the cases of communities displaced by the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, where redevelopment for the 2016 Games is underway, and Atlanta, 20 years ago.

April 16 - Places Journal

El Paso Destroys to Rebuild

Emily Badger explains why the demolition of El Paso's high-rise city hall this past weekend was a cause for celebration, as the first step in a multimillion-dollar redevelopment that promises to transform the city's downtown.

April 16 - The Atlantic Cities

Socially Conscious Developers Build a Bastion of Affordability in Philly

Inga Saffron reports on the redevelopment of a 19th-century brick mill into workforce housing in Philadelphia's South Kensington neighborhood; a project that proves virtue need not come at the expense of profit for one Philadelphia-based developer.

April 16 - philly.com

Miami Tops When it Comes to Roadway Efficiency

Miami probably isn't the first city you think of when it comes to the efficiency of its road infrastructure. New York, yes. San Francisco or Boston, maybe. But Miami? Chris Dickersin-Prokopp explains the surprising results culled from census data.

April 16 - Greater Greater Washington

Arcane Liquor Laws Arrest Rejuvenation of New Jersey Towns

Heather Haddon examines the effect that the Garden State's prohibition-era liquor laws, which restrict the number of liquor licenses per town, are having on efforts to revitalize small downtowns across New Jersey.

April 16 - The Wall Street Journal

Transportation Budget: "Where's The Beef, Mr. President?"

Kathryn W. Wolfe takes President Obama to task on his fiscal 2014, $77 billion transportation budget - not in where the money goes but where it comes from. How often can the 'peace dividend' be justifiably used as a funding source?

April 16 - Politico

Boston Marathon

Why Target the Boston Marathon?

Any suspected motives for the tragic events that unfolded near the finish of the Boston Marathon yesterday are conjecture as of the writing of this post. But Nicholas Thompson endeavors to explain the meaning of this celebrated event.

April 16 - The New Yorker

Navigating the American Carbon Market

Gary Gero, President of Climate Action Reserve, discusses his organization's work drafting carbon offset protocols for the California Air Resources Board's cap-and-trade program.

April 15 - The Planning Report

Minnesota Governor Backs Off Raising State Gas Tax

MN Gov. Mark Dayton, fearing that a statewide gas tax increase lacks popular support, will not back the legislature's proposal to raise it, but has affirmed his support for a regional general sales tax for transit. But it may not be that easy.

April 15 - StarTribune (Minneapolis)

Migration of American Indians Transforms Cities and Reservations

The last several decades have seen a mass migration of American Indians from reservations to North America's urban areas, but federal funds that are supposed to assist them have not followed. Answers are elusive for how to stem endemic poverty.

April 15 - The New York Times

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