The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

In blacked-out Manhattan, recovery is slow, if not entirely absent. To help fill the void left by public agencies, a self-organized recovery effort is trying to help those left behind, with the assistance of technology.

November 2 - Fast Company Co.Exist

Architecture critic Michael Kimmelman delivers his verdict on the Barclays Center, the new home of the Brooklyn Nets and the first phase of the larger Atlantic Yards mixed-use project. He has praise for the arena, but lambastes the larger plan.

November 2 - The New York Times

For anyone that's seen the shocking images of boardwalks ripped to shreds and homes and roller coasters now sitting in the ocean, its clear the Jersey Shore bore the brunt of Sandy. The debate has already begun as to whether the area should rebuild.

November 2 - Salon

Despite a ceremonial groudbreaking last year, a $5.2-billion elevated rail project four decades in the making is facing an uncertain future as the centerpiece of a fierce campaign battle.

November 2 - Los Angeles Times

Ariel Schwartz explains Recovers, "a logistical management system for disaster recovery," that gives communities tools for matching volunteers with recovery tasks, in the event of a disaster.

November 2 - Fast Company Co.Exist

Nathan Norris continues his series on municipal placemaking mistakes. This time: failure to understand the big picture and its order of operations.

November 2 - PlaceShakers

NJ's Republican Gov. Chris Christie heaps praise on President Obama, and the governor of the neighboring, hard-hit state, NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo, has also stirred the political pot by going where no other pol has gone - linking Sandy to climate change.

November 2 - San Francisco Chronicle

Critics of the proposed $500-million Southern California International Gateway, which is being touted as “one of the 'greenest' freight yards in the nation," contend it will actually reduce air quality and harm low income, minority residents.

November 1 - Los Angeles Times

Extreme events tend to expose the true weaknesses and strengths of a place and its people. In the same way that Sandy revealed the shortcomings in NY's physical infrastructure, it has shown the growing chasm in the city's economic infrastructure.

November 1 - The Atlantic

One silver lining from Hurricane Sandy is that it proved the accuracy of the National Hurricane Center, an agency under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) due largely to its hi-tech tools. Do you know what a 'dropsonde' is?

November 1 - NPR: All Things Considered

In many parts of the city located on higher ground than Lower Manhattan, the lights are on and the flood waters have receded. But New York's transportation network is struggling to reconnect the city's business centers with commuters.

November 1 - The New York Times

Five years ago, Graham Weston, the chairman and co-founder of Rackspace, had a wild vision to transform an abandoned mall into his company's headquarters. His unique approach has revitalized the adjacent city of Windcrest, a suburb of San Antonio.

November 1 - The New York Times

What do we lose when we narrowly associate planning with an 'urban' or 'city' context? The ability to effectively plan for rural, transitional, regional, and even urban areas, says Ruth Miller.

November 1 - Colab Radio

For 10 years now, Michael Lejeune, Creative Director for the Metropolitan Transit Authority (M.T.A.), has made taking transit in L.A. seem a lot cooler. These re-branding efforts have contributed to a 38 percent increase in ridership since 2005.

November 1 - The New York Times

In the face of slow development in the U.S., renowned architects Richard Meier and Robert A.M. Stern have been exporting their distinctive styles overseas, where “people want to bask in the reflective glow of New York.”

November 1 - The New York Times

A study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) identified twenty coastal cities, which by population, would be most exposed to flooding and superstorms. Fifteen are mega-cities in Asia.

November 1 - Channel News Asia

What does it mean to truly involve the public in planning processes? Neeraj Mehta finds "too much placation, manipulation and tokenism in our engagement efforts," and identifies principles for collective problem-solving and shared decision-making.

November 1 - Next American City

FEATURE

Planning education and practice fail to recognize the importance of physical design and spatial planning. Randall Arendt diagnoses the root of the disorder and suggests some treatments for returning urban planning to good health.

October 31 - Randall Arendt

After much anticipation, Richard Florida has published his extremely scientific (no joke) 2012 Halloween Index, which identifies "the metros best primed for trick-or-treating and Halloween revelry."

October 31 - The Atlantic Cities

Among the iconic images of Hurricane Sandy's devastation is sure to be the video of the construction crane on the tallest residential building under construction in NYC being toppled by hurricane force winds and left dangling perilously in Midtown.

October 31 - CNN U.S.