The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

The Dirt looks at some new European public plazas that use interlocking paving materials with success.

July 7 - ASLA's The Dirt blog

Without a vote to spare, the CA state senate voted to authorize $5.8 billion to begin construction in the Central Valley of the nation's first true HSR system. The assembly passed the bill earlier in the week.

July 7 - Capitol Alert (Sacramento Bee blog)

A new anthology gathers writings on New York's Central Park, which includes an observation by the artist Christo that the park is "the most unusual and surrealistic place in New York City."

July 7 - The New York Times

Curtis Johnson details an unexpected trend in downtown Motor City, where a spike in housing demand may hint at the comeback promised in Chrysler's famed Superbowl ad.

July 7 - Citiwire

BLOG POST

A frequent query I receive from students is whether they should focus on gaining a broad understanding of many aspects of planning and places or if they should focus on one topic in depth. This is an important question.

July 6 - Ann Forsyth

Willamette Week interviews U.S. Representative Peter DeFazio of Oregon about the shenanigans going on behind-the-scenes of the newly-approved Transportation Bill.

July 6 - Willamette Week

A June panel, ‘Experiencing Healthier Places’, at the AIA Design Conference in LA looked at the roles that professional planners and architects can have in fostering a healthier society through the built environment.

July 6 - The Planning Report

An armory built for the National Guard at the turn of the century may see a second life as Crown Point's newest community-oriented, multi-use complex, Raanan Geberer, reports.

July 6 - Brooklyn Daily Eagle

It all depends on who you ask, argues David Alpert. Ratepayers have pushed for buried lines before; now, there's reason to doubt it would cost as much as the utility company once quoted them.

July 6 - Greater Greater Washington

What exactly is defined by mixed-use is often somewhat up to debate. Howard Blackson of <em>Better Cities & Towns</em> helps us clarify what the term "mixed-use" should really mean.

July 6 - Better Cities & Towns

A common criticism of streetcars are their relative slow speed combined with high capital and operating costs. Still, streetcars are being constructed in both large in small cities to help incentivize development.

July 6 - The Naked City

Julie Stern reports on a presentation by NYU professor Eric Klinenberg, who says that the number of people living by themselves in the United States is growing and is having an impact on city life.

July 6 - Urban Land

In what Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg calls a "dramatic power shift", England's largest cities have gained new powers to control their economies and transportation, reports Sam Lister.

July 6 - The Independent

An environmental economist and a law professor pronounces the increased carbon tax in British Columbia "the smartest tax in the world" and advise the U.S. to get onboard.

July 6 - The New York Times - Opinion

According to new data, state and local governments hired 828,000 workers in the first four months of the year, "up 20% from a year earlier, and the most since 2008," stoking hopes that government job growth may be on the way.

July 6 - USA Today

Benjamin Wellington reviews a new book by Mark C. Childs, which paints a picture of the city as the product of a complex and highly detailed design hierarchy, from regional topography all the way down to the arrangement of indoor spaces.

July 5 - THE DIRT

Planners in major urban areas have long been touting the virtues of density, mixed use, and public transit. But can these smart growth principles apply in a wilderness area dedicated to seasonable tourism?

July 5 - California Planning & Development Report

James Howard Kunstler has a new book, which goes deeper into an idea he's often explored: that the U.S. has a misguided sense that new technologies will save the American lifestyle.

July 5 - Urban Times

Nate Berg says that planners have a crucial role in making sure cities are prepared for natural disasters.

July 5 - The Atlantic Cities

Matt Bevilacqua talks shop with Emily Talen, whose new book explores the way land use regulation has shaped American cities and how it's all about to change.

July 5 - Next American City