The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Who says playing games can’t make you smart? A recent study by Lumos Labs evaluated users’ game scores across the country to determine which metropolitan areas in the U.S. are the smartest.

June 7 - The Atlantic Cities

Chinese developers recently completed their controversial replication of the Austrian village of Hallstatt, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, reports Molly Oswaks.

June 7 - Gizmodo

Twitter’s move into San Francisco this month is part of a new trend of tech companies setting up in the city, causing rents to skyrocket, and forcing lower-income residents out.

June 7 - The New York Times

After being rocked by a scandal over extravagant spending, Tom Stoelker wonders whether the General Services Administration (GSA) and their hallmark initiatives, such as the Design Excellence Program, will suffer in the political fallout.

June 7 - The Architect's Newspaper

Today, the National Trust for Historic Preservation unveiled its annual list of the eleven most endangered places in America.

June 6 - National Trust For Historic Preservation

The fact that cities are becoming more technologically reliant and interconnected is good, right? But, what happens if the controls of the "smart city" fall into the wrong hands? A new video game explores such a scenario, writes Nate Berg.

June 6 - The Atlantic Cities

A free platform that promises to "bring citizen feedback into the digital age" is being employed to help shape Philadelphia's comprehensive plan, reports Matt Bevilacqua.

June 6 - Next American City

Julie Schmit explores what the "unprecedented" growth in the single-family home rental market means for home builders, school districts, and the consumer economy.

June 6 - USA Today

John Yung traces Cincinnati's dramatic comeback over the last decade, and gives credit to the Center City Plan developed in 2002 by HR&A and Cooper, Robertson & Partners for laying the groundwork for the city's subsequent revitalization.

June 6 - UrbanCincy

Isn't it great when our gridlocked government can finally come together to unanimously support vital legislation? That was the case in the Alabama state legislature last month when Senate Bill 477 passed both chambers unanimously.

June 6 - Press-Register

Michael Kimmelman pays homage to an angular glass canopy, designed by architect Preston Scott Cohen, that has turned a pedestrian street in Lower Manhattan into a "social cathedral."

June 6 - The New York Times

Diana Lind argues that transportation regulations needlessly stifle competition that could "benefit our intertwined problems of high prices, congestion and slow service."

June 6 - Next American City

With D.C. abandoning its leadership position in funding road infrastructure improvements, states such as Oregon and Minnesota are going forward with pilot plans to transition to road usage fees.

June 6 - USA Today

Marissa Gluck attributes downtown L.A.'s resurgence to some unlikely community development partners - our four-legged friends.

June 6 - The Atlantic Cities

Richard Perez-Pena reports on the new frontier in the rush to monetize publicly owned resources - the college parking lot.

June 5 - The New York Times

With Governor Brown and federal leaders pressuring state legislators to approve construction of the key first step in the $68-billion bullet train plan, a new survey from USC and the L.A. Times shows that California voters are backing away.

June 5 - Los Angeles Times

In the first part of a series examining the failure of Portland-area fair housing, Brad Schmidt explains how a region that prides itself on its progressive values and openness to diversity is "harboring a form of institutionalized racial inequity."

June 5 - The Oregonian

Writing in <em>Urban Land</em>, Ron Nyren identifies ten community/recreation centers completed in the last five years that go far beyond merely providing exercise opportunities, to better serve their communities.

June 5 - Urban Land

Facing a staggering backlog of necessary street improvements after years of neglect, San Diego's potholes have emerged as a defining topic in this year's mayoral campaign, reports Tony Perry.

June 5 - Los Angeles Times

Key to the upswing in the Brooklyn rental market was the failure of the last wave of building condominiums - providing a ready supply that only needed to be converted to rentals. The sale of a Williamsburg building set a record outside of Manhattan.

June 5 - The New York Times - Business Day