The Daily Source of Urban Planning News
Suburbs Exist Because People Want Them
Developers, planners, and city officials haven't been insisting on regulations protecting low-density residential all these years -- the people who live there have, says Kevin Drum at Mother Jones.
Detroit Makes Big Investment in Bike Lanes
In the next year, Detroit will be putting in 30 miles of bike lanes throughout the city. But an ambitious new plan imagines up to 400 miles of bicycling infrastructure.
Killing the Authenticity You Love
The search for authenticity lead Generation Xers to move into gritty, urban environments that their overwhelming numbers managed to kill, says Adam Mayer in a review of Sharon Zukin's book Naked City.
FEATURE
The End of the Automobile Era?
Could this be the end? Two recent events signal a dramatic shift in American attitudes towards transportation and the proper role of transportation in making American cities, says Norman Garrick.
2,029 Urban Gardens
Vancouver set a goal of creating 2,010 food gardens around the city by the time of the 2010 Olympics, and managed to reach that number (and a little more).
BLOG POST
Yes, Zoning Still Encourages Sprawl
<p class="ecxMsoNormal"> A few weeks ago, Randall O’Toole (a leading anti-anti-sprawl commentator) and Matthew Yglesias (a Washington-based pundit who primarily writes about politics, but occasionally veers off into planning issues) had an interesting discussion about the extent to which sprawl is a result of land use regulation.(1) </p>
The Age of Infrastructure
Alex Marshall argues that the previous decade saw a dawning awareness of infrastructure and the importance of investing in it, in the United States and around the world.
Art and the Built Environment
Artist Roberto Mollá finds inspiration in the urbanity of Tokyo, and the isolation of city life.
Cable Cars See Increased Usage As Transit In Developing World
Low-cost, high capacity urban gondolas and cable cars are being successfully used as public transit and tools of urban revitalization in Colombia, Algeria and other parts of the developing world.
Embracing Baltimore's Existing Arts Districts, Not Creating New Ones
Baltimore Mayor Stephanie C. Rawlings-Blake wants to turn the city's west side into an arts district. This article from <em>The Baltimore Sun</em> argues that the city already has enough arts districts and should focus efforts on those.
How the Internet is Improving Your Walkshed
<em>Worldchanging</em>'s Alex Steffen reflects on the increasing impact of Internet-enabled information sharing at the community level, and suggests that it's helping to make neighborhoods more walkable.
BLOG POST
Walkable Los Angeles
<p> </p> <p> <em>Walkable Los Angeles</em>. Casual visitors may be surprised to learn that this is not an oxymoron. </p>
Town Planning, Brought To You By Chocolate
For some reason, chocolate barons had a thing for building model company towns for their workers. Nicola Twilley looks at Bournville, Hershey and New Earswick, all built on chocolate and possible models for today's 'eat local' movement.
EPA Report: Cities Growing, Suburbs Slowing
Urban redevelopment has experienced significant growth over the past five years, while residential permits are on the wane.
Bay Area Rediscovers the Creeks Under The Streets
A new proposal in Berkeley to daylight a portion of Strawberry Creek is the latest in a lineage of small interventions to bring buried portions of the urban watershed to the surface.
BLOG POST
Planning History: The Basics
<p class="MsoNormal"> Planning history is often taught in the first semester of planning programs. However, many students find that their interest increases with time and that with more knowledge they have more questions. Below I list some basic books and journals for finding out about planning history. In an upcoming entry I will discuss important plans, places, and programs that the historically literate urban planner should at least recognize. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> Two books typically set in planning history introductory courses in the United States are an easy place to start: </p>
Completing the Grid to Improve Walkability
<em>Grist</em>'s David Roberts maps out why his neighborhood is not walkable and how it could be greatly improved with just a little extra infrastructural connectivity.
The City's Physical Influence on Skateboarding and Park Design
This piece from <em>Urban Omnibus</em> looks at how underutilized parts of the built environment are embraced by the skateboard community, and how those urban aspects are often co-opted into skatepark design.
America's Best New Urban Parks
<em>The Infrastructurist</em> lists the top new urban parks that have been built in the U.S. in recent years.
Frank Lloyd Wright, Enemy of the City
Katherine Don looks back at Broadacre City, Wright's attempt to replace the modern industrial city once and for all.
Municipality of Princeton
Roanoke Valley-Alleghany Regional Commission
City of Mt Shasta
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
US High Speed Rail Association
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
