The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

A California judge rules that the California High Speed Rail Authority's environmental impact report was inadequate. Plaintiffs celebrate ruling as a victory, but the Authority doesn't see it as a setback.

September 4 - Streetsblog Los Angeles

A new street greening project in North Portland that seeks to reduce stormwater runoff is fueling a debate between the area's young, eco-conscious businesses owners and older owners who are worried about interruption from the project.

September 4 - The Oregonian

New world cities are emerging, and the "first truly urban century" will be shaped by the way increasing wealth is handled in places like Mumbai, Bangalore, Shanghai, Beijing, Sao Paulo and Dubai.

September 4 - Forbes

Atlanta's Beltline project is one of the most ambitious transportation plans the city has seen in decades, but the downturn in the economy could wreak havoc on its progress.

September 4 - The Signal

Water saver or environmental hazard? Questions are compounding about artificial turf as more homeowners ditch their grass for fake lawns. Contradicting city policies muddy the issue in the arid Southwest.

September 4 - Miller-McCune

Policies that encourage density as a way to reduce carbon emissions won't be able to play a significant role in reducing carbon emissions in time to counteract global warming, according to a new report from the National Academy of Sciences.

September 3 - Technology Review

Consumer preference surveys indicate that total U.S. demand for large-lot, exurban housing will not increase, while demand for small-lot and attached housing in accessible, multi-modal locations will double during the next two decades.

September 3 - Victoria Transport Policy Institute

A new documentary tracks the meltdown of Wall Street and its impact on housing throughout the country. <em>The New York Times</em> offers this review.

September 3 - The New York Times

Alex Marshall points out the fallacy of creating transportation policy based solely on figures like miles traveled per hour, average commuting times, and cost per passenger. Quality of the time spent commuting is rarely taken into account.

September 3 - Governing Magazine

Director of the White House Office of Urban Affairs Adolfo Carrion, Jr. visited Kansas City on Tuesday to visit the site of the city's new "Green Impact Zone". The inner-city Zone will be a laboratory for energy-saving techniques.

September 3 - Kansas City Star

Water restrictions on farms in the state have atrophied jobs in the fertile Central Valley, giving communities some of the highest rates of unemployment in the state. As jobs dry up, the need for aid is surpassing what's there to give.

September 3 - The Wall Street Journal

Shanghai could be them model city of the future, according to a new exhibit.

September 3 - e-Oculus

A new report from the National Research Council seeks to establish the scientific basis for the relationships among development patterns, VMT, and energy consumption. So what did they find?

September 3 - Reconnecting America

A new report from the International Olympic Committee has evaluated the four host candidates for the 2016 Summer Olympics and found many places for improvement ahead of its October 2 decision.

September 3 - The Chicago Tribune

Rapid urbanization and dense cities with inadequate infrastructure are being cited as leading causes in the spread of dengue fever throughout Southeast Asia and the rest of the world.

September 3 - Reuters

FEATURE

Susanna Diaz reviews a new book covering the history and thought of urban planning in Brazil, edited by Profs. Vicente del Rio and William Siembieda of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

September 3 - Vicente del Rio

BLOG POST

<span style="font-size: small; font-family: Times New Roman"><span style="font-size: small; font-family: Calibri"> <p style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"> <span style="font-size: small; font-family: Calibri">Location, location, location. Choosing a smart home location can help households become healthy, wealthy and wise, since it affects residents’ physical activity levels, long-term financial burdens and opportunities for education and social interaction. </span> </p>

September 2 - Todd Litman

A controversial proposal in the London borough of Barnet would create a fast track for developers who pay more for faster service. Critics say this would create an unfair, two-tiered system, where richer developers get more access to government.

September 2 - The Architect's Journal

The new facade of the Atheneum Hotel in London sports 12,000 hanging plants, creating a lush curtain of greenery. Wired Magazine has pictures of the facade and other similar sites.

September 2 - Wired

The failing world economy put many large eco-developments on hold, but many projects like the Amsterdam's 'smart city' and Germany's Eco City Hamburg-Harburg are on track and forging new ground in sustainability practices.

September 2 - Business Week