The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Citizen-Activated Adaptive Urban Spaces

The availability of information in the city is creating a new opportunity for adaptive and interactive urban spaces. As Carlo Ratti of MIT's SENSEable City Lab discusses, the key is people.

October 11 - Wired UK

Real Work to Begin on Rio's Olympic Plans

Rio de Janeiro has been named the host of the 2016 Summer Olympics. Now, the city has to start making its Olympic promises come true.

October 11 - USA Today

Reinventing Raleigh

Raleigh planner Dan Douglas has some bold proposals for the city, including nine new public squares, green roofs, and a new Grand Central Station-style transit hub.

October 11 - The Independent Weekly

Fast Food Ban Doesn't Trim the Fat

A ban on new fast food restaurants in South Los Angeles which was put in place last year has been found to play little role in reducing obesity in the area, according to a new report from the Rand Corporation.

October 10 - Los Angeles Times

Future Transport Today

This article from <em>Wired UK</em> looks at a handful of emerging transportation concept technologies that are altering the form of the city.

October 10 - Wired UK


Floating Houses for Flood-Prone Areas

As the city of New Orleans rebuilds its flooded and destroyed neighborhoods, a new design from architect Thom Mayne seeks to counteract the flood-prone area by simply floating.

October 10 - NPR

How to Make Housing Affordable

Avi Friedman has some ideas of how to make housing more affordable. He says that the focus is too much on the mortgage and subsidies side and not enough on lower building costs.

October 10 - Northwest Hub


LEED On Its Way Out?

As part of GOOD's Top 100 Ideas of 2009, author Jacob Gordon celebrates the fact that other standards of efficiency are gaining traction abroad and in the US.

October 10 - Good

BLOG POST

24th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference & Exhibition

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October 9 - Rick Abelson

Safety and Gender in Los Angeles

Enci Box's personal account of how gender, safety, and living car-free intersect in her daily transportation decisions.

October 9 - LA Streetsblog

Demotorizing with Generation Y

A study conducted by J.D.Power and Associates shows that young people are leading a shift in perception about desire for cars.

October 9 - Los Angeles Times

Intermountain West: Off the Map for HSR Plans

Planners from Phoenix, Denver, Salt Lake City, and Reno met this week to discuss plans for high-speed rail between their cities, since they've been left off the map of potential corridors to be funded by the stimulus package.

October 9 - The Arizona Republic

Vancouver Reevaluating its Skyline

In a series of open houses to debate whether its building height restrictions should be changed, former Vancouver city planner Larry Beasley debated with architect Richard Henriquez.

October 9 - Metro Vancouver

A Beacon of Hope, Just Outside DC

This article examines the unique success of the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor, of Northern Virginia, where retail and new apartments have thrived, despite the economy.

October 9 - The New York Times

The Perils of Waterfront Development

Guy Julier, designer and professor, talks about a number of design issues related to cities, including a detailed look at the pitfalls of waterfront development.

October 9 - ProDesign

Keeping Manufacturing in NYC

This interview with Adam Friedman of the New York Industrial Retention Network, illuminates reasons for retaining manufacturing in NYC, such as sustainability and job creation.

October 9 - Urban Omnibus

Despite Intimidation and Violence, Officials Vow to Complete South Africa BRT

Amid recnt violence thought to be related to the country's plans to implement a bus rapid transit system, South Africa's national transport minister has vowed that the transportation project will move ahead.

October 9 - The Times

Rail Safety Improvements Years Away

Head-on train collisions can be avoided by simply keeping one train per track. There's a plan to make that happen, but it's years from implementation.

October 9 - Miller-McCune

Mapping Population Density of Nations

These maps are distorted to emphasize areas with higher populations. Check out the warped US and bloated Australia.

October 9 - Fast Company

NYC Subway Riders Need Help!

Cuts in MTA staff in subway stations leave transit riders lost, feeling unsafe. Vendors and repair staff are reluctantly picking up the slack.

October 8 - The New York Times

Post News
Senior Planner

City of Thousand Oaks

Community Development Director

City of Wisconsin Rapids

Professor of Urban Planning

Harvard University Graduate School of Design

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.

FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.

Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold

The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.