The Daily Source of Urban Planning News
Supermarket Sweep
Large supermarkets in San Francisco are being replaced with higher-end specialty grocers, and some say it's a bad thing for many customers.
BLOG POST
Sprawl Hell and Sprawl Heck
<br /> <p class="MsoNormal"> Last Friday, I was in two different suburban environments in Atlanta.<span> </span>Both are sprawl by any normal definition of the term - car-oriented environments where residential streets are separated from commerce, sidewalks are rare, and densities are low.<span> </span>But the two places are as different as sprawl and new urbanism. </p>
Best-Performing U.S. Cities
The Milken Institute, an independent economic think tank, has released the results of their study, 'Best-Performing Cities 2008: Where America's Jobs Are Created and Sustained'. Provo, Utah tops the list.
The Church of Wal-Mart
The Carlinville Southern Baptist Church purchased a former Wal-Mart building for their growing congregation, but found that the zoning wouldn't allow religious activities in the store. The church sued under RLIUPA and won this week.
HUD Says 'Too Many Houses on the Market'
HUD Secretary Steven Preston said this week that the U.S. is facing a 'fundamental oversupply' of houses, which will continue to weigh down the economy.
The Year in Parking
The New York Times uses the events of Park(ing) Day to review the radical changes taking place in the city's parking policies. Tune in on Monday for Planetizen's own coverage of the Los Angeles festivities.
Tent Cities Sprouting Up All Over U.S.
Foreclosures and economic hardships have caused a proliferation of tent cities across the U.S.
Foreclosure Crisis Spawning Tent Cities
Across the country the growing ranks of people made homeless in the foreclosure crisis are generating tent cities.
Dams Threaten Future Water Supplies
Humanity has over-engineered the world's hydrology through dam-building, writes Rachel Olivieri.
Improvement District Strikes Fear in Small Businesses
Tacoma, Washington has created a local improvement district in the Broadway-St. Helens neighborhood to create an 'urban village' and improve old infrastructure, but existing small businesses are afraid of being priced out.
Beachfront Brouhaha in Buffalo City
That's Buffalo City, South Africa, where public open space along the coast is being rezoned to business and residential, to the dismay of locals worried about beach access.
The Death of the Lawn
More and more lawns across the country are getting axed and replaced with gardens.
Seattle's Housing Can't Handle Projected Growth
Seattle is growing, and it's going to have to start thinking about augmenting its single-family neighborhoods with more multi-unit housing if it wants to keep up with the pace of growth.
Bible Park USA Finds New Site, After Failing to Get TIF
Private funders attempting to build a $175 million Bible theme park asked for tax-increment financing to reach their goal. The county also denied a re-zoning request, but the park has found a new home in neighboring Wilson County.
Predicting McCain and Obama's Effect on Cities
Neal Pierce asks the question, 'Who's Best for Cities, McCain or Obama?' The evidence has been difficult to come by, but Pierce unearths some clues and makes some logical predictions.
In Energy, It's 'All Of The Above' That's Necessary
An MIT professor testified before Congress for a broad policy to address energy and climate crises - including carbon pricing, carbon sequestration, expanded fossil fuel and nuclear production, and more research spending.
'I Hate Green Architecture'
Cathleen McGuigan, Newsweek's architecture critic, is disdainful of the hype surrounding green architecture, particularly because it so often doesn't address the main problems with land use: proximity to jobs and services, and oversized development.
The Air-Powered Car is a Reality
The question, as WorldChanging's Adam Stein says, is whether it works well enough. A company called Zero Pollution Motors claims that its new, improved model will go 848 miles on one tank of compressed air.
Toronto's High-Rise Boom Could Mean End of Sprawl
Toronto is swimming in high-rise construction, with the second highest rate in the world. Some say this shift to the urban core spells the end of sprawl in Toronto.
The Books of Moses
Robert Moses, New York's controversial master builder, is the subject of a new series of novels.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
Custer County Colorado
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont
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.
