The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

<p>How the housing crisis -- from unaffordable housing and the subprime scandal -- is affecting Boston.</p>

April 10 - The Boston Globe

<p>As the U.S. Green Building Council responds to critics and prepares its green rating system for massive changes, some say we must ask what more should be done to improve the process.</p>

April 10 - The Next American City

<p>With visions of a reforested America in which food is grown locally year round, vertical farms aim to address many of the problems facing mankind, including global warming, runoff, desertification, water pollution, and rapid urbanization.</p>

April 10 - New York Magazine

<p>A small Swiss village may become a new luxury resort, as Egyptian investors have targeted the site for redevelopment. Many residents were at first apprehensive, but have come to see the redevelopment as a savior for their struggling home</p>

April 10 - BBC

BLOG POST

<div> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black">People often ask me if a building has to be old or look historic to create a sense of place. I always answer with a definite &quot;No!&quot; While it may be easier to find older buildings where public activity flourishes, their success is not due to age or a particular architectural style. The main factor is actually how the base of the building is treated. A building with a well-designed (and well-managed!) ground floor can be a great place regardless of the style in which it is constructed. <span class="640540921-06042007">Let&#39;s look at </span>two places which I think illustrate this point quite effectively: Country Club Plaza in Kansas City, and Rockefeller Center in New York.</span></p>

April 9 - Anonymous

<p>Preservationists have petitioned the city and stopped a homeowner from tearing down the 1950s ranch-style home he recently purchased, citing the home's historic value.</p>

April 9 - The Chicago Tribune

<p>This study investigates the value travelers place on qualitative factors such as comfort, convenience, security and reliability, and practical ways to quantify these values for transport planning and project evaluation.</p>

April 9 - Victoria Transport Policy Institute

<p>City officials in Montreal want to clean up its red-light district, targeting the notoriously X-rated area as the first site for urban renewal in the city. But many say the area's heritage and soul are worth preserving.</p>

April 9 - The Globe and Mail

<p>With a number of large housing developments underway, rural Jasper County, South Carolina, is anticipating a rapid urban transition. Local officials are looking to draft a growth plan to ensure that developers whims won't shape the region.</p>

April 9 - The Post and Courier

<p>A number of historic buildings in Chicago are being preserved -- but only on the outside. Developers have bent the rules of preservation to repurpose historic buildings as parking garages and luxury condos while preserving only their facades.</p>

April 9 - The Chicago Tribune

<p>Upset developers forced to set aside 25% of their development as affordable housing are facing off with city officials in Los Angeles over its inclusionary housing policies.</p>

April 9 - The Los Angeles Times

<p>Billions of dollars in federal grants and loans intended for the development of rural areas have been given to areas <em>The Washington Post</em> has found to be far more urban than rural, including beach resorts and suburbs.</p>

April 9 - The Washington Post

FEATURE

April 9 - Nate Berg

<p>In accordance with state laws, the transit agency in Houston will have to pay property taxes on land it purchased for transit-oriented developments. Because the land will be developed privately, the law says it is not a public use and is not exempt.</p>

April 9 - The Houston Chronicle

<p>To help keep its airport a major revenue generator, the city of Scottsdale, Arizona, is considering a variety of plans to improve accessibility. Most of the plans on the table revolve around building roads, but bus rapid transit is also proposed.</p>

April 9 - The Arizona Republic

<p>The Florida State Department of Environmental Protection is moving forward with plans to reclassify many of its waters based on their potential harm to humans. Some say the reclassifications open the door for corporate and agricultural polluters.</p>

April 9 - The Miami Herald

<p>The population in Houston has passed that of Miami, making it the sixth-largest city in the United States. Between 2000 and 2006, the city saw a 17.5% growth rate.</p>

April 8 - The Houston Chronicle

<p>As the subprime mortgage crisis worsens, civil rights organizations and Democratic presidential contenders alike are calling for a moratorium on foreclosures, but the mortgage industry is resisting.</p>

April 8 - The Independent (UK)

<p>Using sophisticated climate models, scientists are predicting a 15 percent loss of surface moisture by 2050. They suspect, but cannot conclude, that global warming is to blame.</p>

April 8 - Los Angeles Times

<p>This column from <em>The San Francisco Examiner</em> describes how "urban planning can save the world", and identifies transit-oriented development as a major solution to global warming.</p>

April 8 - San Francisco Examiner