The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

FEATURE

From eminent domain to "condofication", Planetizen editors outline the top 10 planning issues from 2005.

March 21 - Abhijeet Chavan

How should the D.C. area handle its explosive growth? Columnist Steven Pearlstein has some ideas.

March 21 - The Washington Post

Three of the top 10 fastest growing county's in the country lie in the Virginia exurbs surrounding Washington, D.C.

March 21 - The Washington Post

Environmentalists oppose President Bush's nomination of Gov. Dirk Kempthorne of Idaho to be secretary of the Interior.

March 20 - Abhijeet Chavan

Four years after becoming the first town to be sold on EBay, the 83-acre Bridgeville, California, population 24, is up for sale again, this time for $1.75 million. [Thanks to Kelly Koldus for the correction.]

March 20 - The Los Angeles Times

The price of building and delivering a FEMA trailer is $75,000. Building a Katrina Cottage costs $60,000. While the safety and aesthetics of the former are questionable, the latter is designed to withstand hurricane force winds. What's the problem?

March 20 - www.nola.com

Environmental historian Ted Steinberg explains American's fascination with the perfect lawn.

March 20 - The Los Angeles Times

The software brings new clarity to a host of environmental issues.

March 20 - San Antonio Current

According to recent studies, homeownership is out of the question for many Marylanders; the Governor's Task Force on Workforce Housing looks for solutions.

March 20 - The Baltimore Sun

The prospect of higher property values have caused many residents to form historic districts, though questions arise as to the actual historic significance of the neighborhoods.

March 20 - Wall Street Journal via Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Zillow, a Seattle based website allows users to obtain approximate market values for homes all across the United States, and "Zestimating" could be the new "Googling".

March 20 - The Boston Globe

Although a flurry of new bills would restrict eminent domain powers, Baltimore city officials support the practice, which resulted in successful projects like the Inner Harbor.

March 20 - Baltimore City Paper

The I-69 NAFTA Highway, to run from Mexico to Canada through the mid-west, has faced extensive opposition in Indiana and elsewhere for its exorbitant costs.

March 20 - Indianapolis Nuvo

With good land hard to find, developers are cashing in: on strangely configured sites. Think of a trapezoidal house, a 35-foot-wide golfer's retreat and a 'cow's face' plot.

March 19 - Wall Street Journal / Real Estate Journal

A Baltimore Sun study finds that a first-time home buyer would have to spend 71 percent of his or her income toward monthly mortgage payments.

March 19 - The Baltimore Sun

In the Rockies, developers and oil and natural gas companies are vying for access to the same land -- but what could be the consequences for local communities?

March 19 - The Chicago Tribune

From countertops made of recycled paper to bamboo floors, learn from one couple who made their eco-friendly dream house.

March 19 - The Chicago Tribune

A complex explosive detector is in the works, but will it really make riding safer?

March 19 - New York Press

A plan to spruce up D.C.'s Anacostia River has some residents anxious. Slated for a grand renewal project... the area stands at the juncture of poverty and opportunity.

March 18 - Grist Magazine

Previously congested with pedestrian and shopping malls, the downtown is enjoying new development after reintroduction of the street grid.

March 18 - The Raleigh-Durham Independent Weekly