The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

The Limits of One Perspective on Gentrification

A blogger offers a critical review of a podcast that examines the humans effects of gentrification in East New York, noting especially the lack of policy discussion's effect on the conversation.

September 19 - City Block

Why Don't Environmentalists Support Washington's Carbon Tax Measure?

A largely revenue-neutral carbon tax proposal, similar to the carbon tax in British Columbia which began in 2008, qualified for the November ballot in Washington. Environmentalists and Democrats, not Big Oil, may cause it's defeat.

September 19 - Crosscut

Garcetti Expo Line

Surprising Ridership Data on Los Angeles Metro's New Expo Line Extension

The light rail extension opened May 20 and is already 70 percent toward meeting its 2030 ridership projection. According to a survey conducted in June by Metro, more than two-thirds of riders were new to the Expo Line.

September 19 - KPCC

landfill

The Value of Garbage Has Changed Dramatically

Recycled metals, plastics, glass, and other materials are more economical than ever. Welcome to a new era of waste management.

September 19 - Quartz

Zoning Serves Communitarian Interests, Too

Zoning isn’t just a tool of self interest, according to a recent polemic by USC planning professor Lisa Schweitzer.

September 18 - Lisa Schweitzer


Plano DART

The Secrets of Plano's Success

With a string of successes in downtown revitalization under its built, Plano, Texas is looking to duplicate that model elsewhere around the city.

September 18 - The Urban Edge

Washington Adopts 'First-of-its-Kind' Carbon Reduction Rule

The state's unique Clean Air Rule is called 'cap-and-reduce.' Businesses that fall under the cap are required to reduce emissions, just like California's cap-and-trade program. However, they can not be forced to purchase carbon credits.

September 18 - Crosscut


Op-Ed: Privatizing Parking at D.C. Metro Would Be a 50-Year Mistake

The executive director of a research and policy center on privatization and responsible contracting says a proposal to privative parking operations at the Washington Metro Area Transit Authority would bring a half century of regret.

September 18 - The Huffington Post

Ottawa

How a Cartoon Enabled Meaningful Parking Reform in Ottawa

Want parking reform without tears?

September 18 - CityLab

Airbnb Launches New Anti-Discrimination Policies

In an effort to curb the culture of discrimination enabled on its platform, Airbnb will roll out new features to ensure better service for minorities.

September 17 - Vox

Roanoke

The Bootstrapping Success of Roanoke, Virginia

Roanoke, Virginia offers a lesson in grassroots economic development for "small, out-of-the-way cities everywhere."

September 17 - Politico Magazine

Expo Line

Study: Transit Not a Panacea for Walkability After All

One of the key assumptions of a new partnership between the planning and public health professions is that transit encourages more active mobility than possible with a car-centric lifestyle. But new research casts doubt on those assumptions.

September 17 - CityLab

Spotlighting the Women Shaping Seattle

The Urbanist is publishing a series of articles focusing on the leadership of women is shaping the past, present, and future of Seattle.

September 17 - The Urbanist

Yankee Stadium

Planetizen Week in Review: September 17, 2016

This week featured good news on the economy like it was pre-2008.

September 17 - Planetizen

Closed Beach

Why California's By-Right Affordable Housing Proposal Died

California's average home prices are 2.5 times the national average and rising, so why is it so hard to build a political coalition to build more housing, and especially more affordable housing?

September 16 - Los Angeles Times

Southern California Power Grid Will Soon Back Up on a Tesla Battery

Tesla just won a competitive bid to supply utility-scale power in Southern California—providing security in the event of a catastrophe like the Porter Ranch methane leak.

September 16 - Bloomberg

Chicago Bike Lane

The Business of Maintaining and Expanding Chicago's Bike Infrastructure

The Chicago Department of Transportation is busy with bike infrastructure projects around the city. Steven Vance updates the latest.

September 16 - Chi.Streetsblog

National Museum of African American History and Culture

The National Museum of African American History and Culture Takes Its Rightful Place

The reviews are pouring in for the new National Museum of African American History and Culture, set to open on September 24, 2016.

September 16 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

Fall Sprawl

If Housing Affordability Is Top Concern, Let Metro Regions Sprawl

Research from BuildZoom, a San Francisco-based contractors' website, shows that housing affordability increases with a region's ability to build outwards, as opposed to upwards. Densification largely has not accompanied efforts to curb sprawl.

September 16 - The Wall Street Journal

D.C.'s New Digital Kiosks an Innovation in the Urban 'Internet of Things'

Thirty new digital kiosks will soon be found on the streets of downtown Washington, D.C. The information flowing through those kiosks will be a two-way street.

September 16 - The Architect's Newspaper

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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.