The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Interested communities are invited to apply until February 23, 2011. The purpose of the program is to help interested communities adopt sustainable planning methods.

February 8 - Sustainable Cities Collective

NJ's two U.S. Senators collaborated with Amtrak to propose an alternative to the Access to the Region's Core tunnel that N.J. Gov. Chris Christie canceled in Oct. 7. Unlike ARC, the Gateway tunnel will lead directly into Penn Station.

February 8 - The Star-Ledger (New Jersey)

"Open Buildings" App lets you discover the built environment with the touch of a screen.

February 8 - thisbigcity.net

The City Council of Temecula, CA decided that a proposed mosque met all zoning requirements and voted to approve its construction, despite opposition that supporters claim was fueled by religious reasons and not concerns over traffic and parking.

February 8 - The Huffington Post

Ever since David Owen's book Green Metropolis pushed forward the idea that cities are better for the planet, people have been debating if it's really so. New evidence says yes.

February 7 - Grist

The Global Village Construction Set is a group of farmers and engineers who are developing an set of open-source designs for the forty tools one would need to create a self-sufficient life living off of the land.

February 7 - Fast Company

A Vermont couple is challenging the decision of a state zoning commission that limits their right to illuminate a 24 foot cross on their own property to several weeks around Christmas.

February 7 - BurlingtonFreePress.com

A Vermont couple is challenging the decision of a state zoning commission that limits their right to illuminate a 24 foot cross on their own property to several weeks around Christmas.

February 7 - BurlingtonFreePress.com

A new poll of real estate experts reveals that businesses seeking office space are increasingly seeking buildings built with sustainability in mind.

February 7 - The Guardian U.K.

FEATURE

February 7 - Emily Laetz

A new report from Smart Growth America finds that stimulus spending on public transit produced 70% more jobs per dollar than road spending.

February 7 - The Hill

Yonah Freemark dives into the 2010 Census, and finds clear evidence that focusing dense development around transit works to focus development.

February 7 - the transport politic

Plans are afoot to densify one of San Francisco's biggest, most suburban apartment complexes, the 152-acre Park Merced constructed in 1941. If the Planning Commission approves the plan, the existing housing could be tripled, adding 14,000 units.

February 7 - San Francisco Chronicle

Speaking at the New Partners for Smart Growth Conference last week, Duany said that he fears developers will give up on building sustainably because of overly onerous infrastructure costs required by LEED and other systems.

February 7 - Partnership for Sustainable Communities

What do you think of when you think of the word "route" in relation to transit? What about the word "line"? Jarrett Walker argues that the language used to describe transit can influence how people think about it.

February 7 - Human Transit

The Architect's Newspaper explores the "fertile new approaches to building" springing from the growing use of landscaping in contemporary architecture.

February 7 - The Architect's Newspaper

Service will be cut 44%, half the stations to close, elimination of mid-day and weekend service - that is the scenario laid for Caltrain, the West's oldest commuter rail, unless $30 million can be found - unlikely.

February 7 - San Jose Mercury News

King Farm, a 440-acre development in the D.C. suburbs, was designed to be the perfect transit-oriented development, with a light rail to be built later. Now, residents have decided they don't want the transit to ever be built.

February 6 - NRDC Blog

David Gouverneur, urban designer and Associate Professor of Landscape Architecture at PennDesign, says mending the urban fabric of his city is a bit like acupressure: you put the pressure in certain key places to mend the whole.

February 6 - Next American City

A team of Italian architects have proposed a honeycomb-like design for a viaduct that would include built-in wind turbines.

February 6 - Popular Science