The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

<p>State and local governments are starting to demand money back from companies that receive tax breaks and grants to locate in their community, and then skip town.</p>

June 15 - The Wall Street Journal

<p>California Planning &amp; Development Report columnist Morris Newman doesn't think much of the Disney Company's attempts to prevent housing development in Anaheim's resort district.</p>

June 15 - California Planning & Development Report

<p>The Baltimore City Council has approved an inclusionary housing bill requiring developers to designate a certain portion of new developments as affordable. Proponents say the measure is flawed, but a good first step.</p>

June 15 - The Baltimore Sun

<p>In response to a recent report that cast doubt on the effectiveness of dedicated bus lanes in Vancouver, some are cautioning against abandoning the lanes too soon.</p>

June 15 - The Vancouver Sun

BLOG POST

<p> <span style="font-size: 12pt">Some readers may be familiar with the </span><span style="font-size: 12pt"><a href="http://groups.google.com/group/telecom-cities">TELECOM-CITIES listserv</a></span><span style="font-size: 12pt"> that I&#39;ve run for the last ten years, sharing discussions about how information and communications technology is transforming cities and the process of urbanization. Once upon a time back in 1998, 1999, TELECOM-CITIES was an active community of researchers trying to figure out what fiber optics and cell phones and dot-com startups meant for the future of cities. Over the years, the list has maintained that focus, but growth of readership has been stagnant for years.

June 15 - Anthony Townsend

<p>Walkability has been shown to greatly improve the health and wellbeing of senior citizens. In response to recent studies on this issue, planners are looking to create walkable neighborhoods that encourage healthy habits for residents of all ages.</p>

June 15 - The Seattle Times

<p>Broad regulations have been approved in Berkeley, California, that would ban certain activities in public spaces, such as laying on the ground and urinating. This set of rules seeks to impose greater control over the city's homeless population.</p>

June 15 - The San Francisco Chronicle

<p>With a regional goal of curbing greenhouse gas emissions, the Western governments of British Columbia, California, Washington, Oregon, Arizona, New Mexico and Utah have joined forces to push environmental policies the federal government has avoided.</p>

June 15 - NPR

<p>This report from <em>NPR</em> looks at the city of Las Vegas, the high value of water in the desert, and the water chief who is trying to control the growing city's consumption.</p>

June 14 - NPR

<p>A zoning loophole classifying backyard gardens as brownfields has opened the door for developers in England to tear down homes and rebuild flats and apartments, eating up the equivalent of nearly 3,000 soccer fields in the next decade.</p>

June 14 - BBC

<p>West Palm Beach, Florida, is entertaining several ideas to embolden its skyline. One proposal suggests a 1,500 foot tower, which would be the tallest in the United States.</p>

June 14 - The Miami Herald

<p>A simple sidewalk widening project in Williamsburg, Brooklyn marks a radical shift in land use policy for New York City.</p>

June 14 - Streetsblog

<p>Efforts are underway to 'green' ferries and other commercial ships -- which represent a major but largely ignored source of air pollution.</p>

June 14 - The Christian Science Monitor

<p>Parents who grew up in the city but raised their children in the suburbs wonder if they made the right choice.</p>

June 14 - The Charlotte Observer

<p>Plans for a new high school next to a busy freeway interchange in New Haven, Connecticut, call for sealed windows and air filtration systems, but community and environmental groups are calling the entire proposal unconscionable.</p>

June 14 - New Haven Independent

<p>New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson promised to redirect funding from roads to mass transit if he's elected President.</p>

June 14 - San Diego Union Tribune

<p>A new report from the Brookings Institution shows that suburbs are aging faster than cities -- and may signal a desire by seniors to stay put in their suburban communities.</p>

June 14 - The New York Times

<p>The vast majority of the world's e-waste is processed in China, in towns like Guiyu.</p>

June 14 - Reuters

<p>With a number of large-scale condo and apartment developments planned for downtown Boise, seven developers are transforming the formerly vacant downtown into a vibrant neighborhood.</p>

June 13 - The Idaho Statesman

<p>In Oregon, the controversial land use law Measure 37 is on its way back to the ballot this November, as lawmakers look to limit the development rights granted by the measure in 2004.</p>

June 13 - The Oregonian