The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Will Ann Arbor Get Commuter Rail?

Mayor John Hieftje is in full support and leading the charge for the development of a commuter rail system in the greater Ann Arbor area.

June 19 - Ann Arbor News

World Urban Forum Comes To Vancouver

The U.N.'s biennial forum on planning issues covers clean air and water, sanitation, pollution, safety, housing, poverty, alternative transportation and energy sources, and the increasing inequity between developing and developed countries.

June 19 - David Gest

Melting Permafrost Could Make Global Warming Worse

A new study finds that melting permafrost in Siberia could make global warming significantly worse by releasing up to 500 billion tons of Carbon Dioxide into the atmosphere, almost as much as the 700 billion tons currently in the atmosphere.

June 19 - Charles Siegel

Is It The Beginning Of The End For McMansions?

McMansions are proving too big for many homeowners, who are now looking for smaller homes and overwhelming the housing market.

June 19 - Wall Street Journal (Courtesy of the Sun-Sentinel)


Vietnam's WTO Bid Will Bring Corporate Market

As the small South Asian country prepares to enter the World Trade Organization, economists predict a drastic change of pace in the locally-driven economy as corporate retail is bound to take over.

June 19 - Der Spiegel

Book Review: The Battle Over Sprawl and the Future of America

A new book, "This Land", by former Boston Globe journalist Anthony Flint represents a "A calm voice in the cross fire over sprawl", writes urban affairs columnist John King.

June 18 - The San Francisco Chronicle


Massachusetts Policy Spurs Transit Oriented Development

With the help of the Romney administration, transit oriented development is taking off in eastern Massachusetts.

June 18 - The Boston Globe

Bush To Establish Largest Protected Ocean Area

President George Bush plans to establish the world's largest protected ocean site, an act which will preserve a sensitive coral reef ecosystem on islands and atolls near Hawaii.

June 18 - Herald Sun

Top L.A. Building Official Brought To Court In Orange County

A controversial home remodel has generated a difficult situation for Andrew Adelman, general manager of the L.A. Department of Building and Safety, who approved a project later found by a judge to violate the city's own zoning laws.

June 18 - The Los Angeles Times

Housing Scarce and Expensive For Summer D.C. Interns

Even though universities in D.C. help by renting out empty dorm rooms, the tight market for rental housing in and near downtown D.C. impacts summer interns, who sometimes pay over $1,000 per month for the most modest of housing accomodations.

June 18 - Wahington Post

Abolish Outdated Zoning Codes To Save On Fuel

Most municipalities strictly prohibit mixed-use development. Changing these laws to encourage compact development would reduce the nation's dependence on gas, writes Anthony Flint.

June 17 - The Boston Globe

China Wants to Keep 'Kingdom of Bicycles' Status

More Chinese are buying cars, but the government urges them to keep on cycling.

June 17 - The Guardian

5,000 Public Housing Units To Be Razed In New Orleans

Despite criticism from low-income tenants, federal housing officials report that some 5,000 public housing units in Katrina-torn New Orleans will be razed and replaced with mixed-income housing.

June 17 - The New York Times

Eco-Friendly Design And Construction Need To Go Mainstream

Auden Schendler wonders why you can't buy an eco-friendly house in any average subdivision in America.

June 17 - Grist Magazine

U.N. Warns Of World's Failure To Curb Slum Growth

A report by the United Nations concludes that three decades of efforts to address urban poverty have failed.

June 17 - The Financial Times

Friday Funny: A Father's Day Gift

A Father's Day gift that Dad could use.

June 16 - Joy of Tech

Megacities, Mammoth Problems

Six of the world's fastest-growing megacities are examined in terms of their most pressing problems and what they are doing to address them.

June 16 - Foreign Policy

EPA Weakens Groundwater Rule After Energy Industry Pressure

Environmentalists criticesd a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency decision to change a measure designed to protect groundwater near oil drilling sites and other construction zones.

June 16 - The Los Angeles Times

Sign Police Invade Boston's Back Bay

The City of Boston combed Newbury Street yesterday to penalize two dozen stores who were in violation of its strict sidewalk signage code.

June 16 - The Boston Globe

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