The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

President Obama has announced plans to spend an additional $50 billion on the nation's infrastructure as a means of remaining competitive internationally and boosting employment.

October 14 - McClatchey Newspapers

Bicycle advocates in London is calling on citizens to tell the city, via the web, where more bike parking is needed for the city's fledgling bike sharing program.

October 14 - Guardian

Two recent studies suggest urban areas and geographic regions have distinctive temperaments.

October 14 - The Infrastructurist

The American Planning Association has released its 2010 selections for great public spaces, streets and neighborhoods, ranging from a sculpture garden in Alabama to New York's transformed Bryant Park.

October 13 - American Planning Association

This 6-minute video looks at how New York City streets have changed after a mere three years of planning. Pedestrian plazas, bike lanes, and bus rapid transit are the major projects highlighted, and the improvements to economy, health, and happiness

October 13 - Grist

A variety of controversial planning policies and high-profile development projects in Melbourne have led to widespread resident frustration, reports The Sydney Morning Herald. Could planning issues change the city's larger political equation?

October 13 - The Sydney Morning Herald

BLOG POST

<p> Every so often, I read something describing defenders of sprawl as &quot;contrarians&quot;, implying that they are underdogs fighting against the elitist, anti-sprawl Establishment. For example, when I did a google.com search for sites including Robert Bruegmann (author of one of the better defenses of the status quo) and the word &quot;contrarian&quot; I found over 1400 &quot;hits.&quot;  Similarly, a search for websites using the terms &quot;smart growth&quot; and &quot;elitist&quot; yielded over 6000 hits. </p> <p> But realistically, most of the U.S. built environment is sprawl by any concievable definition. So how can it be &quot;contrarian&quot; to defend the status quo? </p>

October 13 - Michael Lewyn

Boise, Idaho attempts to find common ground between its vision for the future and the need for economic development.

October 13 - The Idaho Statesman

A collaboration between five different neighborhood-focused federal efforts seeks to aid and inspire neighborhood revitalization.

October 13 - Next American City

The fractured state of planning at various levels of government in the U.S. is limiting the potential of good ideas, according to this critique from <em>Next American City</em>.

October 13 - Next American City

Architecture professor William W. Braham examines the growing trend of "self-powered", "zero-energy" and "zero waste" buildings through the lens of survivalism.

October 13 - Places

A group in Detroit has begun an effort to sell of one-inch parcels of land in the city for $1.

October 13 - Boing Boing

The human-powered monorail concept Shweeb recently gained a huge boost from a $1 million investment from Google, but urban thinkers question the relevance of the unusual transportation system.

October 13 - CNN

A new pedestrian bridge, recently opened near a BART station in the San Francisco Bay Area, is an example of why the high price of good design can sometimes be worth it.

October 12 - San Francisco Chronicle

Arizona's long-standing open range laws allow cattle to roam freely, but the state is now reconsidering the laws as residents of the West's suburban subdivisions are growing more frustrated by encounters with roaming cattle.

October 12 - New York Times

Heather Mac Donald defends a contentious law, spurred by frustration over migratory youths in Haight-Ashbury, that would ban sitting or lying on city sidewalks between 7 AM and 11 PM.

October 12 - City Journal

An ambitious eco-city is going up in Portugal, complete with a central "brain" that monitors feedback on water, energy and transport systems.

October 12 - NewScientist

A new video game has been released that has players trying to solve urban issues and make cities work better. <em>Next American City</em> columnist Christian Madera reviews.

October 12 - Next American City

As London redevelops its troubled East End ahead of the 2012 Summer Olympics, organizers are warning against the post-event developments turning into ghettos of the middle class.

October 12 - Building Design

Germany's Ruhr region, a former coal and steel powerhouse that fell into decline, has shown major improvements in recent years, offering hope for other post-industrial cities.

October 12 - Citiwire