The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

The City Council of Cheyenne, WY, petitioned by local religious groups, are changing zoning rules to allow churches to use land zoned commercial. The decision will open up vacant commercial buildings inside the city.

November 24 - Wyoming Tribune/Eagle

Seattle needs major revisions to its transportation infrastructure, according to local officials. Getting the public behind the expensive projects may be as simple as saying one word: jobs.

November 24 - The Seattle Times

The first 'firescape' garden is in Santa Barbara, CA, and stands as an educational tool for landscaping homes for fire protection.

November 24 - edhat

A 1920s school building in Portland, OR is at the center of a fight between school district officials - who have a bond measure to rebuild it - and local architects and preservationists.

November 24 - Daily Journal of Commerce

St. Paul, Minnesota's artist-in-residence has instituted a program where poems are imprinted into sidewalks throughout the city.

November 24 - The Christian Science Monitor

FEATURE

Planetizen is pleased to release its eighth annual list of the ten best books in the planning field. With titles covering some of the most timely issues in planning, the list gives readers an overview of the best ideas and writing in the field.

November 24 - Abhijeet Chavan

For about a month, commuter rail has been rolling in Baghdad. Where once there was danger, now there are commuters.

November 24 - Los Angeles Times

FEATURE

Robert E. Smith, AICP, explains the impact of recent court decisions on the ability of local governments to control the placement of wireless towers in their communities.

November 24 - Robert E. Smith, AICP

BLOG POST

<p> Getting people to understand the intricacies of planning can be a challenge. The modern-day emphasis on public participation is an effort to get people involved, but it&#39;s frankly not too appealing for most people to attend public hearings about zoning amendments and setback changes. But those zoning amendments and setback changes could be pretty important. Planners need to try harder to connect with the people their work affects to explain its importance. It&#39;s time to break from convention. One possible way is dancing.<br />

November 24 - Nate Berg

Rock legend Neil Young, that's who. He's got a team of people working to turn his 1959 Lincoln Continental into the heaviest electric car on the road. Young writes in the Huffington Post about the 'Lincvolt', another electric behemoth.

November 23 - Huffington Post

Bicycling Magazine has ranked U.S. cities in terms of air quality, bike infrastructure, and the number of other bikes on the road.

November 23 - Austin 360

Stephen Lacey, host of the Inside Renewable Energy podcast, went to Iceland to see firsthand the country's geothermal infrastructure. The podcast is definitely worth a listen, and can be streamed directly off of the web page.

November 23 - Renewable Energy World

Vancouver, British Columbia's planning director, Brent Toderian, has been named on of the 50 most powerful people in the city by <em>Vancouver Magazine</em>.

November 23 - Vancouver Magazine

Comprehensive road pricing through tolls and congestion charges could play a major role in reducing housing prices and sprawl, according to a new study.

November 23 - Toll Roads News

The connection between land use and health comes clear in Portland, OR, where some of the poorest citizens face a four-hour round trip to the grocery store.

November 22 - The Oregonian

The Center for Minority Health and the Adventure Cycling Association partnered to create a bike trail stretching from the Gulf of Mexico to Ontario. The trail was recognized at the 19th Annual Trails Symposium.

November 22 - Bike-Pgh.org

With sales down at local malls and retail centers and projected at record lows for the holiday season as households curtail spending, restaurants that rely on retail traffic are preparing for losses.

November 22 - Wall St. Journal

Beyond the columns and the Capitol, Washington D.C. contains a wide variety of architectural gems and underappreciated neighborhoods, according to this Q&A about the city from <em>Dwell</em>.

November 22 - Dwell

This slideshow from <em>Slate</em> looks at how to reuse abandoned big boxes.

November 22 - Slate

Common Current recently released a report ranking U.S. cities on their ability to deal with a peak oil crisis. San Francisco comes out on top and Oklahoma City ranks last.

November 21 - Common Current