The Daily Source of Urban Planning News
High-Speed Rail Project Faces Opposition
In California, a recent poll, according to Charles Chieppo, brought bad news stating that 53% of the states voters approved a $9.9 billion bond three years ago, but of those polled, 64% support a re-vote, and 59% would vote no if they had the chance.
Implementation of L.A.'s New City-Wide Bike Plan Hits a Rough Patch of Road
Writing in The Atlantic Cities, Nate Berg looks at why the discouraging results of one pilot project has implementation of L.A.'s heralded new bicycle master plan off to an inauspicious start.
European Cyclist's Federation (ECF) Study on Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emmissions
In the fight against climate change, it is still unclear how, according to SustainableCitiesCollective, "the world’s nations will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and achieve limited temperature rise." A recent ECF study sheds light on the topic.
Tiger III Grant Funds Awarded to Streetcar Project
In Cincinnati, Ohio, the "shovel-ready" Streetcar project has been awarded 10.9 million dollars in grant funding, according to Jenny Kessler, to "restore the project to its original aim of connecting the Uptown and Downtown employment centers."
Banning Cell Phone Use by Drivers Nationwide
The National Transportation Safety Board's recommendation is voluntary - it is up to the states to enact them into law. The CA state senator responsible for the ban on talking on hand-held cell phones and texting called it a 'political nonstarter'.
GIS Whizzes Get Antarctica on Google Maps
The editor of the Antarctic Sun says that while Antarctica has always been viewable in Google Maps, the imagery was "about as sharp as the graphics in Pong." The folks at the Polar Geospatial Center came to the rescue.
Placemaking With Zip Lines
Chuck Wolfe admires the creative thinking which has reinvented the dramatic setting between two Italian hill towns.
Folding Bikes Gain Popularity in Brazil
Maria Fernanda Cavalcanti, a resident of Brazil, writes that folding bicycles "...have been catching the attention of urban cyclists everywhere."
NYC Gets to Work on "Green Zoning" Rules
New York has created new zoning rules, now officially under review for approval, that combat the current zoning's sometimes impeding effect on green building.
Debating Urban Transit Tax Credits
New Jersey's Urban Transit Hub Tax Credit provided $1.5 billion in incentives for 13 projects, garnering mixed opinions over the past two years. Intended to build communities a half mile from transit, some question if it even works.
Is Smart Growth a United Nations Plot?
Tea Partiers, anti-smart growthers and Wendell Cox all agree: Agenda 21, a United Nations program adopted in 1992, contains dangerous ideas that if implemented could damage economic growth and cement world government control over the U.S.
San Francisco's Performance Parking Pilot Less Successful Than Hoped
In San Francisco, a performance parking pilot program has not had as big an impact as many thought it would. According to Michael Perkins, "Even with high rates, popular blocks still fill up, and other blocks remain under-filled even at low prices."
ULI Says Demand for Multifamily Housing is Real
Housing preferences are shifting dramatically to smaller, multifamily dwellings, creating a dramatic mismatch between housing supply and demand, according to a new report from the Urban Land Institute.
The High Cost of Free Roads
In Wisconsin, taxpayers pay roughly $779 per household for roads and $50 for transit. But most drivers still believe that transit is subsidized and roads pay for themselves, writes Tanya Snyder.
Envisioning a Less Suburban Long Island
The Long Island Index, a project to gather and present data about Long Island, has been studying the exodus of young people from their community. Now they're trying to do something about it with a new vision for the island.
Exxon Predicts Energy Future For World At 2040
By 2040, half of all cars will be hybrids or running on alternative fuels; energy demand will be flat for the developed world but will increase 60% for developing nations, and non-conventional oil sources will handily meet the demand of 110m barrels.
Brooklyn Developers Embark On Race Into The Sky
Long the sole preserve of Manhattan developers, Brooklyn is now the setting for its own race to the sky. Two developers are planning to break ground next year on residential buildings that will loom nearly 100 ft over any of their predecessors.
LA Artist Reopens Derelict JC Penney As Art Complex
An LA based artist is about reopen a 100,000 square foot disused JC Penney as an arts complex in West Houston. The former West Oaks Mall anchor had been vacant for two years before becoming the focus of the new rehab concept.
Desertec Leads European Effort to Harness Saharan Solar Energy
A German led initiative called 'Desertec,' aims to provide 15% of Europe's electricity by 2050 through a vast network of solar and wind farms stretching right across the MENA region and connecting to Europe via direct current transmission cables.
Manhattan's Far West Side Rises From Olympic Disappointment
A vibrant neighborhood is rising on Manhattan's far west side, where the Stadium and complex would have been built as proposed by the New York's bid to host the 2012 Olympic Games.
Smith Gee Studio
City of Charlotte
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
US High Speed Rail Association
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)
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