The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

BLOG POST

Where are the Visionary Developers?

<p> <em>&quot;The secret of Disney is doing things you don&#39;t need, and doing them well, and realizing that you needed them all along...Walt Disney was ahead of everyone, always.&quot;</em> </p> <p> <em>-Isaac Asimov, interviewed by Leonard Maltin<br /> </em> </p>

July 7 - Tim Halbur

Los Angeles' Legacy of Murals is Disappearing

The legacy of Los Angeles murals has all but left the city, buried under sign ordinances, billboard policy and tagging. Tanner Blackman in the Dept. of City Planning Code Studies Section is working to free up the knot of regulation.

July 7 - KCET

Cities and Suburbs Converge into New Economic Generators

As the downturn in the market physically reshapes the metropolitan regions of the United States, the shifting populations and economies of its cities and suburban areas are becoming increasingly intertwined.

July 7 - The Atlantic

California Law Doesn't Stop Sprawl

A draft report from San Diego reveals that California's SB 375 law, which passed in 2008, was ineffective in reducing sprawl in the long term, Ethan Elkind writes for the UCLA UC Berkeley Legal Planet blog.

July 7 - Legal Planet

FEATURE

The Just City

Can a city be driven by the noble goals of democracy, diversity, and equity? Harvard professor Susan Fainstein thinks so, and outlines how in her new book, <em>The Just City.</em> Victor Negrete has a review.

July 7 - Victor Negrete


Landscape Architecture Driving Change in Cities

The projects across the country having the biggest impact on the feel and function of cities are more often than not the work of landscape architects, according to the American Society of Landscape Architects.

July 7 - THE DIRT

Youthful, Creative Detroit Crawls Out of Shadow of Decline

Young creative people are moving to Detroit, launching new businesses and civic ventures that are creating a new identity for a city plagued by associations with decline.

July 7 - The New York Times


The Bicycles of Amsterdam

Cargo bikes, tandems and even ice cream bikes - this photo-essay highlights the great variety of bicycles being used in Amsterdam. Charles Siegel hopes the pictures will get Americans over their timidness when it comes to practical bicycling.

July 7 - Preservation Institute Blog

The Unseen Space: Signal Space

With a growing demand for wireless internet, mobile communication networks may encroach on public space, writes Michael Chen, adjunct assistant professor at the Pratt Institute School of Architecture.

July 7 - Urban Omnibus

Zoning Around Transit Stations in NYC Getting Downzoned, Study Shows

New York City's Dept. of City Planning says that it is committed to fostering transit-oriented development. But in neighborhood after neighborhood, the city is downzoning around the corner from the subway, argues Noah Kazis.

July 6 - Streetsblog

The End of the Great American Highway

The American highway is in shambles, and there is not enough money to fix it, reports Zach Rosenberg of Car and Driver Magazine.

July 6 - Car and Driver

Female Cyclists the Minority in New York City

Male cyclists outnumber females cyclists in New York City three to one. New York City lags behind Copenhagen, Amsterdam and Portland, Oregon, in female ridership.

July 6 - The New York Times

US DOT To Distribute $527m in Next Round of TIGER Grants

The US Department of Transportation will begin accepting applications for the transportation grants on August 22nd.

July 6 - Governing

The Soon-to-be Glamorous and Cutting Edge LAX

The addition of the Bradley terminal and modernization projects across LAX are pushing the airport back into relevance, Dan Weikel reports for the Los Angeles Times.

July 6 - Los Angeles Times

Suburbs or Cities: Which Has More Crime?

A Brookings Institute report shows that the difference between crime in the suburbs and cities has drastically decreased, and argues that the current drop in crime rates weakens the correlation between ethnic groups and crime.

July 6 - The Brookings Institution

Historic Preservation: The Reality Show

A new series from the BBC tracks six homeowners trying to convert historic (or just plain old) buildings into modern homes.

July 6 - The Telegraph

A New Look for the London Tube

Designer Mark Noad has created a new, more geographically accurate map of London's extensive subway system, "The Tube." Noad tips his hat to the classic, but says more lines have emphasized the inaccuracies.

July 6 - Mark Noad

A Transit Pilgrimage to Los Angeles

When Colorado transportation officials sought an example of effective bus rapid transit to visit while developing a system of their own, they headed to an unexpected source.

July 6 - Daily Camera

Repurposed Railyard Becomes Award-Winning Park

The City Parks blog looks at Santa Fe Railyard Park and Plaza, one of the winners of this year's Rudy Bruner Awards for Urban Excellence.

July 6 - City Parks Blog

Shrinkage Moving Too Slowly in Rust Belt Town

Rust Belt poster child Youngstown, Ohio made waves almost a decade ago with its revolutionary plan for "controlled shrinkage." But progress has been slow in a political system still wired for growth.

July 5 - Streetsblog Capitol Hill

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Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.