The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Interference with Delta Geography Enabled Katrina's Devastation

The environmental and infrastructural conditions that brought about the flooding of New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina in 2005 remain today, and have the potential to cause similar devastation, according to this piece.

March 31 - Places

San Francisco Takes Lessons From Seattle Over Sidewalk Sitting

San Francisco's recently passed and controversial sit/lie laws that prohibit sitting on sidewalks were based on a similar rule passed in Seattle in 1993. Though that rule has been on the books for years, its controversy remains.

March 31 - San Francisco Chronicle

Infrastructure the Limiting Factor for Local Food Movement

The local food movement is growing in popularity, but a lack of related agricultural and processing infrastructure is holding back its spread.

March 31 - The New York Times

The De-Evolution of a Suburban Gated Community

Inside this gated community in the L.A. suburb of Hemet, the recession is taking a tough toll and making life difficult for the families that had moved there for quiet calm.

March 31 - Los Angeles Times

Gaps in Video Security in New York Subway System

Recent attacks in the Moscow subway system highlight concerns in New York City, where a closed circuit security camera system still has many gaps.

March 31 - The New York Times


A Toolkit to Improve the Slums of Brazil

Brazilian slums represent huge segments of the country's urban population, especially in Sao Paulo. Upgrading them into economically sustainable segments of the city is a challenge, but a new toolkit offers a path to success.

March 31 - Citiscope

San Francisco Counts its Parking

Very few large cities can claim to know how many parking spaces they have. San Francisco has counted its publicly accessibly parking supply and released the data to through Data SF website.

March 30 - Streetsblog San Francisco


Looking for an Economic Niche in St. Louis

This piece from <em>The St. Louis Post-Dispatch</em> looks at how the city is trying to coerce itself into the new idea- and innovation-based economy.

March 30 - The St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Small Towns Shoot For 50,000 in This Year's Census

For small towns, the 50,000 population mark is a sought after goal. That amount makes it easier for towns to qualify for certain federal funding, which is why the small town of Salina, Kansas is trying to make sure its residents fill out the Census.

March 30 - NPR

They Know Where You Live

"Tea Party" activists are leading a campaign featuring elaborate conspiracy theories urging Americans to defy the federal government by declining to return their 2010 Census form.

March 30 - Huffington Post

Ideas to Transform India's Cities

Scholars from the Indian School of Business in Hyderabad discuss how to remake the country's urban areas into sources of economic prosperity.

March 30 - The Wall Street Journal

Development in Cities Outpaces 'Burbs

Development is occurring more rapidly in urban centers than in the suburbs, according to a new study from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

March 30 - The New York Times

Making Public Spending Public

In an effort to improve accountability, more government agencies are freeing data about public expenditures.

March 30 - Next American City

BLOG POST

Connecting to Internet in Remote Areas to Bring High Tech Tools to Town Meetings

<strong>Even when the circuitry is beyond us mere mortals, DIY comes to the rescue</strong>  <p class="MsoNormal"> In town meetings we use the Internet for a wide variety of uses, from photo walls to display images collected during our <a href="http://vimeo.com/9719936" title="Walkshop Tours">WalkShop tours</a>, to brainstorming and voting with our <a href="http://vimeo.com/9719829" title="AnyWare Suite of Tools">AnyWare suite of tools</a>, to collecting ideas using Google Docs or Google MyMaps at round tables.<span>  </span>The latest WiFi cards are making connecting to the Internet possible in places where the Internet normally is not available.

March 30 - Ken Snyder

Cities Look to Crack Down on Flash Mobs

After a series of recent "flash mobs" of hundreds of young people spontaneously gathering in downtown Philadelphia, city officials are looking at ways of reducing the incidents and the potentially dangerous conditions they create.

March 30 - The New York Times

Utah Hopes to Send Message With Eminent Domain Bills

Utah Governor Gary Herbert has approved two eminent domain bills that seek to give the state rights to seize property now owned by the federal government. Officials concede the fight will be hard to win.

March 30 - The Salt Lake Tribune

Portland A Hotspot for 'Stormwater Tourism'

Portland's "Green Streets" program is becoming a new tourist attraction in the city, which officials from other cities are visiting to learn from the Pacific Northwest's model water treatment infrastructure.

March 30 - USA Today

Seeking a Green Legacy in South Korea

South Korean government officials are increasingly focusing on green projects to improve their cities' sustainability -- and create legacies for politicians.

March 29 - The New York Times

Chicago Mayor Blasts Change to Teacher Residency Rule

Chicago Mayor Richard Daley says recently approved legislation that allows city school teachers to live outside Chicago borders will help to decimate the city's middle class.

March 29 - Chicago Sun-Times

Feds Put Faith in L.A. Transit Plan

Federal officials are looking at an unlikely city as a model for urban public transit: Los Angeles.

March 29 - Los Angeles Times

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