The Daily Source of Urban Planning News
Ray LaHood Surprises Bike Advocates at Summit
Secretary LaHood praised bike advocates for their work promoting livable communities, and admitted that he and his wife are weekend bicyclists.
Post-Katrina, New Urbanists Help Haiti
Philip Langdon compares the New Urban response to New Orleans and Haiti.
Fossil Fuels Getting Massive Federal Subsidies, Renewables Not So Much
President Obama has proposed eliminating federal subsidies for fossil fuels in 2011, but for now they're still a $72 billion piece of the pie. Solar, wind and geothermal? $12.2 billion.
New Condos Finally Filling in Miami
Downtown Miami is on the upswing, with a new study showing that 74% of the condos built there since 2003 occupied. The market tanked in 2007 with the rest of the economy, but things are looking up.
Bangkok Gets On Board
By 2032, the Thai government plans to have high-speed rail connected every region of the country. Construction is scheduled to begin next year.The first line is planned to connect Bangkok and Rayong, to the southeast.
Traffic Accidents Poised to Become the 5th Leading Cause of Death by 2030
The Infrastructurist examines a new infographic published by the World Health Organization (WHO) as part of their Global Status Report.
Land Conservation Not Responsible For High Cost of Housing
High housing prices cannot be blamed on land conservation efforts, at least not in Silicon Valley, is the word from researchers at Stanford University.
The ABCs of Planning
Laurence Gerckens brings us the ABCs of Planning. Today's letter is H, which stands for historic preservation. Gerckens brings us a brief, easy-to-understand history of the idea.
Coastal Areas Prepare For The Other 'Big One'
California has just completed a landmark effort to assess the state's worst-case tsunami danger. Now emergency response officials, and even some planners, are considering how to keep the state's coastal populations safe.
Planners' Mistakes in Framing the Problems of Traffic
This research paper focuses on how land use planners are continuing to plan and develop cities and urban areas in ways that increase traffic and congestion.
Friday Funny: Yield to Drunks
In the face of a recent surge in accidents, a small town in Romania has installed new traffic signs warning drivers about drunk pedestrians who may be laying in roadways.
Land Grab in Africa
In what The Guardian calls "the greatest change of ownership since the colonial era," enormous swaths of African land is being sold to foreign countries seeking agricultural lands to feed their growing populations.
Detroit's Central Depot: The Next Alcatraz?
Could Detroit turn its crumbling buildings into tourist attractions? The Urbanophile says there are worse ideas.
River Walk Leans Away From Tourism in San Antonio
San Antonio's River Walk is getting a new stretch of revitalized riverfront, but it's neither the utilitarian drainage ditch of the past nor the heavily sculpted tourist attraction of recent years.
Why Architectural Criticism Can't Work
In response to a recent piece criticizing architecture critic Nicolai Ouroussoff, <em>Places Journal</em> Editor Nancy Levinson extends the criticism to the entire field, questioning whether its global scope is realistic.
A Green Mega Mansion?
Approved plans for a 10,000 square foot mansion in Berkeley, California have been classified "green" by the city's environmental rating system. Neighbors and environmentalists, however, say the house is hardly an environmental model.
Trying to Let the Sun Shine on San Francisco's Public Agencies
The City of San Francisco has for years had a "Sunshine" ordinance, requiring that public agencies make their documents and proceedings available to the public. But recent reviews show that sunshine has been hard to find in the city of fog.
China's Cross-Continental Rail Plan
China has announced plans to extend its high speed rail network Wetsward across the continent, connecting its eastern shores to Europe.
The Most Expensive American Transit Projects of the 2000s
This post on <em>The Infrastructurist</em> looks at the most expensive public transit projects of the last ten years in the United States.
Miami 311: Online
The city of Miami is putting its 311 phone system and the civic problems it's used to report online, enabling residents and city officials to easily track local problems.
City of Moorpark
City of Tustin
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
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.
