The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

With a substantial investment, it would be possible for the eastern half of the U.S.to get 30% of its electricity from wind power, according to a new report from the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory.

January 24 - Grist

The City of Chicago, in a much criticized move, recently privatized its parking enforcement. Stephen Goldsmith says the program should be celebrated instead of booed.

January 24 - Governing Magazine

Lisa Gray paints a picture of downtown Houston's inexorable evolution from a city full of ground level parking lots to a denser metropolis where multi-level garages are commonplace.

January 24 - The Houston Chronicle

Pittburgh's Mellon Arena, known to locals as "The Igloo," is facing an unsure fate. Preservationists want to save the structure, but others imagine demolishing it and replacing with a new neighborhood.

January 24 - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

A new book reveals that our extended network of acquaintances is more important to us than we might think.

January 23 - On The Commons

A business analyst in Las Vegas suggests that the state should attempt to attract senior citizens to retire, because his report shows that seniors 'create jobs, spend a lot of money and are not a drag on government services.'

January 23 - Las Vegas Review-Journal

Opponents of High-Occupancy-Toll lanes have long claimed that these lanes, often converted from High Occupancy Vehicle lanes like Miami's I-95, would encourage solo-drivers, especially wealthier ones, to pay to use the express lanes.

January 23 - Streetsblog San Francisco

The tide is turning from the last half century, with population trends heading inward and urban from the sundered seas of suburbia.

January 23 - New Urban News

A radio interview in Chicago talks about the merits of street food and the historical reasons for restrictions on vendors.

January 23 - WGN Radio 720

Casper, a cat from Plymouth, England who was frequently seen riding one of the town's bus lines, was tragically killed by a hit-and-run driver.

January 22 - The Herald

Japan's famous train stationmaster cat Tama received a promotion to "super stationmaster." Tama's popularity has had an economic impact of the area estimated at ¥1.1 billion.

January 22 - Japan Probe

In the 2nd part of an expose featured previously on Planetizen, reporter Matthew Lewis uncovers the significant number of lobbyists influencing transportation policy in Washington.

January 22 - Center for Public Integrity

The expense of properly carrying out recycling and trash programs is weighing on cash-strapped states. Government is pushing back, with new requirements mandating that manufacturers take some of the load.

January 22 - Miller-McCune

This piece from <em>Miller-McCune</em> looks at the conservation easement and explains how the legal device is being used to protect land and prevent sprawl.

January 22 - Miller-McCune

This essay from <em>Places</em> looks at today's economic depression, the nation's crumbling infrastructure, and various efforts to rethink they way America looks at fixing its cities.

January 22 - Places

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has seen some dramatic decline over the past half century. Michael A. Stern, ASLA, LEED AP takes a look at the last 20 years of the city as it begins to rebound.

January 22 - ArchNewsNow

A new Brookings Institute study shows that the recession has exacerbated conditions of poverty in America's suburbs, to the point where they hold the greatest proportion of the nation's poor.

January 22 - Brookings Institute

The U.S. Federal Government has released a new online tool to help in the collection of feedback and ideas from the general public.

January 22 - CNET

Haitians are moving back out into the countryside after the Capital city of Port-au-Prince suffered devastation from a series of earthquakes this month. Some argue the move back to the country may be a good thing for Haiti.

January 22 - The New York Times

Joel Kotkin says that the recent Republican win in Massachusetts shows that suburban voters are in revolt against the Obama administration's urban-centric policies.

January 21 - The American