The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

NASA satellite imagery reveals that two of California's main groundwater sources are being rapidly depleted by agriculture and exurban development.

January 6 - The Christian Science Monitor

A federal plan aimed at helping 3 to 4 million homeowners on the verge of foreclosure has fallen far short of expectations, enabling only about 31,000 loan modifications.

January 6 - The Washington Independent

Ryan Avent offers a counterpoint to a recent article critiquing the urban economic theories of Richard Florida, arguing that the movement of people and the "creative class" to cities based on employment is the heart of urban economics.

January 6 - Seeking Alpha

After lobbying from two Native American tribes, the Nantucket Sound has been made eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places, creating a possible further delay of a proposed wind farm off the coast of Cape Cod.

January 6 - The New York Times

BLOG POST

<p> As if all this inclement weather hasn&#39;t been hassle enough for those of us who cherish our cars, I practically careened into another tragic loss for the rightfully auto-minded recently in Hoboken, New Jersey.  It seems the needs of lofty pedestrians <em>et.al.</em> have once again been imprudently prioritized over us drivers in a result that is sure to make your muffler ratlle: a one-block segment of an historic belgian block street has been closed off to the ideal form of personal mobility (read: car) so that silly people with nothing better to do than run around frivolously in streets have another place off the sidewalk to inconvenience the driving majority of our great nation.

January 5 - Ian Sacs

This New York Times editorial argues that the present strategy to fix the housing mess isn't working; real relief in the form of principal reduction is needed.

January 5 - New York Times

Between high gas prices, the recession and widespread improvements in public transit systems, Americans drove four million fewer cars in 2009.

January 5 - The Globe and Mail

A new monumental statue being built in the Senegalese capital of Dakar is seen by some as an African Statue of Liberty or Eiffel Tower. But for many of the nation's poor, it is a waste of money and an abuse of presidential power.

January 5 - NPR

Mark Fuller has designed the new fountains for both CityCenter in Las Vegas and the new fountain for Lincoln Center in New York. Fast Company takes a look at the forces behind the flash.

January 5 - Fast Company

While rail is known to be much greener than its competitor long-distance trucking, it is also a key component to globalization and big-box retail. This article spotlights the growth of Burlington Northern Santa Fe RR and the Port of Los Angeles.

January 5 - Los Angeles Times - Business

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“Not that I condone fascism, or any -ism for that matter: -isms in my opinion are not good. A person should not believe in an -ism; he should believe in himself. I quote John Lennon: ‘I don’t believe in Beatles, I just believe in me.’ A good point there. After all, he was the walrus. I could be the walrus. I&#39;d still have to bum rides off of people.”<br /> <blockquote> <blockquote> <blockquote> <blockquote> <blockquote> <blockquote> </blockquote> </blockquote> </blockquote> </blockquote> </blockquote> </blockquote> <blockquote> <blockquote> <div align="left"> —Ferris Bueller

January 5 - Jeffrey Barg

Flood maps redrawn by the Federal Emergency Management Agency are causing thousands of Southern California residents to buy mandatory flood insurance, even though they say flooding is rare and barely an issue.

January 5 - Los Angeles Times

Almost six months in, the experimental transition of a car lane into a bike lane on a Vancouver bridge has proved to have little if any negative impact on traffic congestion.

January 5 - The Globe and Mail

Gov. Charlie Crist recently signed legislation to build a new 61-mile rail line through the Orlando area. The bill pits Republicans against Republicans in the Sunshine State, as evidenced by protesters at the press conference.

January 5 - The Reporter

Mayor Bloomberg has joined an elite group of NYC members serving three terms. In this editorial, the Times suggests key planning and environmental issues that he should address if he is to make that term successful.

January 5 - The New York Times - Opinion

Kaid Benfield of the NRDC reviews The Smart Growth Manual by Andres Duany, Jeff Speck and Mike Lydon. Benfield gives it high marks for style and substance, and for the way it incorporates environmental issues.

January 5 - NRDC Blog

<em>The New York Times</em> looks at plans for the new Transbay Terminal in San Francisco, which could break ground within months.

January 4 - The New York Times

In a scathing critique of Richard Florida, reporter Alec MacGillis claims that Florida's creative class strategies haven't worked for ailing cities around the country. Florida counters that the recession has changed the landscape.

January 4 - The American Prospect

Burj Dubai (now renamed as the Burj Khalifa), the world's tallest building, opened today in Dubai. But with the recent credit crunch and economic recession, the extravagant monument to boom times sits mostly empty.

January 4 - Los Angeles Times

BLOG POST

<p> Downloading my newest addition to my Kindle library—the digital book service provided by Amazon.com—I remembered the gentle criticism of a planner on a list serve not too long ago. The thread was on sustainability and global warming. I had made the point that market economies were innovative economies, and too much of the planning discussion on sustainability focused on reduced consumption without seriously discussing the ways technology fundamentally changed our choice sets. The planner chastised me for my faith in markets, saying, in a nutshell, we need to focus on what we know we can influence and not hedge are bets on the past. The implication was that markets were too ephemeral and undependable to include in long-term planning. </p>

January 4 - Samuel Staley