The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Two reports have linked patterns of urban development to disaster risk. As urban populations grow, these studies suggest developing countries will become even more vulnerable.

May 19 - The New York Times

Adam Matthews of GOOD Magazine looks at the $500 homes in places like Buffalo and sees opportunity for new immigrants, which in turn could help turn these places around.

May 19 - GOOD Magazine

With activities ranging from organized running to the Homeless World Cup, sports are helping to improve the lives of people on the ropes, bringing increased motivation and community-building.

May 19 - Next American City

Sochi, Russia, is set to host the 2014 Winter Olympics. But work on the site has hardly begun, according to this report from <em>The Moscow Times</em>.

May 19 - The Moscow Times

<em>The Philadelphia Enquirer</em>'s Inga Saffron looks at the city's newest public plaza and finds much to like -- and much for other cities to learn from.

May 19 - The Philadelphia Enquirer

Theme park experts suggest contracting a single operator to manage Coney Island, but there's some push back from city officials who fear a loss of diversity and character.

May 19 - Brooklyn Paper

The Obama administration has announced that it will issue new emissions and mileage requirements for cars and light trucks tomorrow to create a single national standard.

May 18 - The New York Times

New light rail projects are taking off in the Toronto area. A new 15km line will be operational by 2013, but the city is still trying to raise funds to replace its aging streetcar stock.

May 18 - The Toronto Star

Cities like Portland and Austin have been magnets for young professionals. Amid the recession, these cities have few jobs to offer. But the hipsters keep coming.

May 18 - The Wall Street Journal

Phoenix is undergoing another housing boom, with buyers clamoring to buy up properties with significantly discounted prices.

May 18 - Los Angeles Times

This piece from <em>Color Lines</em> looks at how the economic downturn is affecting low-income populations, and how social services are having trouble keeping up with an increasing demand for help.

May 18 - Color Lines

A bill that would allow exurban development before adequate transportation infrastructure is in place has caused a stir in Florida, where environmental groups are lobbying the governor for a veto.

May 18 - The Bradenton Herald

Votes in the Charlotte area are considering another raise to their sales tax to fund transit projects. New documents show the tax increase may not bring the improvements quickly. But without the raise, some projects may never get built.

May 18 - Charlotte Observer

Neal Peirce looks at a broad citizen outreach program in Montgomery County, Maryland, engages its growing immigrant population by actually interacting with them face-to-face.

May 18 - Citiwire

This week's episode of <em>Smart City</em> explores what makes a city successful and tracks the future of the green job market.

May 18 - Smart City

BLOG POST

<p> By any measure, the HUD that is now emerging from the shadows of eight years of amateur hour, is focused on the right things: markets, coherent roles for public and private sector alike, and energy efficiency. Indeed the emphasis on &quot;urbanism&quot; and &quot;regionalism&quot; illustrates that this administration &quot;gets it&quot;. </p>

May 18 - Charles Buki

The Democrats of the U.S. House of Representatives have passed a bill that would create a green school building program in the U.S., investing more than $6 billion in its first year to build more environmentally friendly schools.

May 18 - NPR

BLOG POST

<p> Last week marked the end of my first year of planning school. It’s been by turns enlightening, angst-ridden, sleep-deprived, soul-baringly revelatory, stimulating and intellectually crushing. </p> <p> The bulk of the second semester is occupied by a first-year workshop—kind of a studio with training wheels—in which groups are assigned a client for whom they do a site analysis, come up with alternative solutions and then suggest a final plan and way to implement that plan. You know, kind of like in the real world. </p> <p> And, like in the real world, sometimes folks don’t always get along as well as they should. </p>

May 17 - Jeffrey Barg

Rick Harrison argues that smart growth looks good on paper, but in application the density creates a whole host of problems.

May 17 - New Geography

Las Vegas and Southern Nevada are chock-full of planned communities. The region is also struggling with some of the harshest declines in property values in the nation. Though planned communities are seeing some sales, they are mainly in trouble.

May 17 - Las Vegas Sun