The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

<p>Architect David Rockwell has some new ideas about what makes a good public playground. With movable, buildable foam blocks, his experimental playground in Brooklyn gets kids actively and creatively involved in their play.</p>

July 15 - The New York Times

<p>The New York Times reported last week that the country's largest and most successful progressive community organizing group covered up a $1 million embezzlement. Peter Dreier and John Atlas put the controversy in the larger context.</p>

July 15 - The Huffington Post

<p>The Department of Energy is proposing to construct massive "energy corridors", land designated solely for the purpose of energy conduction like oil, hydrogen and electricity.</p>

July 15 - Terrain.org: A Journal of the Built & Natural Environments

<p>Walkable Communities founder Dan Burden believes walkable communities contribute to greater happiness -- and that Silicon Valley has a thing or two to learn from Denmark.</p>

July 15 - San Jose Mercury

<p>As timber payments dry up, two Oregon counties are warning that they could dissolve in a year, leaving many in the state wondering how to provide services for residents.</p>

July 15 - The Oregonian

<p>New York City plans to revise the way it assesses poverty levels in the city, bringing in more variables and cost-of-living considerations. Officials expect the new measurement to be more accurate, and are calling on other cities to follow suit.</p>

July 15 - The New York Times

<p>The New Yorker traces the history of the American lawn from 1841, commenting on their unnatural origins, and finally analyzing the alternatives suggested by anti-lawn movements.</p>

July 15 - The New Yorker

<p>In Kamikatsu, Japan, waste is not a problem -- mainly because new policies practically forbid it. But citizens have adapted to their new zero-waste lifestyle.</p>

July 15 - BBC

<p><em>CNN Money</em> has released its ranking of the best places to live.</p>

July 15 - CNN Money

<p>Planners in Seattle want to add housing to Little Saigon, a neighborhood with a strong Vietnamese culture, without disrupting the district's character or displacing residents.</p>

July 15 - The Seattle Post-Intelligencer

BLOG POST

City cycling can be hectic. Let&#39;s be realistic: most American cities are not meant for cyclists. It would be great if they were, but for now, our city forms are primarily designed for the movement of cars. Because cities are made for cars, it&#39;s understandable that car drivers tend to disregard the fact that somebody might be riding a bike out there. (<a href="/interchange" target="_blank" title="Planetizen Interchange">Interchange</a> blogger <a href="/user/405" target="_blank" title="Planetizen Interchange blogger Mike Lydon">Mike Lydon</a> recently wrote an <a href="/node/33877" target="_blank" title="The Bicycle Network - by Mike Lydon - Planetizen Interchange">excellent piece about planning for bicycle networks</a>.) Until our urban forms and public policies encourage the use of roads by a variety of transportation types, the burden is on cyclists to assert their role in the transit jungle. Communication is key to achieving this goal. Safe cycling (and safe transportation in general) relies heavily on communication. Safe cyclists speak bike language -- a rudimentary system made up of three main components: the wave, the yell and the nod. <br />

July 14 - Nate Berg

<p>A "Black Hat security researcher" claims he has discovered security flaws in the FasTrak toll transponder used by drivers in California and Colorado. However, the story is quickly dismantled as "baloney" by a toll road industry insider.</p>

July 14 - Toll Roads News

<p>As the number of sustainable buildings increase rapidly, ecologically friendly designs are shedding an ugly past for a sleeker and more striking future.</p>

July 14 - The Christian Science Monitor

<p>New technologies promise to revolutionize the hunt for a parking spot in big cities like San Francisco. Donald Shoup is along for the ride.</p>

July 14 - The New York Times

<p>Palm Beach and Broward Counties in Florida are looking at a future of dwindling resources for road-building, and projecting the need for alternative transportation.</p>

July 14 - South Florida Sun-Sentinel

<p>The increase in the price of fuel encourages one St. Louis family to purchase a second home near work.</p>

July 14 - STLtoday

<p>New York City is considering a plan to institute a bike-sharing program in the city.</p>

July 14 - The New York Times

<p>Indianapolis has a growing problem with abandoned houses. To fight the blight, they're now selling the homes online.</p>

July 14 - The Indianapolis Star

<p>A proposal to annually burn tens of millions of car tires to produce electricity at a facility in Erie, Pennsylvania is raising concerns among environmentalists and regional residents over mercury and other emissions.</p>

July 14 - AlterNet

FEATURE

There is a glaring lack of attention in the presidential primaries to urban policy, says Randall Crane.

July 14 - Randall Crane