The Daily Source of Urban Planning News
Why it's Unfair to Only Plan for Rush Hour
Determining whether to widen a street solely based on rush hour traffic ignores how the street is used and who uses it the rest of the day.
Toward a Better Understanding of Supply and Demand
A housing market analyst finds that traditional models do a poor job of measuring supply and demand, which makes it very difficult to know how much supply is needed to meet demand.
Detroit's Getting Better, Say Detroiters
According to a wide-ranging poll conducted by the Detroit Free Press, residents have regained some optimism about their city and its management. Sixty-nine percent said Detroit is headed in the right direction.
Paris Launches EcoDistrict on Train Station Site
After a decade of development, Paris' first EcoDistrict launched this year. Built in place of a disused train station, the district features offices, housing, and amenities built around clean and green principles.
President Obama's Most Important Energy Efficiency Standard Unveiled
Just in time for winter, the U.S. Department of Energy released a standard to make heating and cooling in commercial buildings far more efficient, increasing minimum efficiency by 10 to 25 percent.
Rail Access in High Demand Among the Young, White, and Well Educated
Washington, D.C. provides a model for trends found in other cities: people living near transit are trending younger, whiter, and more educated.
How a Historic Business Will Anchor a New Cultural District in Louisville
A historic corner of Louisville is getting a makeover as a cultural district for the 21st century. The $28 million already has preliminary approval for $7.2 million state tourism tax credits.
Study: Climate Change Turning World's Lakes Into Hot Tubs
The message of a new study funded by NASA and the National Science Foundation: don't forget freshwater when considering the impacts of climate change. Lakes and other bodies of water are threatened by potentially catastrophic vulnerabilities.
Rio De Janeiro's New 'Museum of Tomorrow' Studies Urban Ambitions
The world lacks any significant number of museums focused primarily on the issues of planning. Rio de Janeiro, however, will soon add one to the inventory.
Coming This Spring: A New Streetcar in Kansas City
The Kansas City Streetcar will debut its $100 million streetcar system in April—or maybe March. But definitely April.
Resilience Bonds Provide New Model for Infrastructure Financing
Local governments and utilities are overexposed and underinsured relative to an increasing threat from severe weather events. The Brookings Institution has released a report on a new funding tool to help meet these challenges.
A Call to Put Chicago in the Driver's Seat for North Lake Shore Drive Redesign
An op-ed calls for the Illinois Department of Transportation to end its car-friendly approach to the redesign of North Lake Shore Drive.
2015 Wildfire Season Breaks Records—Congress Sticks With the Status Quo
Congress could have had a landmark moment—but it stopped short of passing the Wildfire Disaster Funding Act. Meanwhile the wildfire season is wrapping up as the most expensive ever.
Rating the Effectiveness of Eight Approaches to Civic Engagement
Code for America has released an Engagement Standard that provides concepts for measuring the quality of new engagement platform technology—not a bad tool to have in the perpetual quest to increase the quality of engagement processes.
The Citizens Budget Commission Reports on NYC's Housing Affordability
As Mayor de Blasio pulls out all the stops to make the case for zoning proposals critical to his affordable housing plans, the Citizens Budget Commission assessed the economics of housing construction in the city.
Better Management, Not Lane Additions, Will Increase Capacity on Virginia's I-66
New express lanes on I-66 inside the Capital Beltway on I-66 will be significant for two reasons. First, no lanes will be added. HOV lanes will be converted to HOT lanes. Second, revenue will go to options to get drivers out of cars, such as transit
Take the 'Green Line': Design Firm Pitches 40-Block Park on Broadway in New York
Perkins Eastman has created a splashy proposal for a linear, at-grade park running along a long stretch of one of New York's most famous avenues.
An App for Navigating While Walking
A new app called Walc makes navigating while walking easier to do. Even more ambitiously, Walc aims to make it easier to make the choice to walk, rather than drive.
Friday Eye Candy: Take a Virtual Stroll Around the World
The Mapillary app allows users to upload their street-level photos into a geo-tagged sequence.
Shut It and Gut It: Anchorage Takes Hard Look at Transit Center
After 500 hours of analyzing its downtown transit center, Anchorage officials have come to one conclusion: The only way to fix this building is to shut it and gut it. The transit center, over three decades, has become a blight on Downtown.
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.
