The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

The diffuse structure of suburbs makes it more efficient, according to this Brooking Institution post, to invest in individuals rather than places to fight poverty.

November 25 - Brookings

$2.25 million in funding exemplifies the broadening focus of the American Planning Association on public health outcomes at the local level.

November 25 - American Planning Association

Alberta Premier Rachel Notley announced a transformative three-pronged climate protection plan on November 22 that will cap greenhouse gas emissions from oil sands development, add a carbon tax, and phase-out coal power plants.

November 25 - CTV

Triple Pundit takes a step back to gather some perspective, asking why the U.S. commuters are still so resistant to getting on bikes.

November 24 - Triple Pundit

The Puget Sound Business Journal is reporting that landlords and developers are concerned about the effects on the market from a wave of new housing supply ready to come online in the region.

November 24 - Puget Sound Business Journal

St. Petersburg will overhaul its bus system in early 2016, expecting improved efficiency from operating on the downtown city grid as well as upgrades to the area that serves as the current hub of the system.

November 24 - Creative Loafing Tampa Bay

Facing winter storms and flooding, the city of Los Angeles is opening public buildings as temporary shelters for the homeless. Mayor Garcetti also has the option of declaring a state of emergency around the 26,000 people without housing.

November 24 - Los Angeles Times

Why are mortality rates increasing for this group in the United States and not others? The usual suspects—obesity, heart disease, diabetes, smoking are not the killers, The findings resulted in the 2015 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Science.

November 24 - The New York Times - Health

This list of the worst places for traffic congestion in the country might cause some rubbernecking of its own.

November 24 - The Washington Post

Adam Rogers chronicles Los Angeles' long and intimate relationship with the electric light. The city's recent choice to adopt LED streetlights has transformed a classic nighttime into something new.

November 24 - BOOM: A Journal of California

A pair of articles details two new, massive greenfield developments on the way in North Texas.

November 24 - The Dallas Morning News

According to a scathing critique of the most recent round of TIGER funding, many of the awarded projects fall far below the quality that transit advocates expect.

November 24 - The Century Foundation

So far, only a small minority of major cities have considered self-driving cars in their long-range transportation plans. The question is, should policymakers embrace them or stand in their way?

November 24 - TechCrunch

FEATURE

One idea for how to make transit better is rolling out in cities across the country: mobile payment of fares on smartphones.

November 23 - Regina R. Clewlow

Accessory dwelling units, granny flats, mother-in-law units—whatever you call them, they're now legal in Austin.

November 23 - Community Impact Newspaper

One of the earliest researchers at Skype makes a compelling case for one of the potential applications of artificial intelligence: helping humans decide where and how to migrate.

November 23 - Medium

Planning commissioners play an essential role in monitoring issues and projects of critical importance to the welfare of entire neighborhoods and cities. Why then, do so many commissioners seem to be sleeping on the job?

November 23 - Chicago Now

With water shortages in São Paulo making headlines around the world, Brazil is rethinking its approach to water infrastructure. Arup's Pablo Lazo gives his perspective on the various entities that are acting for change.

November 23 - Doggerel

Some think President Obama legislates from the "big government" end of the political spectrum, but when it comes to land use, at least, he's getting advice that local real estate markets should be liberated from too much regulation.

November 23 - The Wall Street Journal

"We're investing in walkability," always sounds like an encouraging tagline from local governments...or does it?

November 23 - PlaceShakers