The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Cancellation an Option as Costs Jump for Minneapolis' Light Rail Extension

An already controversial project got bad news earlier this week, as substantial increases in the expected cost of the Southwest LRT extension added more fuel to the fire for opponents of the project.

May 3 - MinnPost

Report: E-Cigarette Use Triples Among Teens

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 13% of high school age students used e-cigarettes in 2014, up from 4% in 2013. Regulation is being developed, but health effects and related tobacco usage implications are not clear.

May 3 - USA Today

Toll Lanes Continue to Spread on Southern California Freeways

To the chagrin of many Orange County transportation leaders, two express lanes will be added to each direction on a 14-mile stretch of the 405 (San Diego) Freeway, one through conversion, and a general purpose lane funded in part by Measure M added.

May 3 - KPCC

Gangnam, Seoul, Korea

Cities Try to Turn on the Dark

Of all the inventions of the modern world, few have been so embraced as artificial light. But constant light, like that which floods city streets and illuminates buildings, is not necessarily healthy or safe. Some cities are trying to go dark.

May 3 - The Architect's Newspaper

Bicycle traffic light in Berlin

Has Alternative Transportation Received Too Much Attention?

Joseph Stomberg of Vox has initiated a series of articles on commuting in America, the first based on the issues explaining the domination of the auto, the second on the debate about the driving decline associated with millennials.

May 3 - Vox


Charlotte Housing Development

'Missing Middle Housing' Website to Fill the Gap Between Supply and Demand

Opticos Design, Inc., the Berkeley-based urban planning and architecture firm has launched a new website dedicated to the missing middle of the housing market.

May 2 - Logos Opticos: Composing Vibrant Urban Places

Survey Says: Invest in Walking in East Portland

The results of a multi-lingual survey of residents in East Portland produced surprising results about which transportation investments are most desired.

May 2 - Bike Portland


On the Texas-Sized Failure of Regional Transportation Planning

The Dallas Morning News investigated over promising and under delivering by regional mobility authorities in Texas.

May 2 - The Dallas Morning News

Details Emerge for Philadelphia's LOVE Park Redo

One of the country's most scrutinized and anticipated renovation projects, Philadelphia's LOVE Park, has been unveiling critical design decisions in recent weeks.

May 2 - Plan Philly

Place de la Republique

The Difficult Task of Creating Topophilia

The Project for Public Spaces celebrates its 40th anniversary this year, spanning a seismic shift from modernist planning and urban decay of the 1970s to the urban resurgence and focus on smart growth of today. PPS's Ethan Kent reflects.

May 2 - Policy Innovations

Bill to End Colorado's Rain Barrel Ban Floundering in the State Senate

The state that bears the same name as the river that provides water for much of the western United States is also the last state in the country to ban the use of residential water barrels.

May 1 - American Rivers

Three Charged in Gov. Christie's 'Bridgegate' Scandal

A culmination of sorts for the "Bridgegate" scandal—though three former allies of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie have been indicted (one pleading guilty), Gov. Christie has not been implicated in the controversy.

May 1 - New York Times

Court Ruling Makes Tiered Water Pricing Difficult for California Drought Efforts

Pricing through tiered levels (i.e., charging more for customers using higher volumes of water), will be difficult, if not impossible, thanks to the ruling of a California appeals court on April 20.

May 1 - The California Report

Earth at Night

BLOG POST

UN-Habitat Adopts International Guidelines for Urban and Territorial Planning

UN-Habitat has adopted International Guidelines for Urban and Territorial Planning intended to inform the United Nation's New Urban Agenda and Sustainable Development Goals.

May 1 - Bruce Stiftel

Washington Square Park

BLOG POST

Parsing the Urban Landscape

A lot of people think exclusively of plants when they hear the term landscape. Without a common language to effectively describe it, the role landscape plays in the urban realm will remain undervalued.

May 1 - Mark Hough

FEMA Proposes New Flood Maps: 450,000 More New York Houses Included

FEMA has been hard at work since Hurricane Sandy re-evaluating the risk of floods in New York. Newly proposed maps would cast a much wider net for flood risk on private property.

May 1 - WNYC

Planning for the Next 20 Years in Unincorporated Los Angeles County

A lot has changed on the ground in Los Angeles County's unincorporated areas since 1980, when the last General Plan directing land use in these communities was written.

May 1 - The Planning Report

Silicon Valley's Latest Innovation: Recycled Water

A proposed $800 million facility in Santa Clara County will put recycled water on the tech boom's doorstep.

May 1 - San Jose Mercury News

Detroit Strikes Deal to Move Red Wings Stadium Forward

A plan to build a new, $450 million hockey arena along the Cass Avenue corridor near Downtown Detroit has already faced criticism for its generous public subsidies. The City Council recently made sure the public will get something in return.

May 1 - Detroit Free Press

Park Advocates Face Uphill Battle Against Obama Library, Lucas Museum

Geoff Edgers details the challenge ahead for park advocates fighting to protect Chicago open space from two powerful forces: the White House and George Lucas.

May 1 - The Washington Post

Post News

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