The Daily Source of Urban Planning News
Signs of Recovery? Stockton, California Exits Bankruptcy
Stockton, California symbolized the worst effects of the Great Recession on local governments—not to mention, to some, California's decline.
America's Crumbling Water Infrastructure
The country's aging water infrastructure is growing more wasteful and expensive to fix with every year. What will it take to re-engineer our drinking water supplies?
Disney's Political Donations Increase as Anaheim Considers a Streetcar
Disney says its supports pro-business candidates for City Council in Anaheim, but some see a proposed streetcar as the connection behind an uptick in the company's local political support.
Campaign 2014: Controversial Conservation Ballot in North Dakota
Should the state dedicate five percent of its substantial oil and natural gas taxes to conservation efforts? Outdoors groups, hunters, and environmental activists say yes; energy companies say no, and millions of dollars are being spent on each side.
BLOG POST
Is America's Civic Architecture Inherently Racist?
It's a provocative and rage-inducing question, but a potentially useful one for promoting discussion about the cross-cultural meaning of public space.
Op-Ed: Expand Chicago's Transit Beyond its Successful Status Quo
Yonah Freemark writes an op-ed that argues for the Chicago Transit Authority to do more than maintain the status quo.
The Best Sentences of the Week (Volume 4)
By no means authoritative or comprehensive, here's a collection of noteworthy phrases, paragraphs, commentaries, observations, and more from the recent week in the planning and urbanism discussion.
How Grand Rapids Became a Transit Success
Rachel Dovey shares some of the secrets to the success of Grand Rapids, Michigan after a year of transit improvements in the small city.
Are Single Family Teardowns a Sign of Suburban Gentrification?
Luxury condos are often identified as the culprit in urban gentrification, but could it be that teardowns of single family homes that give way to much larger single family homes is a driver of suburban gentrification?
The End of the World's Fastest, Free Drive?
The free part, not the fast part that is. Perhaps it was just a matter of time before Germany considered a toll for its autobahn network like neighbors Switzerland and Austria do. Germans could deduct the annual toll from their vehicle taxes.
Campaign 2014: Rolling Back Gas Tax Indexing
Massachusetts voters will decide on Question 1 on Tuesday—an initiative petition to eliminate the automatic, annual indexing of its 26.5-cent gasoline excise tax to inflation, implemented with a three-cent gas tax increase last year.
The Charms of Affordable Cities (Not Named San Francisco or New York)
A recent post identifies a sweet spot in the urban market: affordable cities like Cincinnati and others in the Rust Belt that provide an attractive alternative to more expensive, if more famous, cities on the coasts.
Comparing Taxi, Transportation Network Company Fares Reveals the 'Cost of Loyalty'
An app that compares fares across transportation network company platforms reveals several lessons about the state of competition in this new transportation frontier.
Scientists Pick up Seismic Vibrations from Human Transportation
For the first time, researchers were able to detect the vibrations created by human transportation systems.
Report Predicts Early End to Shale Boom
The current shale boom can't last forever. A new report says it will end much sooner that the federal government realizes.
Campaign 2014: Louisiana, Maryland, and Wisconsin Transportation Measures
Maryland and Wisconsin will not ask voters to raise taxes for transportation, but will ask them to adopt constitutional restrictions to ensure gas tax funds are not diverted for other purposes. Louisiana hopes to create an infrastructure bank.
Mapping the New Deal
The Living New Deal Project Map from the University of California, Berkeley was released earlier this month, pinpointing all of the New Deal projects around the United States.
Better Streets Include Transit
Dan Reed examines the Green Line in Minneapolis near the campus of the University of Minnesota as a case study of how transit can improve streets.
MapStory Traces the Development of the United States
Interested in tracing the development of everything from urban bike lanes to national parks to rocket test sites?
Kansas City Streetcar to Provide Frequent, Late Night Service
Under construction and expected to launch service in Fall 2015, the Kansas City Streetcar will provide frequent service in Downtown Kansas City.
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.
