The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Friday Funny: A 'Manspreader' for Every Month
If a new online cartoon for The New Yorker were a real calendar, we'd expect it would sell more copies than Playgirl and find itself spread across dart boards in all five boroughs.

Explosion of Deliveries Disrupts Streets
E-commerce and its delivery trucks are a big problem for narrow streets, homes, and retailers that don't have loading docks.

Arkansas Town Without a Downtown Decides to Make One
Leaders of Johnson, Arkansas have decided to upgrade their town by creating an 80-acre, new urbanist-style downtown

School Bus Schedule Changes Will Be Funded by the Seattle Department of Transportation
Issues about which bus schedules work best for students and families, and how changes to the school bus system should be funded, came to a head in Seattle this week.

New Wisconsin Road Funding Option: Let Truckers Pay
A mileage fee applicable only to heavy trucks is floated as a third option to close the road funding gap in Wisconsin. The other two options are hiking gas taxes, which is opposed by Gov. Scott Walker, or adding road tolls.

Decision on California's $15.5 Billion 'WaterFix' Expected, Finally, in September
The massive project known as the California WaterFix has nearly come to its day of reckoning.
No More Whitewater in Dallas
A whitewater feature built into the Trinity River in Dallas will have to go—it rendered the river unnavigable and thus breached the terms granted by a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permit.

When the Level of the Architecture Discussion Resembles the Level of the Political Discussion
Fancy renderings of fanciful ideas might make for "internet catnip," but they don't push the built environment toward healthier and more prosperous outcomes. Where have all the good ideas gone?

Critiquing the Proposal to Locate a Bike Lane on an Interstate
The current plan for the widening of I-66 in Virginia would place a bike lane between vehicle traffic and a sound wall.
NYC Planning Department Launches New In-House Digital Services Unit
Introducing the new NYC Planning Labs.

Where Affordable Senior Apartments Aren't Welcome
An affordable senior apartment development has provoked heated opposition in the Louisville suburb of Prospect.

Communities Plan for Life After Nuclear Power Plants
Nuclear power plants around the country are shutting down. The communities where nuclear plants have been located for decades will now have to figure out how to rebuild their economies without them.

How Building Standards Failed London's Grenfell Tower
Fire safety experts are rushing to explain the horrific scene in London's Kensington neighborhood last night—after a fire destroyed a residential high rise. The building was recently retrofitted to meet efficiency standards.

Linkage Fees a Tough Sell for Affordable Housing
Advocates for linkage fees as a tool to enable the construction of additional have encountered stiff resistance in some of the country's most populated areas.

In the Silicon Valley, Eichler Is Synonymous With Single-Story Overlay
Residents of homes designed by Joseph Eichler are concerned that new two-story homes could invade their privacy and block sunlight and views. They have sought and won zoning protection.

The Other Side of Anxiety? Realism. And Maybe Hope.
Ben Brown tells us to stop narrowly defining problems.

Odd Years are Good for Hiking State Gas Taxes
Already California, Indiana, Montana, South Carolina (overriding a governor's veto), Tennessee, and Utah* have raised gas taxes this year, while last year was a drought—only New Jersey increased its gas tax.

Providence the Latest City to Get Toilet-Plunger Bike Lane
Bike advocates are plumbing new depths, with a growing trend toward placing plungers to act as separators for bike lanes.

Oregon City's Spectacular Vision for the Willamette Falls Riverwalk
Brian Libby reports from Willamette Falls in Oregon City, Oregon, where plans for the Willamette Falls Riverwalk are taking shape.

Interior Secretary Wants to Reduce Bears Ears National Monument
Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, in an early decision to come of a nationwide review of national monument designations, recommends that President Trump reduce the size of Bears Ears National Monument.
Pagination
Municipality of Princeton
Roanoke Valley-Alleghany Regional Commission
City of Mt Shasta
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
US High Speed Rail Association
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)
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.