The Daily Source of Urban Planning News
Free Wi-Fi Network Launches Around Kendall Square in Cambridge
It wasn't easy, but a broad swath of Cambridge, Massachusetts will now have free Wi-Fi Internet. The effort required a partnership between several institutions and organizations to come to fruition.
Austin Will Use Virtual Reality to Attract Foreign Direct Investment
The city of Austin hopes that virtual reality can connect foreign investors and proposed development projects in need of funding.
An Argument for Pairing By-Right Zoning With Form-Based Codes
Opticos Design believes by-right zoning and form-based codes can be a win-win for communities.
Study: New Low-Income Housing Has No Effect for Nearby Property Values
A new study by Trulia casts doubt on the fears of neighborhood activists resistant to the idea of low-income housing.
Cincinnati welcomes artists leaving the coasts
For the founders of young art center Wave Pool, Cincinnati offers opportunities unmatched by the coastal cultural meccas.
Chicago to Install New Parking Meters to Lessen Impact of Bad Contract
The city of Chicago will install 752 new parking meters in 2017—but still fall far from the Shoupian ideal.
Toronto Could Take a Radical Step by Tolling Local Roads
In some of the biggest transportation planning news of 2016, the City of Toronto is considering a proposal to toll the Gardiner Expressway and Don Valley Parkway in an effort to raise funds for infrastructure improvements.
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An Argument for an Inefficient City, Starting with Spatial Justice
By taking a turtle for a walk, we can begin to take back our minds and bodies.
The Downside of Removing Tech Buses from Neighborhoods
A new study has shown that moving tech shuttle stops from neighborhoods to conform to a new "hub plan" would result in a drop in bus ridership, with most former riders resorting to driving their own vehicles to their Silicon Valley workplaces.
Downtown Des Moines Hopes Boom Will Continue Into 2017
Des Moines' Downtown Chamber of Commerce expects the city's 2016 development boom to continue into the new year.
Op-Ed: Build a Dense Wilshire Corridor to Ease L.A.'s Housing Woes
Thom Mayne proposes a radical solution to Los Angeles' affordability/preservation problem: build up transit-friendly areas far beyond current densities, and leave the rest unchanged.
An Uncertain Future: America's Urban Middle Class
In the election's wake, Richard Florida compiles some telling statistics on the nation's threatened middle class. It's on the decline, yes, but it's also becoming more segregated into certain cities, often in the Sunbelt and Rust Belt.
Philly's Healthy Rowhouse Project Adds a New Low-Interest Loan Program
Philadelphia seeks $60 million bond issue to preserve existing affordable homes and improve residents' health. City seeks to offer city loan guarantee to embolden lenders to extend credit to homeowners with lower credit scores.
Fire Safety Testing Paves the Way for Timber Towers
A new kind of building will soon rise in the United States: the wooden tower. Extensive testing by the US Department of Agriculture and the timber industry will soon make timber viable for high-rise tower construction.
Broward County Voters Approve One Sales Tax Measure but Reject Another; Neither Passes
Had it not been for the political compromise that enabled it to be placed on the ballot, voters would have narrowly passed a county transportation sales tax measure. In neighboring Palm Beach County, a straight-forward sales tax measure passed.
Cities Can't Afford To Be 'Data Poor'
Fundamentally, we are at a critical turning point in terms of how we think about data and how we use data for governments and cities as well as businesses and other institutions.
Is it Fair to Blame Commuter Rail Woes on Private Operators?
Recent problems on the commuter rail operations contracted out by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and Denver's Regional Transportation District caught the eye of Governing's transportation and infrastructure reporter.
Taking on Climate Change Without Wrecking Cities for the Poorest and Most Vulnerable
Rebuilding and repairing New York City after Hurricane Sandy shows how climate change can exacerbate existing equity problems and that such disasters must spur efforts to rebuild fairly, not entrench existing problems.
Protected Bike Lanes Save Lives
New research finds that as more distracted drivers take the road, protected bike lanes are keeping bikers alive.
Train Commuters Moving to Bikeshare in D.C.
Capital Bikeshare's ridership numbers are benefitting from delays and other service constraints resulting from WMATA's SafeTrack maintenance program.
City of Moorpark
City of Tustin
Tyler Technologies
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Chaddick Institute at DePaul 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.
