The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

The improvement in air quality comes from reductions in toxic emissions from autos, trucks, and ships. Enjoying the cleaner air were tens of thousands of Angelenos riding on miles of streets closed to auto traffic for the 10th CicLAvia event.

October 8 - Take Part

Instead of density for density's sake (or for smart growth's sake), F. Kaid Benfield argues that the human scale is the key to walkable smart growth.

October 8 - Huffington Post

Following up on earlier reports about the latest commuting data from the U.S. Census 2013 American Community Survey, Joseph Kane and Adie Tomer find different trends in commute choice between age groups.

October 8 - The Brookings Institution

The country most friendly to electric vehicles is also the country most supportive of senior citizens, not that there's a relationship. After Norway, Sweden is the best place to grow old, according to the just released Global AgeWatch Index.

October 8 - BBC News

Congress Heights, in Washington D.C., has suffered decades of neglect. Now, city planners and activists want to transform it into a mixed-use, mixed-income success story. What if it doesn't work? What if it works too well?

October 8 - Elevation DC

Hoping to combat the city's dismal rankings in obesity, public and private partners launched the RiverFit pop-up fitness park along the Mississippi River in September.

October 8 - The Trust for Public Land - City Parks Blog

A report released last week by Cushman & Wakefield has won a lot of attention from media outlets covering large-scale development market trends. Among the report's findings: growing cities need to better support transit-oriented development.

October 8 - Globe St.

Trends in Washington D.C. housing affordability is similar to other cities around the country, but is also unique in how swiftly the housing market has shifted.

October 7 - The Washington Post - Wonkblog

Part infrastructure, part urban development—MiamiCentral is moving ahead quickly as an urban hub on the south end of the All Aboard Florida high-speed rail project.

October 7 - Miami Herald

Bldg Blog shares news of photographer Michael Light's new book "Black Mountain," which documents the "the construction and large-scale terrestrial formatting of a new housing development called Lake Las Vegas."

October 7 - BLDG BLOG

Following one failed attempt at a similar plan, a popular neighborhood for shopping will soon become a shared street project. The effort is part of a trend in Chicago looking for ways to transform streets into pedestrian friendly destinations.

October 7 - Chicago Tribune

Spatial analysis of income and education over time in U.S cities provides further evidence for the “New Donut” theory of the city. Wealthier and more educated residents are more likely to move to the urban core or exurbs than to inner-ring suburbs.

October 7 - University of Virginia Center for Public Service

WalletHub recently released the "2014 Best & Worst Cities for People with Disabilities" to highlight the economic power of providing employment opportunities and livable communities for people with special needs.

October 7 - WalletHub

Two of the more famous examples of the economic interests of the fossil fuel industry, Charles and David Koch, are battling transit projects, by any means necessary, all over the country.

October 7 - Streetsblog USA

According to a newly released study by the World Wildlife Fund, the Zoological Society of London, and other NGOs, the world has lost half of its biodiversity, particularly in fresh water ecosystems and in developing nations.

October 7 - The Wall Street Journal

Principal investigator Marc Schlossberg and co-investigator John Rowell, of the University of Oregon, have complete a guide to help communities of all varieties realize the benefits of complete streets.

October 7 - Oregon Transportation Research and Education Consortium

The New York City Housing Development Corporation hired BAE Urban Economics, also known as Bay Area Economics, "to crunch the numbers on its forthcoming mandatory inclusionary housing program," according to an article by Joe Anuta.

October 7 - Crain's New York Business

Jeff Speck, author of Walkable City, argues that reducing the width of traffic lanes would be a panacea for the disastrous public health outcomes of traffic safety.

October 6 - CityLab

The quest to preserve the masterpieces of modern architecture can also provide a model for preserving lesser-known construction from the 20th century. An initiative of the Getty Conservation Institute would achieve both goals.

October 6 - Los Angeles Times

Suburban Starbucks models are bumming urbanists out. But they also served as a nice allegory of what the future there might hold. Scott Doyon's latest blog post explains.

October 6 - PlaceShakers