The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

A City Council committee got its first look at a proposed revision of the streetscape licensing process by which restaurants and cafés can acquire sidewalk seating. Councilmembers sent the plan back the drawing board again.

April 22 - Dallas Observer

An intrepid blogger digs into the differences between Japanese zoning regulations and those here in the United States.

April 22 - Urban Kchoze

In what is surely a victory for opponents of waterfront development along the Embarcadero corridor in San Francisco, the Golden State Warriors have purchased a new site farther south, near AT&T Park and the UCSF Mission Bay campus, for a new arena.

April 22 - SF Weekly

Sound Transit released a request for qualifications to build a 100,000-square-foot mixed-use TOD at the forthcoming Capitol Hill light rail station. Fourteen interested developers responded.

April 22 - Capitol Hill Seattle Blog

Robert Trigaux wonders if the Tampa Bay metro area will be wake up to the country’s changing demands of transportation and end “the parochial arm wrestling over what kind (if any) of mass transit lies in its future.”

April 22 - Tampa Bay Times

From D.C. to Seattle, alleys are being reinvented as people-friendly spaces. Often perceived as dirty and dangerous, alleys are moving beyond garbage and garages to become havens for pedestrians, public art, and small business.

April 22 - Elevation DC

A California legislator warns that if the Keystone XL pipeline is rejected, expect tar sands to be transported by rail to Calif. refineries and ports. Increasing oil production would reduce oil imports, but a fracking moratorium bill has advanced.

April 22 - Engineering News Record

Michael Kimmelman resurrects an old plan by Alex Garvin to build a light rail connection between the waterfront neighborhoods of Queens and Brooklyn, except Kimmelman would build a streetcar line.

April 22 - New York Times

The town of Quintana, Texas, located along the coast to the South of Houston, provides a "unique chapter in the story of the American energy renaissance," according to Ryan Holeywell. An expanding energy company’s facility might wipe it off the map.

April 22 - Houston Chronicle

A new post by Richard Florida distinguished between the two different types of migration—domestic and international—driving the influx of residents in urban centers around the country.

April 22 - Atlantic Cities

The most recent coverage of the Alliance for Biking and Walking’s 2014 Benchmark report compares each of the states for how much federal transportation funding they devote to active transportation.

April 21 - Streetsblog USA

A research team at MIT Urban Studies and Planning, led by Susan Silberberg, released a paper examining “the interactions between placemaking, community participation, and the expanding ways communities are collaborating to make great public places.”

April 21 - Project For Public Spaces

“Can Paradise be Planned?” asks Allison Arieff in a recent op-ed. The article discusses new books by architect Robert A.M. Stern and photographer Christoph Gielen to look for reasons for optimism with regard to suburbs and planning.

April 21 - New York Times

Desperate to build hotel capacity in the neighborhood surrounding the Los Angeles Convention Center, the city has granted hundreds of millions in tax breaks to hotel developers. Some are asking the city to rethink the subsidies.

April 21 - Los Angeles Times

Inga Saffron recently joined a very small group of architecture critics to win the Pulitzer Prize. What does her victory say about the state of criticism, especially built environment criticism, today?

April 21 - Architect

Maria Saporta reviews the latest Atlanta Streets Alive event, which shuts down streets to vehicle traffic and turns them over to people, held over the past weekend in the historic neighborhood of West End.

April 21 - SaportaReport

A company called BrightFarms is developing a 100,000 square-foot greenhouse on a vacant lot in Washington D.C. The farm will provide jobs for locals and reduce the environmental footprint of the food sourcing process.

April 21 - Fast Co.Exist

For three generations, the American Dream was largely defined by continual suburban expansion. A new urban dream has emerged, and it is here to stay.

April 21 - Better! Cities & Towns

Seems like it's nothing but bad news for the rail authority since a judge ruled in November that the project was not in compliance with the proposition that the voters approved in 2008. This appeals court ruling means that a trial will move forward.

April 21 - The Fresno Bee

Currently, California residents who purchase plug-in electric vehicles can receive up to $2,500, depending on the type of electric vehicle, with all-electrics receiving the maximum rebate. However, the Air Resources Board is proposing a change.

April 21 - Capitol Weekly