The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Vancouver’s Transportation 2040 plan allowed for the easing of parking minimums for residential developments in parts of the city, and now city planners are beginning to explore where and how condos can be built without parking.

March 21 - The Province

A unanimous vote by the Carson city council for the 45-day moratorium on all oil drilling, with or without fracking, was done in response to an application for drilling by Occidental Petroleum even though the company agreed not to utilize fracking.

March 21 - Los Angeles Times

In a rural farming community in California's Central Valley called Hanford, downtown revitalization means protecting and renovating its historic buildings. Luckily for Hanford, that won't cost very much.

March 21 - The Sentinel

Congress is working on increasing height limits in Washington D.C. Rep. Darrell Issa (R-California) based pitching increased the limits by appealing to that fundamental American passion: football.

March 21 - Roll Call

The already brilliant city of Chicago is soon to get another big draw—the extension of a riverwalk promenade between State and Lake streets.

March 21 - Chi.Streetsblog

In a recent article for the Washington Post, Matthew Dolan details the sub-par state of bus service in Detroit—a city where residents live without cars in quickly growing numbers.

March 21 - The Washington Post

Several planning efforts are in the process to rethink Washington Square Park in Downtown Kansas City. In an already bustling part of Downtown, stakeholders are considering the changes ahead of a forthcoming influx of daytime working population.

March 20 - Kansas City Star

Many people know Milwaukee as the Algonquin translation for “The Good Land.” But unfortunate changes in the water table underneath the city now make Milwaukee the sinking city. Experts disagree why.

March 20 - Urban Milwaukee

The Federal Transit Authority has granted one of the final approvals needed for the Purple Line—a 16-mile light rail line between Bethesda and New Carrollton in Maryland.

March 20 - Greater Greater Washington

A recent study claimed that transit ridership had reached the highest levels seen in 57 years. Wendell Cox, however, argues that the narrative about a “fundamental shift” in the transportation paradigm is a misrepresentation of the truth.

March 20 - New Geography

You’re totally forgiven for snickering; most people wouldn’t have guessed that a city in Rhode Island would have made it anywhere near the top of a list of exciting cities.

March 20 - Movoto Blog

Montana state officials are considering a plan to allow wild bison to roam in a larger area outside of Yellowstone National Park. Ranchers oppose the project for fear of disease spreading to area livestock.

March 20 - The Wall Street Journal

Transit users in Troy, located to the north of Detroit, spent the weather standing outside waiting for trains and buses while a $6.3 million (indoor) transit facility sat unused due to a legal dispute.

March 20 - The Detroit News

All but 10% of the CBR went to Southern California refineries, though Bay Area shipments grew by 57% and provoked the largest outcry. The Northern California deliveries are mostly from North Dakota, with 12.5% from Colorado.

March 20 - Contra Costa Times

BLOG POST

The federal government has largely abdicated its responsibility to build affordable housing. Nowhere is that more clear than in the comparison between President Obama's proposed $6 billion to HUD for housing production and $626 billion for defense.

March 20 - Edward Poteat

Based on empirical study, J. Alexander Maxwell and fellow University of Strathclyde researchers, in collaboration with Chuck Wolfe, argue for recalling historic patterns of pedestrian city settings in contemporary urban design and policies.

March 20 - London School of Economics and Political Science - American Politics and Policy Blog

Acknowledging that many neighborhoods in Chicago have seen dramatic improvements in livability and income levels, one writer could still identify two Chicagos: “Global Chicago” and “Rust Belt Chicago.”

March 19 - The Corner Side Yard

The “1,500 New Affordable Housing Units Initiative” would target gentrifying neighborhoods in the hopes of preserving a mix of incomes where housing costs are pricing-out long-term residents.

March 19 - PlanPhilly

Atlanta has placed the Atlanta BeltLine Streetcar System Plan on hold, but the fate of one component of the plan—now occupying low-priority position among the plan’s four phases—reveals a lot about Atlanta’s proposed streetcar network.

March 19 - SaportaReport

The Port Authority is reviewing development proposals for a $2.4 billion project to renovate New York City’s notoriously derelict La Guardia Airport. Renderings from one proposal have also hit the wire.

March 19 - New York Post