The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

The mass protests that have swept through Brazilian cities over the past week where sparked by planned bus fare increases, but quickly expanded to encompass a variety of complaints. Will the protests end now that fares have been lowered?

June 20 - WNYC: Transportation Nation

While the decline may not be visible, total auto ownership peaked in 2008 according to a new report by Michael Sivak of the University of Michigan's Transportation Research Institute. He set out to determine the cause - was it the economic recession?

June 20 - The Atlantic

The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation and HUD has proposed drastic cuts to Community Development Block Grants and eliminating funding for the Partnership for Sustainable Communities and TIGER. The cuts presage coming budget battles.

June 20 - DC.Streetsblog

A new report prepared to inspire NYC's next mayor examines 15 'game-changing reforms' that have been implemented in cities around the world, and could be adapted to help solve New York's most pressing challenges.

June 20 - Center For An Urban Future

Two towers set to transform Hollywood's skyline will alter it just a bit less after developer Millennium agreed to lower their proposed heights by more than a dozen stories. The CA Department of Transportation is raising concerns about the project.

June 20 - Curbed LA

It’s time to recognize that we can’t maintain the roads we have now, and that continuing down the path of highway expansion is both unaffordable and unnecessary, writes Stu Sirota.

June 20 - Better! Cities & Towns

Felicity Barringer looks at an innovative program being tested in Seattle to incentivize commercial property owners to undertake major energy efficiency retrofits. A partnership between skeptical building owners, investors, and utilities is key.

June 20 - The New York Times

BLOG POST

What should graduate students read the summer before entering planning school? For those with some time on their hands the following suggestions can help provide direction.

June 20 - Ann Forsyth

FEATURE

Land use disputes are increasingly taking up our time and producing unsatisfying results. A new approach to resolving conflict based on mutual gains may provide a better way to manage the most challenging situations.

June 19 - Sean Nolon

The last decade has brought tremendous growth and prosperity to Washington D.C., but it's neighbor to the north hasn't been so blessed. Planned infrastructure improvements are intended to lure new residents to Baltimore's cheaper cost of living.

June 19 - Washington Business Journal

Final plans for what will become the longest elevated park in the world where unveiled this week in Chicago. The 2.7-mile rail-to-trail conversion has been branded as The 606, a nod to the zip code digits shared by the neighborhoods along its route.

June 19 - Chicago Tribune

The National Trust for Historic Preservation has released its annual list of America's most endangered historic places, the preservation community's most effective tool for bringing awareness and assistance to the country's threatened resources.

June 19 - CNN

Following Mayor Bertrand Delanoe's overturn of a ban on buildings over seven storeys high, Paris is planning a dozen new skyscrapers outside the city centre. Debate over the towers is destined to become an issue in next year's municipal elections.

June 19 - BBC News

Ongoing research from the University of California Transportation Center documents the detrimental effects that free street parking for the disabled has on city coffers and performance pricing systems. Is it time to reconsider such laws.

June 19 - The Atlantic Cities

At .7 acres, downtown L.A.'s Spring Street Park isn't likely to invite comparison to the world's great urban parks. But for a city, and neighborhood, starved of quality open space, the new park is a significant achievement.

June 19 - Los Angeles Times

John Eligon examines the private student housing building boom, and asks whether we are spoiling college students with luxurious off-campus amenities to the detriment of academic and social environments.

June 19 - The New York Times

In the Pacific Northwest, and elsewhere, excessive parking requirements dictate the form and footprint of buildings, mostly to the detriment of urban environments. In a lavish photo essay, Alyse Nelson explores the damage inflicted by parking laws.

June 19 - Sightline Daily

It may seem counter-intuitive to charge extra fees for the cleanest, most fuel-efficient vehicles on the road today - including those that qualify for a federal $7,500 credit. But ten states are doing just that to keep roads well-funded.

June 19 - The New American

In the first entry in a series exploring the U.S. military's embrace of smart growth planning for its bases, Tanya Snyder looks at the United Facilities Criteria (UFC) for Installation Master Planning - the military's mixed-use marching orders.

June 19 - DC.Streetsblog

In an essay adapted from their new book, Jennifer Bradley and Bruce Katz examine America's traditional 'dual sovereignty' federalism. They argue that metropolitan areas should play a greater role in governance through a collaborative federalism.

June 18 - The Atlantic Cities