The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Twenty English cities are joining an existing eight in the government's "city deal" program, which gives local governments expanded planning and financial powers.

February 21 - BBC News

The Providence Arcade, thought to be America's oldest enclosed shopping mall, suffered the same fate as many of its 20th century brethren when it was shuttered in 2008. A developer seeks to revive the building as a mixed-use "micro-loft" complex.

February 21 - Mother Nature Network

A new report shows that New York City could be 90 percent carbon-free by 2050, "without breaking the bank," if it upgrades heating systems and transportation to renewable electricity, reports Taz Loomans.

February 21 - Inhabitat

As mixed-use development increasingly supersedes single-use development, Roger K. Lewis argues that we should retire the word "zoning" and its outdated "characterization of how we plan and shape growth."

February 21 - The Washington Post

Sources said that Ernest Moniz, former Energy Department undersecretary for President Clinton may replace Steven Chu as Energy Secretary. He now directs MIT's Energy Initiative and serves on Obama's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.

February 20 - Reuters

With the release of his new "Sustainable D.C." plan, Mayor Vincent Gray has outlined dozens of initiatives "that he hopes will vastly change how residents and visitors experience and travel across the city," reports Tim Craig.

February 20 - The Washington Post

Today, President Obama is expected to flesh out the details of his plan to repair the nation’s ailing infrastructure. John Schwartz details the initiatives, which aim to circumvent Congress and capitalize on private investment.

February 20 - The New York Times

Old and new maps take center stage in China's effort to lay claims to disputed territories.

February 20 - The Washington Post

The Atlanta City Council approved spending cash from a quality of life bond package to fund several improvements, including $2.5 million in bicycle projects. Among the projects to be funded are the city's first bike boulevard.

February 20 - Creative Loafing Atlanta

We think of shared workspaces as the hot trend in fostering productivity. But libraries have been incubating innovation for millennia. A new program seeks to make libraries a key cog in fostering the start-up economy.

February 20 - The Atlantic Cities

James Bacon examines how in Washington DC's suburbs high-density developments produce significantly more tax revenue per acre than low density developments.

February 20 - Bacon's Rebellion

Researchers are beginning to understand how the human brain is hard-wired to respond to certain patterns, colors, and proportions. The result is "a revolution in the science of design," says Lance Hosey, and "most people...aren’t even aware of it."

February 20 - The New York Times

With more than 10,000 downloads in the U.S., i-Tree calculates the environmental and economic benefits of planting trees.

February 20 - Next City

In the last three decades HOAs have grown six-fold in the U.S. They now cover 20 percent of American homes, and stifle sustainability and expression through “one of the most significant privatizations of local government functions in history.”

February 20 - NRDC Switchboard

BLOG POST

Parks have long been likened to "the lungs of the city." But to better capture the totality of parks' role in our urban milieu a more apt metaphor is necessary.

February 19 - Steven Snell

In January of this year, Tallinn (pop. 423,000) became the first European capital and the largest European city to provide public transit free of charge to its residents. So far, the experiment has proven a success.

February 19 - Euro Cities

L.A. stands at a critical juncture in the city's development, with an opportunity to embrace new patterns of land use that break with its postwar history. To seize this opportunity, the city will have to build incrementally, argues Peter Zellner.

February 19 - The Architect's Newspaper

While parks adjacent to affluent areas of New York City, such as Central Park or the High Line, are benefiting from record levels of private contributions, open spaces in poorer communities are struggling to fund routine maintenance.

February 19 - The New York Times

We solve problems with over-engineered, anti-urban infrastructure schemes even though we have no plan for funding their future maintenance obligations. Howard Blackson uses San Diego as an example, and offers up some pedestrian-oriented solutions.

February 19 - PlaceShakers

Millions of dollars donated by the United Arab Emirates are being used to fund the rebuilding of Joplin, Mo., which was devastated by a tornado in 2011. The handouts represent a "remarkable shift in global economic power."

February 19 - The Washington Post