The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Will Oremus investigates an occurrence he noticed recently in Tom Vanderbilt's series on walking – that the cities with the highest "walk scores" were all liberal – and asks why conservative cities don't walk.

April 18 - Slate

William Millard, Tom Stoelker, and Caitlin Blanchfield discuss three long-awaited, major developments that are finally taking shape on Manhattan's Far West Side: Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, the third section of the High Line, and Hudson Yards.

April 18 - The Architect's Newspaper

As wealthy communities learn to use historic districts to inflate property values, socially conscious urbanists must think twice about the purpose and place of preservation, Will Doig reports.

April 18 - Salon

BLOG POST

<p> As the APA national conference draws to a close after four days of connecting, collaborating, and conversing, another c-word has been running through my head -- change. Of course, introducing and disseminating change is the currency of such conferences, where sessions are intended to facilitate professional development and transition by introducing attendees to the progressive practices and policies being spearheaded across the professional world. I mean, why else would we attend such events? Surely not only for the raucous opening night party, right? Right??  </p> <p> However, it seems there was more than the usual dose of change in the air during this year&#39;s proceedings. </p>

April 17 - Jonathan Nettler

Rebecca Messner looks at the groundbreaking work being done by the present generation of landscape architects, and wonders why the only one most people can name died more than a century ago.

April 17 - Grist

Kicking off their new long-form <em>Forefront</em> initiative, Josh Stephens writes for <em>Next American City</em> on the killing of the country’s largest redevelopment program, and its implications for economic and real estate development.

April 17 - Next American City

A recent opinion piece in <em>The Wall Street Journal</em> on the reasons why "Americans don't want to live in Ray LaHood's car-free utopia" is garnering a lot of attention in the planning and transportation worlds.

April 17 - The Wall Street Journal

Joseph Berger looks at the impact the Atlantic Yards project is having on long-time businesses and residents in the surrounding neighborhoods, as die-hard opponents continue to resist the project.

April 17 - The New York Times

In the run up to the Rio 2012 Earth Summit, Diana Lind examines the concept of "degrowth", a topic that economists and elected officials are likely loathe to discuss, but which may be key to the long-term sustainability of our planet.

April 17 - Next American City

If you've always thought that the primary way to encourage more bicycling in your city was simply to build more bike lanes and bike paths, you'll be happy to read about a new study that finally proves your point.

April 17 - The Washington Post

Brad Plumer examines the global need to abate climate change amidst a new report showing carbon emission reductions being claimed by countries around the world can be deceiving.

April 17 - The Washington Post

The cities of Bogotá and Medellín have made dramatic transformations over the last ten years, driven in large part by their influential mayors. But while one continues to soar, the other is in crisis, reports Justin McGuirk

April 17 - The Guardian

Edward T. McMahon explores the importance of community character, and why it is one of the key elements to a city’s economic success.

April 17 - Urban Land

Needing a two-thirds majority to pass, a recent survey suggests that a regional, 9-county gas tax proposal to fund transportation improvement projects in the Bay Area would only receive 43% support if it were to go to the ballot.

April 17 - San Francisco Chronicle

Why wait until December to survey the year's best buildings? Nary a third of the way through 2012, Mark Byrnes has shared his list of the most interesting buildings so far.

April 16 - The Atlantic Cities

Lauren Gravitz explores the importance of demonstrating the economic viability of cultural tourism to safeguarding historic sites in Peru and Bolivia.

April 16 - Fast Coexist

Nate Berg reports on the surprising news delivered on Sunday by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, timed to coincide with the latest iteration of CicLAvia, the city's marquee event for bicyclists and pedestrians.

April 16 - The Atlantic Cities

Alison Gregor highlights efforts by affordable housing developers to implement edible community gardens, bringing fresh food and neighborhood ties to inner-city tenants.

April 16 - The New York Times

Meghan Stromberg reports on the opening keynote from this year's annual APA national conference, taking place in Los Angeles through April 17th. Dr. Andrew Weaver spoke about the disconnect between climate change science and public perception.

April 16 - Planning.org

A rising tide of hostility along Venice's famous boardwalk has prompted residents to call on the LAPD for help, Martha Groves reports.

April 16 - Los Angeles Times