The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Voters in S.F. will be given an opportunity to right a perceived 100 year old environmental wrong next week when they cast ballots on whether to develop a multi-billion dollar plan to drain Hetch Hetchy Valley, the city’s pristine water source.

November 3 - Los Angeles Times

“After 15 years, his vision to transform this long-forsaken industrial town into a bedroom community for single, young professionals is finally taking shape,” writes Ronda Kaysen. Hopes for redevelopment center on the town’s commuter rail station.

November 3 - The New York Times

Some highway advocates in the suburbs surrounding Washington, DC think that building an outer Beltway through Northern Virginia will be beneficial to the planet. Others disagree.

November 3 - Greater Greater Washington

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I can't remember the last time I left the house and gave a moment's though to whether I'd be warm enough, or whether I needed to bring an umbrella. Meanwhile, half the East Coast is underwater right now.

November 2 - Josh Stephens

Courageous is the brave soul who drives a truck through Durham, North Carolina, where a bridge has been decapitating high-profile vehicles with reckless impunity.

November 2 - The Atlantic Cities

With gasoline increasingly hard to find in New York and many subway lines still down, biking has surged in popularity in the aftermath of Sandy. Bikes are selling briskly and new adherents are jumping in the saddle.

November 2 - CNBC

John Gallagher writes about the optimism surrounding a project proposed by Quicken Loans founder and developer Dan Gilbert, which could bring 33,000-square feet of retail space, and 1,300 parking spaces, to downtown Detroit.

November 2 - Detroit Free Press

In blacked-out Manhattan, recovery is slow, if not entirely absent. To help fill the void left by public agencies, a self-organized recovery effort is trying to help those left behind, with the assistance of technology.

November 2 - Fast Company Co.Exist

Architecture critic Michael Kimmelman delivers his verdict on the Barclays Center, the new home of the Brooklyn Nets and the first phase of the larger Atlantic Yards mixed-use project. He has praise for the arena, but lambastes the larger plan.

November 2 - The New York Times

For anyone that's seen the shocking images of boardwalks ripped to shreds and homes and roller coasters now sitting in the ocean, its clear the Jersey Shore bore the brunt of Sandy. The debate has already begun as to whether the area should rebuild.

November 2 - Salon

Despite a ceremonial groudbreaking last year, a $5.2-billion elevated rail project four decades in the making is facing an uncertain future as the centerpiece of a fierce campaign battle.

November 2 - Los Angeles Times

Ariel Schwartz explains Recovers, "a logistical management system for disaster recovery," that gives communities tools for matching volunteers with recovery tasks, in the event of a disaster.

November 2 - Fast Company Co.Exist

Nathan Norris continues his series on municipal placemaking mistakes. This time: failure to understand the big picture and its order of operations.

November 2 - PlaceShakers

NJ's Republican Gov. Chris Christie heaps praise on President Obama, and the governor of the neighboring, hard-hit state, NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo, has also stirred the political pot by going where no other pol has gone - linking Sandy to climate change.

November 2 - San Francisco Chronicle

Critics of the proposed $500-million Southern California International Gateway, which is being touted as “one of the 'greenest' freight yards in the nation," contend it will actually reduce air quality and harm low income, minority residents.

November 1 - Los Angeles Times

Extreme events tend to expose the true weaknesses and strengths of a place and its people. In the same way that Sandy revealed the shortcomings in NY's physical infrastructure, it has shown the growing chasm in the city's economic infrastructure.

November 1 - The Atlantic

One silver lining from Hurricane Sandy is that it proved the accuracy of the National Hurricane Center, an agency under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) due largely to its hi-tech tools. Do you know what a 'dropsonde' is?

November 1 - NPR: All Things Considered

In many parts of the city located on higher ground than Lower Manhattan, the lights are on and the flood waters have receded. But New York's transportation network is struggling to reconnect the city's business centers with commuters.

November 1 - The New York Times

Five years ago, Graham Weston, the chairman and co-founder of Rackspace, had a wild vision to transform an abandoned mall into his company's headquarters. His unique approach has revitalized the adjacent city of Windcrest, a suburb of San Antonio.

November 1 - The New York Times

What do we lose when we narrowly associate planning with an 'urban' or 'city' context? The ability to effectively plan for rural, transitional, regional, and even urban areas, says Ruth Miller.

November 1 - Colab Radio