The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Los Angeles Designer Julie Kim thinks the city is missing out on an opportunity at public transit hubs to create an environment that promotes interaction. So, Kim spruces up a bus stop with a coffee table and flowers and video records the results.

July 20 - GOOD Magazine

Cities plan to cut off individual parking garages is a gamble, says Josie Garthwaite in National Geographic -- yet making it impossible to park is one of the few yet most effective tools that reduces driving.

July 20 - National Geographic

This NYT editorial endorses the effort of a Long Island town supervisor to transform the Ronkonkoma LIRR station, one of the busiest stations on the nation's busiest commuter line from a sea of parking into a vibrant TOD with a convention center.

July 20 - The New York Times - Editorial

Using remote sensing, GPS technology and other high-tech strategies, city traffic planners aim to clear Midtown's infamous traffic problems - from Queens. The $1.6 million investment will tackle a problem costing the city about $13 billion a year.

July 20 - New York Post

Graffiti has cropped up this year in metropolitan areas like Los Angles to smaller communities like Florence, Alabama. The rise in graffiti has prompted a debate that it may reflect that anxiety and alienation are growing from the recession.

July 20 - The New York Times

BLOG POST

<span style="font-family: Arial; color: black">To its minimal credit, Borders Books &amp; Music always had a a few shelves where the works of Jacobs, Mumford, Kunstler, Whyte, Florida, and others resided. </span> <p class="MsoNormal"> <span style="font-family: Arial; color: black">But, judging by the financial and aesthetic bankruptcies of, respectively, Borders and many American cities, it seems that copies of Life and Death (or anything else) weren&#39;t exactly flying out the door. If the public&#39;s understanding of urban economies even began to rival its fascination for gossip, self-help, and vampires, Borders never would have arisen in the first place.

July 20 - Josh Stephens

A proposed 20-mile bridge would span the Red Sea to connect Egypt and Saudi Arabia -- connecting Arab states and reducing reliance on land passage through Israel.

July 20 - Der Spiegel

The amount of children under five has jumped in downtown Minneapolis, which is posing problems for the city and its school system.

July 20 - Minneapolis-St.Paul Star Tribune

A new 26-foot statue of Marilyn Monroe -- recreating a famous film scene in which wind blows up the star's skirt -- has been unveiled in Chicago. Tourists seem to like it, but others argue it's too kitschy.

July 20 - Chicago Sun-Times

Though population growth rates have slowed in cities and suburbs, their increasing interconnectedness has created sets of diverse metropolitan areas, according to the Brookings Institution's Alan Berube.

July 20 - The Brookings Institution

From Florida to Arizona, 14 states are in the midst of a major drought. The effects have been far-reaching and devastating to both the environment and economy.

July 20 - The New York Times

"Carmageddon" was a bust, yet for mass transit advocates it was an opportunity to build momentum toward a trend of more car-less days, the Los Angeles Times reports.

July 19 - Los Angeles Times

Cities have filed a lawsuit with the California State Supreme Court over recently passed laws that eliminate funding for the state's redevelopment agencies.

July 19 - San Jose Mercury News

The small southern California town of Bell became notorious for corruption when the exploits of its city manager were revealed in a newspaper investigation. The crime highlights the power of the city manager and how those powers can be misused.

July 19 - Zocalo Public Square

A set of recommendations for changes to land-use regulations in Seattle is being highlighted by Mayor Mike McGinn as a way to both create sustainable neighborhoods and jobs. One of the authors of the recommendations explains.

July 19 - Crosscut

The first major American city to have a black majority, Washington D.C.'s demographics have shifted again.

July 19 - The New York Times

California's San Joaquin Valley has become a hotbed of foreclosed homes. But beyond mere statistics, these homes are real places, and a new series of photographs documents them as scenes of surrender and abandonment.

July 19 - Places

A new website uses Google Maps and your photographs to overlay images of the past on current locations.

July 19 - GOOD Magazine

In an effort to improve the visitor experience and boost business, operators of a busy transit hub in Boston are bringing in performers and various activities to entertain people waiting and convince others to linger longer.

July 19 - The Boston Globe

Plans are emerging to revamp the public space surrounding Philadelphia's 30th Street train station to create a more vibrant way to enter the city.

July 19 - The Philadelphia Inquirer