The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

High Speed Rail Versus Historic Tree

A historic tree near the campus of Stanford University is the centerpiece of a fight to redirect California's planned high speed rail project.

November 21 - Peninsula Press

Transit Plans in Charlotte Face Budget Troubles

Expansion of transit has helped fuel a boost in ridership over the last decade in Charlotte. But with falling tax revenues, the city looks unlikely to be able to continue its planned transit growth.

November 21 - the transport politic

An Ecological Urbanism or a New Urbanism?

<em>Urban Omnibus</em> offers a summary of the recent debate that went down over the future of Harvard's Graduate School of Design concerning urban design, landscape urbanism and new urbanism.

November 21 - Urban Omnibus

How To Be a Blind Architect

<em>99% Invisible</em> talks with Chris Downey, an architect who lost his sight three years ago and who continues to work.

November 20 - 99% Invisible

Dome City Dreamed for Abandoned Siberian Mine

A Russian construction company wants to build a 100,000-person city in an abandoned diamond mine, and cover it with a dome.

November 20 - Wired UK


An Even More Urban Future in Japan

Major developments have been popping up all over Japan's heavily urbanized cities. This piece from <em>The Diplomat</em> looks at what urban future lies ahead for Japan.

November 20 - The Diplomat

Beauty Queen Tries to Improve City's Image

A beauty pageant contestant from the crime-ridden Compton, California made famous by 1990s gangster rap is hoping to improve her city's reputation.

November 20 - Los Angeles Times


Bringing a Favela to Life With Vibrant Colors

Two artists have teamed with a favela in Rio de Janeiro to use bright colors to re-frame the slum as a more vibrant area.

November 20 - CNN

Friday Funny: Obama's High-Speed Bus Plan

The Onion reports on how President Obama's ambitious high-speed rail agenda is being replaced with a plan for high-speed buses that will use existing roads and be outfitted for a fraction of the cost of trains [Video].

November 19 - The Onion

World Heritage Status for Canadian "Utopia"?

A master-planned town in Quebec built by an American industrialist as a "workingman's utopia" is being touted as a potential UNESCO World Heritage Site.

November 19 - The Globe and Mail

It Was the Best of TIFs, It Was the Worst of TIFs

Five years ago, two developers got approval for tax-increment financing (TIF) projects in St. Joseph, Missouri. One was a success, the other a failure. What happened?

November 19 - St. Josephs News-Press

Space: 2069

The nonprofit urban planning group SHIFTboston has unveiled the results of their competition to imagine a lunar city that might be feasible by 2069 [slideshow].

November 19 - CNN

Buses of Tomorrow

The largest bus and transit expo in North America happened this week in Vancouver, and manufacturers showed off the latest in transit technology.

November 19 - The Vancouver Sun

Updating Mecca to Handle the Hajj

Millions of religious pilgrims travel to Mecca in Saudi Arabia every year for the Hajj. Officials there have been updating the city to better handle the crowds.

November 19 - NPR

A Symbol of Revitalization For a Post-Industrial City

A new center on the campus of Syracuse University is meant to highlight the Rust Belt city's potential -- and to inspire its revitalization.

November 19 - Metropolis

The Most Tech-Savvy Cities

Government Technology and the Center for Digital Government announced the top-ranked municipalities from their 2010 Digital Cities Survey, which quantifies the impacts of cities' IT efforts.

November 18 - Government Technology

Atlanta Daily Moves to Suburbs

Metropolitan Atlanta's main daily newspaper has pinned its hopes for survival on suburbia, decamping from downtown to the city's northern suburbs and in the process shedding its urban identity.

November 18 - Creative Loafing

Making Space for Solar Power in Davis

The California city spent years cultivating an urban forest for shade and cooling benefits, which now presents a unique challenge to tapping the area's solar potential. A new company has a solution.

November 18 - The New York Times

'Horrific' New Plans for Moscow's Traffic

Stephen Smith critiques the new mayor's strategies for fighting congestion in the Russian city.

November 18 - Market Urbanism

When in Doubt, Adapt

Bjorn Lomburg argues that cities should not despair over rising sea levels climate change. Instead, they should adapt.

November 18 - The Washington Post

Post News

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.

FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.

Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold

The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.