The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

A new documentary tracks the meltdown of Wall Street and its impact on housing throughout the country. <em>The New York Times</em> offers this review.

September 3 - The New York Times

Alex Marshall points out the fallacy of creating transportation policy based solely on figures like miles traveled per hour, average commuting times, and cost per passenger. Quality of the time spent commuting is rarely taken into account.

September 3 - Governing Magazine

Director of the White House Office of Urban Affairs Adolfo Carrion, Jr. visited Kansas City on Tuesday to visit the site of the city's new "Green Impact Zone". The inner-city Zone will be a laboratory for energy-saving techniques.

September 3 - Kansas City Star

Water restrictions on farms in the state have atrophied jobs in the fertile Central Valley, giving communities some of the highest rates of unemployment in the state. As jobs dry up, the need for aid is surpassing what's there to give.

September 3 - The Wall Street Journal

Shanghai could be them model city of the future, according to a new exhibit.

September 3 - e-Oculus

A new report from the National Research Council seeks to establish the scientific basis for the relationships among development patterns, VMT, and energy consumption. So what did they find?

September 3 - Reconnecting America

A new report from the International Olympic Committee has evaluated the four host candidates for the 2016 Summer Olympics and found many places for improvement ahead of its October 2 decision.

September 3 - The Chicago Tribune

Rapid urbanization and dense cities with inadequate infrastructure are being cited as leading causes in the spread of dengue fever throughout Southeast Asia and the rest of the world.

September 3 - Reuters

FEATURE

Susanna Diaz reviews a new book covering the history and thought of urban planning in Brazil, edited by Profs. Vicente del Rio and William Siembieda of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

September 3 - Vicente del Rio

BLOG POST

<span style="font-size: small; font-family: Times New Roman"><span style="font-size: small; font-family: Calibri"> <p style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt" class="MsoNormal"> <span style="font-size: small; font-family: Calibri">Location, location, location. Choosing a smart home location can help households become healthy, wealthy and wise, since it affects residents’ physical activity levels, long-term financial burdens and opportunities for education and social interaction. </span> </p>

September 2 - Todd Litman

A controversial proposal in the London borough of Barnet would create a fast track for developers who pay more for faster service. Critics say this would create an unfair, two-tiered system, where richer developers get more access to government.

September 2 - The Architect's Journal

The new facade of the Atheneum Hotel in London sports 12,000 hanging plants, creating a lush curtain of greenery. Wired Magazine has pictures of the facade and other similar sites.

September 2 - Wired

The failing world economy put many large eco-developments on hold, but many projects like the Amsterdam's 'smart city' and Germany's Eco City Hamburg-Harburg are on track and forging new ground in sustainability practices.

September 2 - Business Week

A historic airfield in Berlin will be transformed over the next year into the city's largest park.

September 2 - The Local

A new study from the Asian Development Bank predicts that 20 years from now, Asian cities will be responsible for more than half of the world's greenhouse gases.

September 2 - Common Current

BLOG POST

<div class="content"> <p> Forbes just came up with another of its “Most X City” surveys. This week, it listed the most stressful cities (<a href="http://www.forbes.com/2009/08/20/stress-unemployment-homes-lifestyle-real-estate-home-values-stressful-cities_slide.html?partner=msnhealth" title="http://www.forbes.com/2009/08/20/stress-unemployment-homes-lifestyle-real-estate-home-values-stressful-cities_slide.html?partner=msnhealth">http://www.forbes.com/2009/08/20/stress-unemployment-homes-lifestyle-rea...</a> ). Nearly all of Forbes’ criteria, however, are silly in one respect or another. </p>

September 2 - Michael Lewyn

After a 7-2 approval by the City Council, Berkeley's new zoning plan may face a public vote. A signature drive by the two dissenting council members has gathered enough signatures to force the vote and is in the validation process.

September 2 - The Architect's Newspaper

A new study from the UK Royal Society has determined that geo-engineering techniques are technically feasible approaches to address high levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and the resulting global warming.

September 2 - BBC

Pop-up stores -- stores that fill retail space for a couple of quick months, than vanish -- were once scoffed at by retail landlords. Today, they're plugging holes in the retail economy.

September 2 - Retail Traffic Magazine

Once a booming mideast Las Vegas, Dubai is struggling amid the economic downturn. As a result, bills are going unpaid. By some estimates, UK engineers and architects are owed more than $652 million. One architect breaks his silence on the issue.

September 2 - Building