The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

G is for Grocery

<p>The City of Palo Alto, CA concludes that grocery stores are a lynchpin of walkable neighborhoods, and votes to establish new "grocery" zoning districts.</p>

June 15 - Palo Alto Online News

Bicycling in U.S. is Risky Business

<p>The US has never encouraged cycling as a practical mode of travel, and as a result, biking to work is a rare and hazardous activity, with four times the fatality rate of some European countries. A Rutgers University study shows how that can change.</p>

June 15 - New Urban News

Mega-Mansions Sprouting In L.A.

<p>Despite the housing downturn, houses in excess of 20,000 square feet are still being built by the very wealthy — with no sign of a slowdown.</p>

June 15 - The Los Angeles Times

The Legacy of Brasilia

<p>The Atlantic Monthly reviews a new book on architect Oscar Niemeyer and his work that- like the infamous city of Brasilia- "continues to enchant and appall students of architecture and urban planning."</p>

June 15 - The Atlantic Monthly

Study Calls for Better Cooperation Between Feds and Metropolises

<p>The federal government needs to recognize the economic power of the country's metropolises and work with them to create successful regions, according to a recent study from the Brookings Institution.</p>

June 15 - The Christian Science Monitor


Goats, Sheep Get City Jobs as Landscapers

<p>Cities like San José, CA are moving away from modern methods to keep grass down and going back to traditional methods like grazing sheep and goats.</p>

June 14 - San Jose Mercury News

Solar Home Overshadowed by New Construction: Is There a 'Right to Light'?

<p>Planners in Saskatchewan, Canada encouraged the Schewes to build solar panels on their roof and go off the grid. Then they okayed a home next door that overshadowed the Schewes. Do homeowners have a 'right to light'?</p>

June 14 - Canwest News Service


Oklahoma's Car Culture Forced to Adapt

<p>Oklahoma City residents used to 70-mile commutes are turning to carpooling as gas hovers at $4 a gallon. But with the largest land area of any U.S. city, providing public transit remains a major challenge.</p>

June 14 - CNNMoney.com

Infrastructure Deficit Called a 'Quiet Collapse of Prosperity'

<p>Big city mayors testifying before a Senate committee are asking for more federal infrastructure investments, but admitted that even the $1.6 trillion estimated by the American Society of Engineers wouldn't be enough.</p>

June 14 - CNN

Brits Say US Cities Should Look To UK's Successes

<p>Dermot Finch of the Centre for Cities, an independent research group, says that the U.S. could learn a lot from the U.K.'s urban renaissance.</p>

June 14 - BBC News

Friday Funny: Creepy Mansions Not Exempt From Housing Market Slump

<p>The recent housing slump is now showing its face in the "creepy mansion" market, where sales have plummeted, according to this article from <em>The Onion</em>.</p>

June 13 - The Onion

Zurich, Geneva and Vienna: Best Quality of Life?

<p>Central European cities lead the world in this assessment of 'quality of living.' The survey is oriented towards companies who could locate workers in those countries and need to calculate 'hardship allowances.'</p>

June 13 - Citymayors.com

Ambitious City Center Plan Moves Forward

<p>Despite the economic downturn, city officials in Spokane Valley, WA move forward with a plan to build something the city has always lacked: a true city center.</p>

June 13 - Spokane Journal of Business

A Billion Dollars in Injuries Makes Transit Pricey

<p>Riders of the New York MTA hit the transit agency with $1.2 billion in injury and damaged property claims, seriously impacting the affordability of transit.</p>

June 13 - Reuters

Tornado Clears Way for LEED Platinum Building

<p>The 5-4-7 Arts Center in Greensburg, Kansas gets a LEED platinum designation- evidence that the town, which was 95% destroyed by a tornado in May, 2006, is making good on its sustainable rebuilding plan.</p>

June 13 - Kiowa County Singnal

Church Vs. Casino

<p>It's ethics vs. economics in a debate over a proposed casino in Stranraer, Scotland.</p>

June 13 - BBC News

Golf Carts on Main Street

<p>Soaring fuel costs are seeing more people turning to non-conforming vehicles, such as golf carts. But studies show that they are a risky mode of transportation.</p>

June 13 - The Globe & Mail

'EcoDensity' Comes Through in Vancouver

<p>A major rezoning plan has been approved in Vancouver, including the toughest environmental standards in North America.</p>

June 13 - The Vancouver Sun

British Intelligence Tells Planners to Keep Plans Secret

<p>MI5 has requested that planners and architects keep some details of building designs top secret as part of the fight against terrorism.</p>

June 13 - The Architect's Journal

Controversial Public Art Piece Given the Boot

<p>Vancouverites send a sculpture packing, stirring up a debate over the role of public art.</p>

June 13 - The Canadian Press

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