The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

4th of July Parade

NAACP Lawsuit Targets the Trump Administration Over 2020 Census Preparation

The NAACP does not believe the Trump Administration intends to make an honest count of the country's minority populations when it comes time to perform the 2020 Census.

October 7 - The Washington Post

Downtown Denver

Denver Commits to Vision Zero

There have been 100 traffic-related deaths on Denver’s streets since 2016, according to the Denver Post, but the city has decided that there will be no more traffic-related deaths by the year 2030.

October 7 - The Denver Post

Milwaukee Streetcar Gets Corporate Sponsorship—Riders Get Free Rides for a Year

Milwaukee's new streetcar line is expected to open in 2018, and riders won't have to pay for a ride for another year, thanks to a lucrative sponsorship deal.

October 7 - Urban Milwaukee

Cancun gas station

California Gas Tax Repeal Wins Significant Judicial Victory

The effort to repeal tax and fee increases resulting from the state's first successful gas tax legislation in 28* years received great news from a Sacramento superior court judge who tossed the attorney general's misleading title for their measure.

October 7 - Los Angeles Times

Parking Strategies for Comprehensive Plans

Parking needs to be balanced with new development that supports active modes of transportation, integrates a complete streets approach, and values a high-quality public realm. Comprehensive plans can help achieve this balance.

October 7 - PlanIt - Metropolitan Council


Two More Road Diets Erased in Los Angeles

Traffic safety projects, and with it the city of Los Angeles' Vision Zero and Great Streets initiatives, have been dealt disappointing setbacks in recent months.

October 6 - Los Angeles Times

Houston Texas

Up and Running: The Speedy Recovery of Houston's City Hall

Following Hurricane Harvey, Houston's City Hall became flooded with four feet of water, rendering the building's electrical and mechanical equipment useless. Restoring power back to City Hall quickly was crucial in aiding the recovery efforts.

October 6 - Doggerel


Washington D.C.

In D.C.: Rent Control Law 1, Short-Term Rentals 0

It's still illegal to convert rental units into short-term rentals that act as a hotel business in Washington, D.C. A high-profile legal settlement will thus send a bumper crop of rental units back to the market.

October 6 - Greater Greater Washington

Utah Policy Makers Want to Push a Toll Hike Higher

Utah's I-15 express lanes are suffering PM peak-hour congestion. The maximum charge is $1 per zone. The Transportation Commission will vote to double it, but the chair of a key legislative committee suggests charging "what the market will bear."

October 6 - The Salt Lake Tribune

450,000 People Live in Food Deserts in the Cleveland Area

A new map reveals the scale of the food desert challenge in Cleveland and environs.

October 6 - The Plain Dealer

What Will It Take to Green Puerto Rico Again?

Not only did Hurricane Maria destroy most of Puerto Rico's man-made infrastructure, it also defoliated the island's vast tropical forests, upsetting the forest ecology—in the short term.

October 6 - NPR

Pedestrians

Unwalkable U.S.A.

The National Physical Activity Plan Alliance gave the United States an F for walkability because of its lack of pedestrian infrastructure.

October 6 - Fast Company

Toronto

Sidewalk Labs to Test its Smart Cities Ideas in Toronto

Sidewalk Labs LLC, a unit of Google's parent company Alphabet Inc., has been awarded a high-profile opportunity to test ideas for "reimagining cities from the Internet up," as its company mantra says. The city of Toronto will be its testing ground.

October 6 - The Globe and Mail

London Crowded Street

Study Touts the Public Health Benefits of Dense, Urban Living

A study of British cities find people living in dense urban cores are less likely to struggle with obesity and more likely to exercise—signs of higher quality of life—than their counterparts in suburban environments.

October 6 - Reuters via The Guardian

Bjarke Ingels Group

Friday Eye Candy: Denmark's New LEGO House Has Starchitect Pedigree

LEGO fans rejoice! Bjarke Ingels Group has made the LEGO house of your dreams a full-sized reality, and it's stocked full of LEGOs.

October 6 - The Architect's Newspaper

D.C. Metro Bus

Four Ideas to Improve D.C. Buses

It isn't always easy, especially for politicians and engineers, but there are proven ways to save a floundering bus system.

October 5 - Greater Greater Washington

Minneapolis Buildings

The PlanIt Podcast Explains Historic Preservation

More and more communities are including historic preservation in plan efforts. But what is Historic Preservation and what does planning for it mean? In this episode, John Smoley explains.

October 5 - PlanIt - Metropolitan Council

New York Has its First Center-Running Bus

It's a small step forward on a portion of the Bx6 bus line in Bronx, but the center-running bus is coming to more corners of New York City soon.

October 5 - Spectrum News

I-94

Wisconsin's $1.1 Billion Highway Widening Project on the Ropes

The proposed widening of I-94 in Milwaukee is a $1.1 billion chunk of a $6.4 billion road widening program in the region. The NAACP sued the project as a matter of environmental justice.

October 5 - Wisconsin Gazette

Kansas City Streetcar

Report: Streetcars Were Always for Developers

Streetsblog digs into the literature on streetcars and finds evidence that the transit mode du jour was never intended to benefit transit users.

October 5 - Streetsblog USA

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.

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.