The city hoped a stadium for DC-area teams would anchor a new, high-density development in a vacant lot.
After two professional sports teams backed out of a deal to build a stadium in a vacant lot in Alexandria, Virginia, a rental car company wants to buy the property for car storage.
Local city council members expressed frustration, saying the city has invested in public infrastructure and public transit in the area anticipating more development. In an article for WTOP News, Scott Gelman notes that the city had been looking for ways to transform the Potomac Yard property into a “high-density, high-activity center” that would drive economic development.
According to Councilmember Canek Aguirre, “We need to diversify our tax base, especially on the commercial side. A huge burden falls on our residents in terms of the residential taxes that they have to pay.”
Read the full story: Potomac Yard was supposed to be a sports fan’s paradise. Now a rental car company wants to put up a parking lot
Alexandria Passes Zoning Reform
The city is one of a growing list to eliminate single-family zoning.
Chicago’s new transit authority has ‘unprecedented’ land development power
The Northern Illinois Transit Authority is allowed to buy and develop land for reasons unrelated to transit, a power that is fairly unique among transit authorities.
Op-ed: if transit agencies want sustainability, they should focus on their buildings
In the Washington region, buildings can account for nearly 70% of greenhouse gas emissions. If WMATA wants to be a sustainable agency, it must upgrade its developments as well as its transit.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Chicago breaks ground on $3 billion megadevelopment
The new neighborhood, titled Foundry Park, will one day host 3,700 residences.
Satanic Place Names
From streams and lakes to valleys and canyons, I mapped more than 1,000 places named after the Devil.
California High-Speed Rail Authority CEO resigns after $600,000 scandal
Under Ian Choudri, the authority used taxpayer dollars to fund first class flights and trips to nightclubs.
Want to study the Missouri River? Soon, you may need unanimous approval from 10 states
Legislation would require 10 governors’ permission to study or build projects moving water outside the basin.
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.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority