The City of Portland, Maine, continues to struggle with the decision of whether or not to renovate or rebuild the 28 year old Cumberland County Civic Center.
"For the first time ever, the trustees of the Cumberland County Civic Center, members of the Portland City Council and Cumberland County commissioners met on Monday evening to discuss the future of the 28-year-old arena."
"The outcome was less historic, as the parties basically agreed that they will need to reach a consensus before anything can be done about the 6,800-seat arena, which either needs minor repairs or replacement, depending on who's talking."
"The center's trustees are on record as favoring a new arena with more seating, better amenities, improved backstage spaces for artists and easier setup for equipment."
"City officials said a review of the center by the architect who designed changes for Fenway Park in Boston offers new hope for those who think that a less-costly renovation would solve the arena's problems. And some elected officials say that cutting property taxes needs to take priority over putting any more money into the civic center."
FULL STORY: Consensus still eluding parties on civic center
Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
In Urban Planning, AI Prompting Could be the New Design Thinking
Creativity has long been key to great urban design. What if we see AI as our new creative partner?
Making Shared Micromobility More Inclusive
Cities and shared mobility system operators can do more to include people with disabilities in planning and operations, per a new report.
Car Designs Make it Harder to See Pedestrians
Blind spots created by thicker pillars built to withstand rollover crashes are creating dangerous conditions for people outside vehicles.
Cal Fire Chatbot Fails to Answer Basic Questions
An AI chatbot designed to provide information about wildfires can’t answer questions about evacuation orders, among other problems.
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.
Appalachian Highlands Housing Partners
Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie