New Delhi is cracking down on businesses that operate in areas not zoned for commercial use. But businesses have nowhere to go in a booming city that suffers from a severe shortage of commercial real estate.
"Even as government inspectors scuttle around New Delhi handing eviction orders to shopkeepers and other business owners [that violate zoning ordinances], the city is suffering from a dire lack of commercial space that leaves those affected with nowhere to go.
The shortage has become all the more glaring in light of India's booming economy, which grew 9.2% last quarter compared with a year earlier. Multinational companies are flocking to India for a piece of the action. But many arrive to find harsh realities masked by the dazzling statistics, such as crumbling infrastructure and a bureaucracy that has failed to address such problems.
The dearth of legal commercial space in Delhi - for offices, retail outlets, banks and restaurants - is a prime example of the impediments to efficient economic activity and growth in India."
Read the full story: In India, a boom that's bursting at the seams
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.
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
Chicago voters approve permanent festival grounds, penalty for vacant property owners
Currently, major summer and fall festivals take over public parks for weeks at a time, drawing criticism from nearby residents
NYC votes to cut outdoor dining red tape, speed up permitting
New York City also voted to allow the Department of Transportation to begin work on urgent projects before notifying elected officials.
California appears to reject Prop. 45
The proposition would have expanded the projects that qualify for a streamlined environmental review, effectively paring down the California Environmental Quality Act.
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