Architects are not just architects anymore. Now they are planners, too, and some high profile projects all over the world show that this trend is likely to continue.
"Famous architects are no longer just in the business of designing signature buildings. They are also increasingly functioning as megascale planners, hand in glove with the biggest developers in the world and with local municipalities, usually with both."
"Daniel Libeskind is at work on a 4.5-million-square-foot, "skyline-creating" waterfront development in Busan, South Korea; a master plan with office towers, condominiums, a hotel, and a cultural institute for a three-mile development corridor south of the historic center of Copenhagen, Denmark; and a huge shopping and entertainment center on the west side of Bern, Switzerland, scheduled for completion this year and boasting a hyperactive menu of amenities such as a theme-park swimming pool, a movieplex, and a senior citizens' residence. In Morocco, Jean Nouvel is projecting a 345-acre low-rise, high-density suburb of Rabat, as well as a new port complex in Tangier."
"Norman Foster has been retained as master planner for the historic center of Duisburg, a deindustrialized city in Germany's Ruhr Valley where he previously completed a renewal project for the inner harbor. He is also working on the first of a series of five hill towns for 15,000 residents on the Black Sea in Bulgaria and a car-free, waste-free, carbon-neutral "green utopia" for 50,000 in Abu Dhabi."
FULL STORY: Star Cities
Draft Los Angeles River Master Plan Revealed
A new draft Los Angeles Master Plan, created by Frank Gehry's firm, lays out a more active, natural vision for the river, in addition to addressing concerns about displacement in communities along the river corridor.
Op-Ed: Starchitecture Fails the Future
An addiction to spectacle and fad, says Peter Buchanan, has set architecture adrift in a sea of meaningless forms. And real design problems go ignored.
In SF, Does Lack of Big Names Mean Lack of Good Design?
Alexei Barrionuevo explores San Francisco's starchitect deficit, finding a city "more interested in conserving its [history] than in making a statement." This approach comes in for criticism from the dean of starchitects himself - Frank Gehry.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
San Francisco's School District Spent $105M To Build Affordable Housing for Teachers — And That's Just the Beginning
SFUSD joins a growing list of school districts using their land holdings to address housing affordability challenges faced by their own employees.
The Tiny, Adorable $7,000 Car Turning Japan Onto EVs
The single seat Mibot charges from a regular plug as quickly as an iPad, and is about half the price of an average EV.
Trump Approves Futuristic Automated Texas-Mexico Cargo Corridor
The project could remove tens of thousands of commercial trucks from roadways.
Austin's First Single Stair Apartment Building is Officially Underway
Eliminating the requirement for two staircases in multi-story residential buildings lets developers use smaller lots and more flexible designs to create denser housing.
Atlanta Bus System Redesign Will Nearly Triple Access
MARTA's Next Gen Bus Network will retool over 100 bus routes, expand frequent service.
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.
Smith Gee Studio
City of Charlotte
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)