A new San Francisco plan seeks to follow in the footsteps of cities like Copenhagen and Portland in revitalizing streets, alleys, medians, and crosswalks. The goal is to bring the city's outdoors to its 'rightful place as the center of civic life.'
The San Francisco Better Streets Plan, a 250-page plan a year in the making, will one day be used as a design and development guideline for projects that touch city streets.
Planted medians would run down the middle of major thoroughfares, flower beds and vegetable gardens would separate traffic lanes from sidewalks, miniparks would take root in once-neglected alleyways, and pedestrians would find convenient and comfortable public benches to rest.
"The idea, the plan states, is to rethink the concept of streets as simply corridors for cars and trucks.
'We now recognize the numerous other roles that streets can play - from centers of community life, to supporters of our local shopping environment, to important open spaces and recreational opportunities, to key pieces of the city's ecological infrastructure,' according to the proposal.
'This plan is really about looking at 25 percent of the land area in the city,' said John Rahaim, San Francisco's planning director, noting that streets, sidewalks and other public spaces take up a quarter of the city's land."
Read the full story: Landscaping S.F. walkways and byways
Are TODs Really PODs?
For a while now, I've wondered if we have been mislabeling the development around well functioning transit stops as transit-oriented developments (TODs). This may seem odd, because numerous studies have shown that property values can increase by 20% to 40% percent around transit stops, particularly rail stations (although the increases are uneven).
See Downtown Brooklyn’s Dramatic Complete Streets Transformation
A streetscape redesign spearheaded by the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership has quickly made many of Brooklyn’s streets unrecognizable.
A Fair Share for Walking
Most people value walkability, yet most communities underinvest in pedestrian facilities. Some jurisdictions are investing more in sidewalks and crosswalks in order to better serve community values.
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.
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.
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.
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