Residents in Venice, Italy, are upset over a plan by the city to accept a $2.7 million subsidy from Coca Cola in exchange for placement of soda machines throughout the historic city.
"The Italian newspapers claim that Venice is not only being swamped with mass tourism and threatened by floods from the Adriatic Sea, but will soon also be awash with fizzy drinks."
"The city council has accepted a $2.7m subsidy from the drinks giant, Coca Cola."
"Sixty vending machines will sell the drink all over the city, including at the main waterbus stations and reportedly even St Mark's Square, where a city ordinance already forbids picnicking by tourists."
"The Mayor of Venice, Massimo Cacciari, has complained loudly about the lack of state funding to conserve the crumbling palaces and churches of city and has strongly defended his decision to accept money from the US company."
"Commercial sponsorship is the only financial strategy for safeguarding the monuments of Venice, he says."
"The cash-strapped Italian government led by Silvio Berlusconi has slashed its budget for culture and the arts by a half this year and is investing millions of dollars in an ambitious engineering scheme of flood barriers to prevent Venice being swamped by high tides in winter."
FULL STORY: Row over Venice Coke sponsorship
Green Hydrogen, Plus Storage, Key to Los Angeles' Plan for Carbon-Free Electricity
The Los Angeles municipal utility will convert a Utah coal power plant to run on natural gas in 2025. According to a proposal unveiled Dec. 10, the plant will incrementally be converted to run entirely on hydrogen, a zero-emission fuel, by 2045.
Tourism's Negative Effects in Italian Art Cities
With about 353 tourists per resident in the historic city center of Venice, many residents are fleeing the crowds and moving onto the mainland, making the city a "monument-attraction," rather than a viable living space.
Record Floods Submerge Venice
New York isn't the only famous city suffering from the effects of record high water levels. Seventy percent of Venice is submerged. The Daily Mail has stunning images of tourists swimming in St. Mark's Square and wading through waist-high water.
Trump Administration Could Effectively End Housing Voucher Program
Federal officials are eyeing major cuts to the Section 8 program that helps millions of low-income households pay rent.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees
More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?
HSR Reaches Key Settlement in Northern California City
The state’s high-speed rail authority reached an agreement with Millbrae, a key city on the train’s proposed route to San Francisco.
Washington State Legislature Passes Parking Reform Bill
A bill that would limit parking requirements for new developments is headed to the governor’s desk.
Missouri Law Would Ban Protections for Housing Voucher Users
A state law seeks to overturn source-of-income discrimination bans passed by several Missouri cities.
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.
Ada County Highway District
Clanton & Associates, Inc.
Jessamine County Fiscal Court
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service