This week, eSolar debuted the first solar thermal power tower in the U.S., which they say is a step forward in technology and affordability.
Dan Reicher, Director of Climate Change & Energy Initiatives for Google, spoke at the opening:
"Please understand the innovation of what you see before you today. eSolar has turned solar on its head: instead of deploying large and expensive mirrors, it uses small, cheap mirrors in mass quantities. Lots of mirrors need good software to track the sun, and we're intrigued about how ET meets IT (energy tech meets information tech). With this software now written it can take advantage of economies of scale of millions of mirrors and the motors that move them."
Read the full story: eSolar Flips the Switch on First Solar Power Tower in U.S.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Northwest rail fans eager for Sept. 30 debut of Amtrak’s Airo fleet
Get ready for that new train smell and more seats. But they won’t go faster or run more frequently on the Cascades route in Washington and Oregon.
Record-breaking wildlife overpass in Colorado brings 91% reduction in animal collisions
Prior to the overpass, vehicles were hitting one deer per day on Colorado’s Interstate 25.
Detroit to transform waterfront with $2.2 billion investment
Developers will convert about 18 acres of unused parking lot space into civic spaces.
‘Going backwards:’ Baltimore mayor, students rally against state's transit funding plan
Maryland's proposed six-year plan provides no funding for Baltimore’s BMORE bus program and reduces its road maintenance funding.
Trump wants to cancel nearly 98% of funding for HUD housing support program
Multiple housing groups are suing the administration in an effort to preserve the funding.
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 Thousand Oaks
City of Wisconsin Rapids
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA)
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello