Some estimate that almost 50% of current projects in Dubai are on hold or canceled. Can Dubai recover from the financial crisis?
"Dubai's expansion was as ambitious as it was improbable. Dubailand, a $64 billion mixed-use development initially planned at 107 square miles, was to be the world's largest collection of theme parks, shops, residences, and hotels. For now, though, its roller coasters, life-size dinosaurs, snowy mountainscape, and polar bears will remain a fantasy, one of the gaudier casualties of the economic downturn."
An interesting debate is also being waged in the comments to the Fast Company article over the fairness of their assessment.
Read the full story: Bye-Bye, Dubai
Dubai Launches Free Smart Umbrella Rental to Improve Walkability
By helping residents walk comfortably in the rain or blazing sun, Dubai hopes to advance its 2040 master plan goals of sustainability and becoming a “20-minute city.”
COP28: Beginning of the End for Fossil Fuels?
A deal came together “quickly and unexpectedly" on the final night of the nearly 2-week United Nations climate talks in Dubai, UAE, according to a series of articles by Washington Post climate reporters.
COP28: Will Developed Nations Reduce Emissions?
Tensions between developed and developing nations surfaced over emissions and energy, with the former focused on reducing fossil fuels and the latter pointing to unrealized emissions reductions from the nations most responsible for global warming.
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