Mayor Bloomberg has joined an elite group of NYC members serving three terms. In this editorial, the Times suggests key planning and environmental issues that he should address if he is to make that term successful.
Despite spending a record amount of his own funds to win reelection to a third term, he only squeaked to a victory. While his first task will be to resolve a $4 billion budget deficit, the Times urges him to pursue the congestion pricing plan that the Assembly rebuffed two years ago.
"The environment is a tougher climb. The latest report on air quality from the city's health department is especially alarming: it showed unhealthy levels of pollution in high-population areas throughout the city. Mr. Bloomberg should revive his fight in Albany for some form of congestion pricing.
Cars are a big problem, but so are all of those buildings spewing black smoke. The Council approved an initiative that helps move toward Mr. Bloomberg's goal of cutting 30 percent of the city's carbon output by 2030."
"The next four years will test his political skills..." with Washington, Albany, and most of all, his own constituents.
Read the full story: Editorial: Mr. Bloomberg’s Third Term
Boston to study congestion pricing in NYC
Mayor Michelle Wu said she was sending a delegation to NYC to understand congestion pricing's impact on the city.
Data reveals that NYC’s bet on congestion pricing has paid off
After almost two years of the program, reports show positive impacts on traffic and air quality and no disruptions to parking.
Study: NYC congestion pricing didn't impact parking demand
A city report shows that free parking, not congestion pricing, is the main driver of limited parking demand in the city.
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.
In Texas, data centers are swallowing promised parkland
Residents who moved to Taylor, Texas for a rural community now have to contend with three data centers in their backyard.
How a Chicago-sized wind farm beat the odds and powered on
The project spanned five presidential administrations and a standoff with a U.S. military base.
MTA gives itself 30 days to transform pit into basketball court
The site has been under construction since 2022; the city originally estimated it would finish the court in 2024.
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