Activists have turned the site of a former inner-city freeway in San Francisco into a community garden.
One former stretch of freeway is now teeming with life, with more than 150 fruit trees and plans to build a greenhouse and vegetable garden.
"San Francisco plans to develop this lot eventually, probably with mixed housing and greenspace. But a clever new project has been conceived for the interim years: an urban agriculture cooperative called the Hayes Valley Farm. 'The Hayes Valley Neighborhood association contacted the Mayor's Office of Economic and Workforce Development to 'activate' the lots,' says Chris Burley, now the project's director. Agriculture was the idea that moved everyone. 'We've all seen the power of gardens to transform a space,' he says."
Read the full story: Hayes Valley: A Former Freeway Turns into a Farm
Office conversion is picking up steam in San Francisco
The city spent five years streamlining approval processes and reducing fees to encourage more adaptive reuse of vacant office buildings.
With Zero Office Conversions in Four Years, San Francisco Pins Hopes on New Special Financing District
City leaders hope the new incentive will spur the redevelopment of some of the city’s 30,000 square feet of vacant office space into housing.
Top 5 US Cities for Office-to-Residential Conversions
As more and more cities look to adapt vacant office buildings into homes, a new analysis from Urban Institute says some cities will benefit more than others.
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.
Mamdani’s pied-à-terre tax survives legal challenge
A panel of judges found that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate injury as a result of New York City's implementation of the tax.
Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity
Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.
Seattle passes record-breaking transit services expansion
Proposition 1 will double the city’s transit tax to add 95,000 more bus trips and preserve 180,000 bus trips annually.
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
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority