A new book by Robert Gatje gives public squares and piazzas the coffee-table treatment, meticulously detailing what makes these historic spaces work.
Jane Merkel reviews Great Public Squares by Robert Gatje. She is impressed by the attention to detail:
"Wonderful colored maps, inspired by the Nolli Map of Rome, help you understand solid and void, distinguish parterres from pavement, grasp street patterns, and, in some cases, identify significant works of architecture."
"This is a book only an architect could have written-with careful observations, measurements, materials, orientation, and alterations emphasized."
Pictures with the full article.
Read the full story: Review> Map Quest
Revitalizing an Historic Plaza in El Paso
San Jacinto Plaza is the historic heart of El Paso, Texas. City officials are planning a major redevelopment of the plaza, perhaps even expanding its traditional borders and using New York's Bryant Park rebirth as a model.
Taking Another Look At A Public Square
A group of planners and designers recently headed out to audit Petrossian Square in Manhattan, carefully observing how people use the space.
Planning for Love, Part 1: The link between urban form and dating
A brief exploration of dating through history highlights how the spaces in which we live and move shape our social lives and relationships.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Amtrak, CN end decades-long dispute with eight-year agreement
The new operating agreement establishes an updated framework for the companies to work together, including processes to resolve disputes.
Judges permit Denver to divert 77,000 acre feet from the Colorado River for reservoir expansion
Overuse and climate change have caused the Colorado River’s water levels to plummet.
NYC DOT wants faster, more permanent street upgrades
The city is examining ways to build more concrete infrastructure without getting entangled in 'decades-long' projects.
'Something we’ve never seen before:' rising utility rates could strain city finances nationwide
Data centers, climate change and other factors have caused utility rates in the United States to increase by 38% since 2020.
Trump to overrule local leaders, lease millions of acres of America’s Pacific Island territories’ seafloors to mining companies
International law says that the Indigenous people of America’s territories have a right to prior and informed consent regarding projects that impact their countries.
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.
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
KFH Group Inc.
Greater Baltimore Committee
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello