Lonely Planet has just released a book highlighting the "1,000 Ultimate Sites." ASLA looks inside, and marvels at the natural scenery and the ways humans have chosen to frame them.
Alongside lists of the "most impressive waterfalls" and "most fairytale-like European castles", ASLA gravitated towards the list of viewing platforms, which "often created by landscape architects and architects to create closer connections with nature," like Aukland's Sky Tower:
"Auckland's 328-meter-tall Sky Tower enables visitors to interact with the views and heights in different ways: 'A handful of high adrenalin options are available, 192m up: gaze out from the enclosed glass rotunda; don a harness to walk a dizzying lap outside; or plunge (with safety wire) at 85km/h to the plaza below – less lookout than leap-off.'"
FULL STORY: Designing Views of Nature
Mapping (and Ranking) the Natural Amenities of U.S. Counties
Wonkblog illustrates the results of a "Natural Amenities Index" created by the federal government.
San Francisco's Presidio Celebrated for Bridging Nature and Culture
The Presidio is, and will remain, a source of San Francisco's most contentious planning and design proposals. But the reason for the controversy isn't all bad, according to John King: "everyone sees their own potential paradise."
D.C. Juggles Overhead Wires and Historic Views
Washington D.C. is planning to build a citywide streetcar network, but the overhead wires required for those plans would affect the city's historic views.
Trump Administration Could Effectively End Housing Voucher Program
Federal officials are eyeing major cuts to the Section 8 program that helps millions of low-income households pay rent.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees
More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?
HSR Reaches Key Settlement in Northern California City
The state’s high-speed rail authority reached an agreement with Millbrae, a key city on the train’s proposed route to San Francisco.
Washington State Legislature Passes Parking Reform Bill
A bill that would limit parking requirements for new developments is headed to the governor’s desk.
Missouri Law Would Ban Protections for Housing Voucher Users
A state law seeks to overturn source-of-income discrimination bans passed by several Missouri cities.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Ada County Highway District
Clanton & Associates, Inc.
Jessamine County Fiscal Court
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service