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.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Canada vs. Kamala: Whose Liberal Housing Platform Comes Out on Top?
As Canada votes for a new Prime Minister, what can America learn from the leading liberal candidate of its neighbor to the north?
The Five Most-Changed American Cities
A ranking of population change, home values, and jobs highlights the nation’s most dynamic and most stagnant regions.
San Diego Adopts First Mobility Master Plan
The plan provides a comprehensive framework for making San Diego’s transportation network more multimodal, accessible, and sustainable.
Housing, Supportive Service Providers Brace for Federal Cuts
Organizations that provide housing assistance are tightening their purse strings and making plans for maintaining operations if federal funding dries up.
Op-Ed: Why an Effective Passenger Rail Network Needs Government Involvement
An outdated rail network that privileges freight won’t be fixed by privatizing Amtrak.
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.
New York City School Construction Authority
Village of Glen Ellyn
Central Transportation Planning Staff/Boston Region MPO
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions