Amid the backdrop of Mahmoud Abbas' application for Palestinian statehood, Jesse Fox critiques the Israeli premier for his antiquated plan to fast track sprawling suburban developments into Israel's rapidly diminishing open spaces.
Sustainable Cities attacks Benjamin Netanyahu's persistence with free market economics, privatization of public land, and desire for affordable single use, suburban sprawl. Israeli students responded to Netanyahu's privatization based planning reforms in July with mass protests and the construction of a "tent city," in the center of Tel Aviv. There they called for "social justice," and "revolution to end privatization."
Jesse Fox claims that Netanyahu has presided over an increasingly "kleptocratic," government that has slowed social change by keeping the focus on external boogeymen, whose ranks have been reduced by the Arab Spring. He writes that "Bibi's grand vision will drag us backward, accelerating massive, uncontrolled (sub)urbanization while degrading the country's standard of living."
"As for the claim that flooding the market with tens of thousands of units will lower prices, most serious economists and planning experts are not buying it."
FULL STORY: Bibi, Urban Planner In Chief

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails
Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

San Antonio and Austin are Fusing Into one Massive Megaregion
The region spanning the two central Texas cities is growing fast, posing challenges for local infrastructure and water supplies.

Since Zion's Shuttles Went Electric “The Smog is Gone”
Visitors to Zion National Park can enjoy the canyon via the nation’s first fully electric park shuttle system.

Trump Distributing DOT Safety Funds at 1/10 Rate of Biden
Funds for Safe Streets and other transportation safety and equity programs are being held up by administrative reviews and conflicts with the Trump administration’s priorities.

German Cities Subsidize Taxis for Women Amid Wave of Violence
Free or low-cost taxi rides can help women navigate cities more safely, but critics say the programs don't address the root causes of violence against women.
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