With little taxpayer investment, a dynamic Moshe Safdie-designed Center for the Performing Arts has arisen in Kansas City. Hampton Stevens says that the companies are betting on the power of the arts to attract investment and attention.
Stevens writes that city leaders are actively seeking to attract "the 'creative class'-the well-educated workers with bourgeois-bohemian tastes whom urban scholars have identified as the engine of urban growth. Since 2000, The Kansas City Star estimates, the city has spent more than $1.5 billion on cultural facilities, including the Steven Holl–designed expansion of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, the new Power & Light entertainment district, and the Sprint Center arena."
FULL STORY: Kansas City Bets on Culture

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

Congressman Proposes Bill to Rename DC Metro “Trump Train”
The Make Autorail Great Again Act would withhold federal funding to the system until the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), rebrands as the Washington Metropolitan Authority for Greater Access (WMAGA).

The Simple Legislative Tool Transforming Vacant Downtowns
In California, Michigan and Georgia, an easy win is bringing dollars — and delight — back to city centers.

The States Losing Rural Delivery Rooms at an Alarming Pace
In some states, as few as 9% of rural hospitals still deliver babies. As a result, rising pre-term births, no adequate pre-term care and "harrowing" close calls are a growing reality.

The Small South Asian Republic Going all in on EVs
Thanks to one simple policy change less than five years ago, 65% of new cars in this Himalayan country are now electric.

DC Backpedals on Bike Lane Protection, Swaps Barriers for Paint
Citing aesthetic concerns, the city is removing the concrete barriers and flexposts that once separated Arizona Avenue cyclists from motor vehicles.
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Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
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