The Wall Street Journal profiles the astonishing $45 million renovation of Queens Plaza, where "a wasteland of potholed roads, a parking lot and elevated subway tracks" has been transformed into an urban oasis.
Led by landscape architect Margie Ruddick, with a team of collaborators including Marpillero Pollak Architects, Judith Heintz of the landscape
architecture firm WRT, artist Michael Singer and lighting artist Leni
Schwendinger, the linear park is "shining proof of the power of enlightened urban planning, talent,
taste, trees and other plants and, perhaps most of all, positive
thinking to minimize, if not wholly eradicate, the effects of an
otherwise hostile environment," observes Ralph Gardner Jr.
Located amid a 16-lane roadway where pedestrians were commonly hit by cars, Gardner believes, "the most challenging aspect of the project was redirecting the
flow of traffic, the work of the Department of City Planning and the
traffic engineering firm Eng-Wong, Taub-timing lights and situating
medians to increase safety in tandem with improving the plaza's
aesthetics."
"One way this was achieved was by using medians decorated
with jagged chunks of demolished concrete from the construction. That
may not sound particularly attractive, but it somehow works. It's
visually arresting, and at the same time sends motorists a message not
to mess with pedestrians waiting to cross at the light."
FULL STORY: In Queens, An Artistic Alteration
Hidden in Plain Sight: Re-Appropriated Spaces
The projects depicted here re-use and re-appropriate public space, filling gaps in the built environment with parks, open areas, and pedestrian walkways.
Bethlehem Reclaims its Industrial Heritage
Rather than turn its back of the remnants of the industry that made and unmade this quintessential steel town, Bethlehem is rethinking its identity with the abandoned steel plant turned cultural magnet as its centerpiece, writes Tom Stoelker.
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.
Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail
The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.
Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power
Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.
MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns
MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.
Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant
A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.
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.
Caltrans
City of Fort Worth
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie