When the next iteration of the oldest military parade in the world celebrates the French Republic by marching down the Champs-Elysees, as it invariably does every Bastille Day, it will pass through what is increasingly becoming an American mall.
Steven Erlanger reports on America's mass market invasion of the Champs-Élysées, as Banana Republic, Levi's, the Gap, Nike and a host of other pedestrian brands help to transform what was once considered "the most beautiful avenue in the world." For a street that "has long played a central role in France," the fact that "[f]ew Parisians who do not work in the neighborhood go to the
Champs-Élysées anymore, regarding it as a place for suburbanites and
tourists," represents the culmination of a "long erosion," says Erlanger.
"It's an avenue that doesn't exist in the minds of Parisians, in any
case in their everyday lives," said Céline Orjubin, 31, a writer who
came to Paris from Brittany. "I don't get an exotic feel out of the
Champs-Élysées. It feels more like nowhere, because we find the same
things as everywhere."
Read the full story: The Champs-Élysées, a Mall of America
The Car-Free Revolution Continues in Paris
The city continues to reclaim space for pedestrians and cyclists.
'The World's Most Beautiful Avenue' Getting A Green Makeover
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo approved a new plan to revitalize the Champs Élysées ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics.
Biking in Paris grew by 240% in 5 years
The city saw a significant rise in bike use thanks to data-driven policy changes.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Chicago breaks ground on $3 billion megadevelopment
The new neighborhood, titled Foundry Park, will one day host 3,700 residences.
California High-Speed Rail Authority CEO resigns after $600,000 scandal
Under Ian Choudri, the authority used taxpayer dollars to fund first class flights and trips to nightclubs.
Want to study the Missouri River? Soon, you may need unanimous approval from 10 states
Legislation would require 10 governors’ permission to study or build projects moving water outside the basin.
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority