A new exhibit that opened this week at the San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association's gallery explores the 10 diagrams that have had a monumental influence on urban planning, and the possibilities inherent in the medium.
Emily Badger surveys the 10 highly influential diagrams - from Ebenezer Howard's Garden City to Le Corbusier's Radiant City to the Transect - that comprise SPUR's new exhibition, "Grand Reductions: Ten diagrams that changed urban planning." She also examines the possibilities, both positive and negative, inherent in a "simple illustration's power to encapsulate complex ideas."
"In the urban context, diagrams can be powerful precisely because they
make weighty questions of land use and design digestible in a single
sweep of the eye," notes Badger. "But as Le Corbusier's plan illustrates, they can also
seductively oversimplify the problems of cities."
"The diagram can cut both ways: It can either be a distillation in the
best sense of really taking a very complex set of issues and providing
us with a very elegant communication of the solution," says Benjamin Grant, the public realm and urban design program manager for SPUR. "Or
it can artificially simplify something that actually needs to be
complex."
The exhibit is on show until February 15, 2013 at the SPUR Urban Center Gallery, 654 Mission Street, San Francisco.
FULL STORY: The Evolution of Urban Planning in 10 Diagrams

Eugene Ends Parking Minimums
In a move that complies with a state law aimed at reducing transportation emissions, Eugene amended its parking rules to eliminate minimum requirements and set maximum parking lot sizes.

How Paris, Texas Became a ‘Unicorn’ for Rural Transit
A robust coalition of advocates in the town of 25,000 brought together the funding and resources to launch a popular bus service that some residents see as a mobility lifeline—and a social club.

San Diegans at Odds Over ‘Granny Towers’
A provision in the city’s ADU ordinance allows developers to build an essentially unlimited number of units on single-family lots.

San Francisco Approves Zoning Reforms to Avoid ‘Builder’s Remedy’
The county board of supervisors voted to approve zoning changes that bring it closer to compliance with state housing mandates.

Where Are Millennials Moving to?
As the housing crisis rages on, four U.S. states are seeing high levels of new migration from young and middle-aged workers.

California Cities Cite Historic Preservation to Block Development
Are some cities using historic designations disingenuously?
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
Park City Municipal Corporation
National Capital Planning Commission
City of Santa Fe, New Mexico
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.