Landscape Architecture is a field in the ascendency, writes Alan G. Brake. Its rise can be traced to the inability of Architects and Planners to engage with some of the most important challenges of our time.
"In recent years, landscape architects have seen their profile rise," explains Brake. "The discipline has gained stature in the public’s imagination, as well as among the allied disciplines of architecture, planning, and even civil and transportation engineering," owing to changes in federal and city policy, and the ability of landscape architects to redefine, and expand, the role of their field.
As much as the field's rise can be traced to the efforts of its practitioners, it also owes its ascendence to "weaknesses in contemporary architecture and planning" including a focus on architecture-as-object and planning's fear of engaging with design, argues Brake.
"Landscape architects are offering redemptive visions for neglected, damaged, and underutilized places. Environmental problems may seem overwhelming and insurmountable. But landscape architects offer solutions to improve our roofs, our blocks, our neighborhoods, a nearby waterway, or the city at large."
FULL STORY: Landscape Architecture's Ascendance
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There is development life in San Francisco outside of SoMa (South of Market). Jim Chappell, former SPUR director, reviews some of the activity in this second installation of a series.
Support Builds For Highway Removal in Saint Louis
St. Louis Post-Dispatch editorial board formally endorses the removal of elevated and depressed lanes of current I-70 ROW to reconnect city and arch grounds.
Deconstructing Saint Jane
The iconic urban thinker has influenced generations of planners, but how do her ideas hold up in an age of massive upheaval and economic inequality?
Phase 1 Revealed for $20 Billion Chicago Megaproject
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Boston Introduces 'Maximum Parking Ratios' for Large Buildings
Large buildings with uses of all kinds will be subject to Boston's new "Maximum Parking Ratios."
5 Tips for Planning Safe Post-Pandemic Events
As community events start move off-screen and become available to the public again, here are five ways organizers can ensure public health and safety.
Getty Conservation Institute
University of Calgary
MetroBike LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Symbium
Rowan University's Department of Geography, Planning, & Sustainability
City Of Oakland
Hillsborough County Public Schools
City of Raleigh
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.
Hand Drawing Master Plans
This course aims to provide an introduction into Urban Design Sketching focused on how to hand draw master plans using a mix of colored markers.
