As the L.A. metro continues to expand, so do opportunities for artists to showcase their art. For transit riders, this adds an important element to their daily journey, making the commuting experience all the more memorable.

Liesl Bradner reports on how the Metro Art program chooses to allocate the .5% of construction costs that are dedicated to the installation of art along Los Angeles’ expanding transit network. Established in 1989, the program has now benefited over 300 artists and poets, and 80 stations, adding a cheerful dimension to the Los Angeles transit commute.
"The customers' experience is essential," said Maya Emsden, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's deputy executive officer for creative services. "Art is a wonderful, engaging way to transform their journeys into something pleasant." For example, as commuters arise from the depths of their subway journey at the Civic Center Red Line station, they are greeted by "Samm Kunce's 'Under the Living Rock,' a 160-foot curved wall depicting a classical hanging garden of Venetian glass and striated granite” and “an uplifting passage from Ovid's 'Metamorphoses'.” writes Bradner.
Many artworks reflect the history and heritage of their surrounding neighborhoods, which may help to make Angelenos feel more connected to the growing transit mode and introduce those using the system for the first time to neighborhoods they'd given scant attention to when cruising by at 60 miles an hour.
FULL STORY: Artists take Metro commuters on another kind of journey

Redesigning Streets for Livability: A Global View
An excerpt from the introduction of the recent book, “Streets For All: 50 Strategies for Shaping Resilient Cities,” edited by Vinayak Bharne and Shyam Khandekar.

Bend Eliminates Parking Minimums
The city is complying with an Oregon state mandate that some cities have challenged in court.

Scottsdale Cuts Water Supply to Nearby Suburb
The city claims it has no responsibility to provide water to the unincorporated Maricopa County community.

How To Prevent ‘Green Gentrification:’ Lessons from the BeltLine
For one author, the key is focusing on affordable housing from the start.

Push and Pull: The Link Between Walkability and Affordability
The increased demand for walkable urban spaces could make them more and more exclusionary if cities don’t pursue policies to limit displacement and boost affordability.

El Paso Freeway Cap Linked to Road Expansion
A deck reconnecting neighborhoods divided by the interstate is part of a controversial freeway expansion proposal.
Town of Reading
Meridian Consultants
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Harvard GSD Executive Education
City of Piedmont, CA
City of Morganton
St. Louis County, MO
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.