Michael Sorkin bemoans the trickle-down planning ethos of the Bloomberg era and sees the need to increase the city's resiliency as an opportunity to "return to the task of physical planning attuned to local desires".
"It's time to reintroduce communities into the planning process," urges Sorkin. "New York must move beyond the oppositional model of planning that has too long dominated, best exemplified by our beloved Manichean struggle between cardboard versions of Robert Moses and Jane Jacobs. Although there is no contradiction in planning both inductively and deductively, our process is too skewed toward money and away from people: the capacity of neighborhoods to meaningfully participate in planning their own destinies—and that of the larger realms we all share—is fundamental."
"Wisdom doesn't belong to any particular group (although needs are best assessed locally), and a mayor must empower everyone," he continues. "For this, we look to you [Bill de Blasio] with high hopes."
Read the full story: Bridge Over Troubled Waters
How Urban Form Impacts Housing Affordability
The way we design cities affects housing costs differently than you might think.
The Case for Bottom-Up Urban Planning and Design
The wisdom of a broad cross section of residents and stakeholders is an essential part of planning and designing livable, efficient, and authentic communities.
EPCOT: The Original 'Smart City'
What can today’s futurists learn from Disney’s unrealized utopia?
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Amtrak, CN end decades-long dispute with eight-year agreement
The new operating agreement establishes an updated framework for the companies to work together, including processes to resolve disputes.
Judges permit Denver to divert 77,000 acre feet from the Colorado River for reservoir expansion
Overuse and climate change have caused the Colorado River’s water levels to plummet.
Philadelphia to invest $2 billion into upgrading city airports as PHL places last in customer satisfaction
Modernizations to Philadelphia's airports will include baggage system upgrades and a new automated parking garage guidance system.
The LA housing policies making developers turn away from the city
Despite LA’s housing shortage, developers say the city’s "mansion-tax" and pandemic-era policies make it an unappealing place to build housing.
New density bill would require 7 California cities to establish regional transit hubs
The bill would also require major cities in California to permit high-rise residential buildings.
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 Wisconsin Rapids
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
KFH Group Inc.
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello