The opponents of New York University's controversial expansion plan for Greenwich Village owe their recent court victory to the legacy of Jane Jacobs' legendary fight against the proposed Lower Manhattan Expressway.
"A ruling on Tuesday by Justice Donna M. Mills of State Supreme Court in Manhattan to block, at least temporarily, about half of New York University’s sprawling expansion plan was a direct outgrowth of Ms. Jacobs’s successful struggle decades ago to thwart another highly contentious project — the proposed Lower Manhattan Expressway, long championed by Robert Moses, which would have gutted Greenwich Village, including Washington Square Park," writes Sam Roberts.
Judge Mills' decision hinges on the plan's proposed use of three tiny parks to house new development, and the inability of the city to dispose of such land without the approval of the State Legislature. Those parks, it turns out, were "created by the thwarted expressway," notes Roberts. "The green space never would have been created if Ms. Jacobs had lost to Moses."
FULL STORY: N.Y.U. Project Is Stymied by Incidental Village Parks

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths
Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

Half of Post-Fire Altadena Home Sales Were to Corporations
Large investors are quietly buying up dozens of properties in Altadena, California, where a devastating wildfire destroyed more than 6,000 homes in January.

Opinion: What San Francisco’s Proposed ‘Family Zoning’ Could Really Mean
Mayor Lurie is using ‘family zoning’ to encourage denser development and upzoning — but could the concept actually foster community and more human-scale public spaces?

Jacksonville Launches First Autonomous Transit Shuttle in US
A fleet of 14 fully autonomous vehicles will serve a 3.5-mile downtown Jacksonville route with 12 stops.
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