The Knight Foundation asked: "What’s your best idea to make cities more successful?" When it came time to pick the best ideas, design and planning ideas for places like Wichita, Biloxi, and Akron emerged.
Audrey Wachs reports on the winners of the 2017 Knight Cities Challenge—the third occasion the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation has awarded $5 million to projects that enhance public spaces.
"This year, 19 of the 26 cities are represented in 33 winning proposals the Knight Foundation selected from 144 finalists, which were in turn picked from more than 4,500 applications," according to Wachs. Planetizen picked up news of last year's competition as well, which focused on the potential for such projects to be duplicated in other cities.
Wachs also takes a tour of the winners, with representatives from locations both far-flung and underrepresented in the national planning and design discussion. Links to each of the projects are included.
Sal Pizarro picked up the news about the two proposals from San Jose, California awarded in the 2017 awards.
The Knight Foundation focuses its place-based investment in the 26 cities where the Knight brothers once published newspapers, "particularly mindful of the relationship our founders had with Akron, where they started out, and Miami, where they based their business and foundation," according to the Knight Foundation website.
Read the full story: Urban beaches, ‘visionary’ architects, ice skating paths among winners of 2017 Knight Cities Challenge
Six Good, Duplicable Ideas for Cities
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Here's hoping these winning ideas for cities are exported around the country.
$160 Million in Bond Funding for Demolitions on the Ballot in Detroit
Proposal N, on the ballot for Detroit voters next week, will provide $160 million in bond funding for demolitions and $90 million to mothball homes for future rehab, but, according to this opinion, it won't solve the city's blight challenges.
Anti-Displacement Efforts and Green Infrastructure Signal Hope in Portland
The Living Cully coalition prioritizes the well-being of long term, lower-income residents with future-building revitalization projects.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
Chicago voters approve permanent festival grounds, penalty for vacant property owners
Currently, major summer and fall festivals take over public parks for weeks at a time, drawing criticism from nearby residents
NYC votes to cut outdoor dining red tape, speed up permitting
New York City also voted to allow the Department of Transportation to begin work on urgent projects before notifying elected officials.
California appears to reject Prop. 45
The proposition would have expanded the projects that qualify for a streamlined environmental review, effectively paring down the California Environmental Quality Act.
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 Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority