Best Cities

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Watch: The Errors Behind 'Best Cities' Rankings

Despite its long history of ranking the best cities to live in the United States, Money Magazine should not be cited as an authority on the matter, according to this video.

November 17, 2020 - City Beautiful

What Are America's Best Cities?

For the second year running, Businessweek has conducted an evaluation of America's 100 largest cities to determine their list of the top 50. Alex Konrad discusses the results.

September 29, 2012 - Bloomberg BusinessWeek

Are These the Next 15 Hot Cities?

No, we're not talking about climate change - this list from Business Insider imagines which U.S. cities will be the best cities to live in in the future of 20 years from now.

June 27, 2012 - Business Insider

City Ranking Actually Do Change Our Opinions

The safest cities. The best cities. The happiest cities. We see the rankings all the time. But do they matter. Yes, says Samuel Arbesman, who surveyed 310 US residents by using Amazon's Mechanical Turk service.

January 6, 2012 - Atlantic Cities

Where the Hipsters Go

Good planning is attracting young hipsters to cities throughout the world, writes Christopher F. Schuetze.

November 22, 2011 - International Herald Tribune via New York Times

The Surprising Rise of Minneapolis as a Top Bike Town

Despite its cold weather and spread-out development patterns, a Midwestern city beat Portland, San Francisco and Boulder for the title of #1 Bike City. Jay Walljasper explains how.

October 17, 2011 - Jay Walljasper

Chattanooga, Tennessee: America's Favorite Town

At least, the favorite town of Outside Magazine's readership, in a survey of almost 22,000 readers. Outside says the factors that make Chattanooga hot range from "epic singletrack to progressive city planning."

September 13, 2011 - Outside Magazine

Why Honolulu Tops Best Transit List

Jarrett Walker looks at a recent "Top Cities for Transit" list that ranks Honolulu #1, and says the criteria that the Brookings Institution used are "especially perverse".

May 20, 2011 - Human Transit

The Problem With "Most Livable Cities" Lists

Edwin Heathcote of the Financial Times says that lists of the "Best Cities" often fail because they select cities that are the most "livable", ignoring what makes cities "lovable".

May 11, 2011 - Financial Times

Are Smaller Cities Better Equipped for the Future?

Joel Kotkin puts forward the premise that smaller urban regions are more nimble than big cities. Kotkin dubs these smaller cities like Austin, Columbus and Raleigh-Durham "efficient cities."

November 27, 2010 - New Geography

Can A City Be Designed for Scientific Innovation?

A new study looks at the best cities in the world for science, using publication rates in as the basis. The researchers

October 23, 2010 - Nature

The Best Public Spaces in the U.S.

The American Planning Association has released its 2010 selections for great public spaces, streets and neighborhoods, ranging from a sculpture garden in Alabama to New York's transformed Bryant Park.

October 13, 2010 - American Planning Association

Why "Top 10 Cities" Lists Are Impossible to Resist

Publishers and marketing folks admit that the barrage of lists titled "Top 10 Places To...." is inspired purely by the public's inability to resist clicking them.

October 5, 2010 - The Wall St. Journal

The Best Cities and Towns for College

The American Institute of Economic Research ranks the best cities and towns in which to attend college, using academic achievement, quality of life, and professional opportunities as factors.

September 8, 2010 - USA Today

The Best "Adventure Towns" in the U.S.

Outside Magazine compiles their top 25 U.S. towns for outdoor adventure. Considered alongside the availability of great kayaking and biking were stats like percentage of college graduates and cost of living.

August 26, 2010 - Outside Magazine

Most Successful Urban Planning - Ever?

Public Servant Blog dares to compile a completely subjective list of the Top 20 Urban Planning Successes of All Time, with selections ranging from the obvious (Amsterdam) to the less so (Marimont, Ohio). See if you agree.

August 10, 2010 - Public Servant Blog

Money's "Best Place to Live" Is Seriously Lacking in Place

Eden Prairie, Minnesota tops Money Magazine's recent list of Best Places to Live 2010. Blogger Chris O'Leary points out that Eden Prairie is devoid of anything to separate it from any other suburb, and in fact has no downtown at all.

July 23, 2010 - On Transport

Small Cities Fill CNN's 'Best Places to Live'

Apparently metropolises are out- CNN Money's annual list of the "Best Places to Live" is filled with small cities like Eden Prairie, Minnesota and Overland Park, Kansas.

July 12, 2010 - CNN Money

No U.S. Cities in Top 25 Best Cities of the World

London-based consulting company Mercer released their yearly rankings of the 25 most liveable cities, and no American cities make the grade. Vienna is number one, and Vancouver takes fourth.

May 30, 2010 - The Christian Science Monitor

Richard Florida Picks the Top Cities for College Graduates

Richard Florida and his team have ranked the Best Places for Recent College Grads using nine different indicators, including the number of singles, unemployment rate, rental housing stock, and of course, creative capital.

May 26, 2010 - The Daily Beast

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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

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