Landscape Architecture
Community Transforms Street Overnight
Local residents bring life back a desolate line of shops in Oak Cliff, a streetcar suburb of Dallas, overnight. The intention of the Better Block project is to demonstrate the value of pedestrian friendly spaces and encourage future investments.
18 Unusual Examples of Landscape Architecture
Popular Mechanics features a slideshow of fantastic examples of landscape architecture, from Scotland's Garden of Cosmic Speculation to the Growth Chamber on the International Space Station.
Activism and Architecture
Architects Anu Mathur and Dilip da Cunha say that activism drives their work: "Rather than waiting for a commissioned project, we ask the first question, frame the issue and propose possibilities," say the two in an interview with PLACES.
Talking Design with Rios, Clementi, Hale
A varied involvement in architecture, landscaping, planning and product design has allowed the practice of Rios, Clementi, Hale to weather the recession. The designers describe to Marissa Gluck how they have navigated a path through divergent fields.
Transforming Seattle's Bell Street Into a Park
Seattle is reclaiming it's right of way to create a pedestrian street. Landscape architects SvR Design Co. and Hewitt presented two different concepts for the park, one that is "measured" and one that "meanders."
Pittsburgh's US Steel Roof Reimagined as a Public Space
Other cities have opened up tall buildings to the public; Pittsburgh envisions doing the same with US Steel, which has a 1-acre flat roof.
Class Conscience: When Is Clean-Slate Planning Okay?
My classmate was up in front of everyone, flapping and flailing, pleading his case and getting shot down at every turn. It was a bit like watching a train wreck in slow motion. It was also kind of like looking in the mirror. I’m just more than halfway through a planning school studio project working on the beautiful (no, really) Lower Schuylkill River in Philadelphia. They’ve teamed up about 15 planner/urban designers with about 45 landscape architects, who, as I mentioned last time, are reasonably bonkers. That was about a month and a half ago; since then, I’ve begun to think maybe I’m the one needing a room with padded walls.
Ow! That hurt! Or: The Start of Planning School, Year Two
Forgive me Olmsted, for I have sinned. I have strayed. I have coveted. I have had doubts. I have thought about kicking urban design to the curb like a mangy puppy.
A Life Creating Community
A review of a new book Building Commons and Community by Karl Linn, a landscape architect and psychologist who worked to create vibrant community spaces in abandoned lots and boring institutional settings.
Elevated Train Stations Prove Controversial
In Honolulu, plans for 21 train stations on the new Kapolei to Ala Moana rail are raising eyebrows, primarily because of their significant size. Designers have taken steps to hide the bulk through landscaping and camouflage.
$10 Million Individual Donation to High Line Project
Barry Diller, IAC, and his wife, Diane Von Furstenburg, a well-known fashion designer, have donated $10 million to the Friends of the High Line, which is a non-profit group that manages the project.
Reconsidering Asphalt
Landscape architect Paula Meijerink is calling on designers to rethink asphalt, and she's taking her efforts to the streets.
Redesigning Nature to Clean Up Our Messes
A landscape architect from M.I.T. is proposing to create a whole new ecosystem to address water pollution problems in Italy.
Millennium Park Garden Takes Top Award from ASLA
The American Society of Landscape Architects has awarded the Lurie Garden in Chicago's Millennium Park with it's highest honor.
New Public Park 'Sponges' Up Contaminants
Landscape architecture firm dlandstudio is taking the stench out of the Gowanus Canal by building a new public park that is beautiful as well as functional.
Skirting Process, Bremerton Makes Beautiful Public Spaces
Landscape architect Gary Sexton worked on a tight budget and dodged commissions and regulations to create a beautiful vision for downtown Bremerton (near Seattle).
Lawrence Halprin Opines on Redesign of His Charlottesville Mall
Many of famed landscape architect Lawrence Halprin's optimistic 1970s public spaces are being updated and reconsidered. Historic preservationists fight back, but supporters say, "It's a living, breathing space, not a museum."
Watch for Desire Paths
My graduate school education left me with a lot of general ideas and a handful of specific ones. One that stuck with me is a concept from landscape architecture: the desire path. Technically, the term means a path where there isn't supposed to be one, a trail of wear and tear that wasn't planned.
Despite Downturn, Landscape Architects Keep Busy
A national survey shows that despite the depression in the housing market, landscape architects across the U.S. continue to get work.
Two Things People Hate: Density and Sprawl
We’ve been conducting public meetings for years. And it used to be easier. Present the plan. Discuss the plan. Talk about how your plan is better for the neighborhood/community/city/region and provide the conclusion. But things have changed.
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.
Central Transportation Planning Staff/Boston Region MPO
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
