Ruins

Ladder going down into kiva ruin in New Mexico.

The Meaning of Ruins on the Landscape

In the latest in a far ranging series of interest to planners—centered on contrasts between urban and natural environments—Chuck Wolfe speculates about the role of ruins in urban and natural environments.

August 8, 2024 - Resurgence: A Journey via Substack

eviljohnius

A Lost Ancient City Is Unearthed in Egypt

The newly unearthed "golden city" sheds light on everyday life at the height of ancient Egypt's power.

April 19, 2021 - The Washington Post

Philadelphia Studying Reuse of Defunct Underground Rail Line

Ryan Briggs reports on the planning study bringing new hope to efforts to activate or repurpose the "City Branch," a dormant subterranean rail line in Philadelphia.

October 14, 2014 - Next City

Ruins of ancient town at Serjilla, Syria

Ancient Ruins Become Refuges in War-Torn Syria

Its unclear why the "dead cities of Syria" were abandoned by their residents 1500 years ago. But as photographs and a CBS News report attest, these remnants of a prosperous society provide a grim refuge for thousands of Syrians fleeing civil war.

September 10, 2013 - Kuriositas

Urban Ruins and the High Line Next Door

Chuck Wolfe suggests we all have the inspiration within us to envision how to remake our cities--from the conjecture of a Seattle restauranteur about Seattle's monorail to neighborhood examples of "we used this before, let's use it again".

May 26, 2013 - Crosscut

America’s Top Arrested Developments, In Honor of Sunday's Season 4 Premiere

After a seven-year hiatus, Netflix is bringing back the critically acclaimed television series Arrested Development, and with it memories of the Great Recession.

May 25, 2013 - Architizer

Lessons Learned: Five Principles of People and Place

Employing material gathered for his forthcoming book, Chuck Wolfe argues for layered, historical illustrations of how people relate to built and sociocultural communities around them, and offers 5 principles and companion lessons for placemaking.

January 16, 2013 - myurbanist

Borscht Belt Meets Rust Belt

The "Borscht Belt", a once-thriving vacation getaway in upstate New York, has entered a serious decline. Legalizing gambling in the region is being discussed as a cure-all to revitalize the Catskills, but Citiography thinks its too late.

September 1, 2011 - Citiography

New Plaza Preserves Unexpected Historical Find

Plans to build a parking garage below an old plaza in Seville, Spain, revealed underground roman ruins. So the city built a new structure to hover over the site and to emphasize the area's historic amenities.

June 28, 2011 - Metropolis

Detroit's Central Depot: The Next Alcatraz?

Could Detroit turn its crumbling buildings into tourist attractions? The Urbanophile says there are worse ideas.

March 12, 2010 - The Urbanophile

The Ruins of Detroit and New Orleans

Bryan Finoki looks at the devastated cities of Detroit and New Orleans and finds "blueprints for the manufacture of ruin".

January 4, 2010 - Triple Canopy

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.

Professor of Urban Planning

Harvard University Graduate School of Design

Transportation Planner I

KFH Group Inc.

Director, Strategy and Research

Greater Baltimore Committee

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.