Urban Development

The Ambiguous City

Todd Reisz reviews "Living in the Endless City," a collection edited by Ricky Burdett, which looks at urban issues in Sao Paulo, Mumbai and Istanbul.

June 29, 2011 - The Huffington Post

You Call That Public Art?

South Korea's law mandates developers to commission public art as 1% of the total cost of a proposed project. What the law does not specify is the level of taste that comes with it.

June 29, 2011 - The Los Angeles Times

Tokyo to Include Tsunami-Hit Areas in 2020 Olympic Bid

In preparing a bid to host the 2020 Olympics, Tokyo is planning to include areas that were ravaged by the recent tsunami and earthquake.

June 28, 2011 - Daily Mail

The Big City Goes Small Scale

New York's new big plans are actually quite small, according to this architectural review from The Guardian.

June 28, 2011 - Guardian

Stockholm's Transportation Remodel

In Stockholm, Sweden, planners are moving ahead with a broad central city redevelopment plan that seeks to continue the city's trend of reducing car traffic and congestion, and making it easier for bikers, walkers and transit takers to get around.

June 28, 2011 - Citiwire

Slow Progress in East New Orleans

In this piece from Places, Deborah Gans offers a firsthand look at planning for recovery in the city's neglected East side.

June 28, 2011 - Places

China's Thames Town Stands Empty

Forget Disneyland, Shanghai - China has already built a series of themed lands, each themed after a different European community. Problem is they are terrible flops. Thames Town, strangely themed after an Austrian village, is deserted.

June 27, 2011 - The Infrastructurist

Yacht Race to Bring New Cruise Terminal to San Francisco

As San Francisco prepares to host the America's Cup yacht race in 2013, one of the key building areas for the event is also being fast-tracked as the site of a new cruise terminal.

June 23, 2011 - San Francisco Chronicle

High Rise Boomlet Bringing Good and Bad to Chicago

High rise apartment construction is set to take off again in Chicago, though it's unclear for how long and whether the resulting projects will have a positive lasting impact on the city.

June 23, 2011 - Chicago Tribune

Western Australia's Capital Envisions its Transformation

Recently released Capital City Planning Framework for Perth outlines a mixed-use city that is both livable and welcoming to outsiders.

June 22, 2011 - Architecture & Design

Preservation and Development Coexist in Hollywood

The Millennium Hollywood, a proposed mixed used development near Sunset Boulevard and Vine Avenue, is expected to increase the density in the area while preserving the nearby Capitol Records building.

June 22, 2011 - The Architect's Newspaper

A Neighborhood of Stairs

The La Independencia neighborhood in Medellin, Colombia sprawls up a hillside, leaving the inhabitants to walk up to 10 flights of stairs every day. An ambitious development program is considering building an outdoor network of escalators.

June 22, 2011 - TheCityFix.com

Reviving the Real Estate Market with Parks

The idea of tuning toxic or polluted sites into parks has been creating new green spaces in cities throughout the country. It's also re-starting the real estate market.

June 22, 2011 - THE DIRT

New Bridge and Park Reconnects Detroit Neighborhood

A new pedestrian bridge over a freeway has reconnected a Detroit neighborhood with new accessibility and a new park.

June 22, 2011 - The Architect's Newspaper

Higher Vacancy Rates in Walkable Neighborhoods

In comparing data collected during the 2010 Census, walkable neighborhoods are shown to have greater vacancy rates than the cities they're in.

June 21, 2011 - Plannovation

The History and the Flaws of the Cul-de-Sac

This episode of 99% Invisible looks into the history of the cul-de-sac, and why its design flaws overpower its benefits.

June 21, 2011 - 99% Invisible

Reviewing Recent Books on Cities

In reviewing a handful of new books looking at cities and how they work, this piece from The New Yorker glosses over the current thinking behind the urban conversation and wonders if city celebration has gone too far.

June 21, 2011 - The New Yorker

Inside Bangkok's "Ghost Tower"

Photojournalist and blogger Dr. Hank Snaffler, Jr. documents the Sathorn Unique, an abandoned skyscraper at the heart of Bangkok.

June 20, 2011 - Abandoned Journey

Wendell Cox Blames Planners for Housing Crisis

Smart Growth opponent Wendell Cox clamors that land use regulations imposed by Smart Growth exacerbate the ongoing housing woes.

June 20, 2011 - The Wall Street Journal

Dwindling Sprawl: The End is Near for Suburbia

As mobile technology is fast becoming more mainstream, Urban Land Institute's CEO Patrick Phillips envisages more mixed-use developments in the next decade.

June 20, 2011 - The Wall Street Journal

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.

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.