Urban Development

Based on five criteria, the Sierra Club has evaluated “the 50 best and worst transportation projects” in the nation, shining light on apparent fiascoes in the making, as well as progressive achievements.

December 14, 2012 - D.C. Streesblog

New York's Municipal Arts Society has released a list of 17 historic buildings it believes are threatened by the Bloomberg administration's plans to re-zone a significant portion of the area surrounding Grand Central Terminal.

December 13, 2012 - The New York Observer

Small and large cities throughout the United States are outgrowing their suburban counterparts for the first time in years. An even bigger surprise: small cities seem to be outpacing suburbs and large metros alike according to new analysis.

December 13, 2012 - Smart Growth America

Boston has seen an increase of new construction over the past few years, mostly concentrated along the waterfront and its "Innovation District." The Architect's Newspaper has compiled a list of the most high-profile developments in the city.

December 13, 2012 - The Architect's Newspaper

Ronda Kaysen reports on the growing trend in transforming brownfield sites in disadvantaged communities into health centers, "in essence taking a potential source of health problems for a community and turning it into a place for health care."

December 13, 2012 - The New York Times

A dearth of high quality retail spaces in India's largest cities and the growing attraction of large foreign retailers to the country have analysts predicting a boom in commercial development.

December 12, 2012 - The New York Times

With two major transit lines in the pipeline, and several billion dollars of road, bridge, and transit repair and replacement projects planned for the future, Connecticut officials are counting on transit-oriented development to help raise revenue.

December 12, 2012 - The Hartford Courant

Raleigh, North Carolina didn't take getting placed sixth most dangerous metro area in the country lightly back in 2009, and recently drafted a Comprehensive Pedestrian Plan in response.

December 12, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

In Minneapolis, and cities across the country, surface parking lots are an enduring blight on urban landscapes; their presence often incentivized by existing tax structures. Could a new approach to property taxation maximize the productivity of land?

December 10, 2012 - Streets MN

Planetizen is pleased to release its eleventh annual list of the ten best books in urban planning, design and development published in 2012.

December 10, 2012 - Abhijeet Chavan

After a decade of establishing itself on the global art calendar, the "once-forlorn slab of Miami called Wynwood" is now a year-round must-see destination.

December 10, 2012 - The New York Times

For its inaugural list of the "Public Interest Design 100," PublicInterestDesign.org and research partner the University of Minnesota College of Design have identified the key figures leading the convergence of design and service.

December 10, 2012 - Architizer

In a globalized world, China's economic, environmental and urban development has implications for us all, posits Henry M. Paulson Jr. The problems the country faces, and any potential solutions, revolve around its approach to urbanization.

December 9, 2012 - The New York Times

The formerly industrial shoreline of Puget Sound will soon undergo $4.5 billion worth of engineering projects that will complete Seattle's waterfront transformation, reports Kirk Johnson.

December 9, 2012 - The New York Times

Across the country, even in metro areas more accustomed to single-family sprawl, multi-family housing is driving the residential construction recovery, report Shaila Dewan and Nelson D. Schwartz.

December 8, 2012 - The New York Times

On Places, Andrew Herscher of the University of Michigan challenges the usual view of Detroit's decline.

December 8, 2012 - Places Journal

Although the landmark but now controversial environmental law, the CA Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) is state law, it is implemented by the 'lead agency' of a project which can be a city. S.F. Supervisor Scott Wiener hopes to reform that process.

December 8, 2012 - San Francisco Chronicle

In a speech Thursday, Mayor Bloomberg laid out his strategy for rebuilding a stronger, smarter New York in anticipation of future natural disasters.

December 7, 2012 - The New York Times

The oil and gas companies clustered south of the central business district and in the Woodlands account for 3.4 percent of the city's employment, but the concentrated energy sector helps spread the wealth to other sectors in zoning-free Houston.

December 7, 2012 - The New York Times

The good news - America is closing its prisons. The bad news - America is closing its prisons. Emily Badger asks how "all these empty, peculiar and often isolated buildings" can be reused.

December 6, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities