Urban Development

Successive generations have built Brooklyn into the global icon of cool that it is today. Although the owners of the Brooklyn Nets aren't the first to take advantage of the borough's storied history and character, they seem to have perfected the art.

November 18, 2012 - Brooklyn Rail

Happiness and health are generated or depleted by the way our neighbourhoods, towns, cities, and rural landscapes are developed. Creative placemaking adds to walkable urbanism by sealing the deal on physical, mental, and social well-being.

November 17, 2012 - PlaceShakers

Keith Schneider looks at Downtown Market, the "newest piece of civic equipment" being built as part of Grand Rapids's transformation from "Furniture City" to vibrant, and growing, hub.

November 16, 2012 - The New York Times

For the last 30 years, China has led the world in economic growth at a hefty environmental price. Widespread protests have prompted the cabinet of China to mandate a "social risk assessment" for industrial projects, reports Keith Bradsher.

November 16, 2012 - The New York Times

Young professionals are choosing to live in "smaller, more transit-oriented developments." To keep them in-state, Gov. Deval Patrick plans to incentivize the building of 10,000 multifamily housing units each year through 2020 in Mass.

November 15, 2012 - The Boston Globe

Scott Bernstein joins in the Happiness Index conversation, starting with references to the Anatomy of Melancholy.

November 15, 2012 - PlaceShakers

Hong Kong has supplanted New York atop Cushman & Wakefield's list of the ten most expensive shopping streets in the world. London's Bond Street fell out of the top ten due to Britain's weak economy.

November 15, 2012 - Business Insider

Robin Finn profiles Alexandros E. Washburn, head of the urban design division of the New York City Department of City Planning, and the work of his team, which has been responsible for "turning projects into places that people want to be."

November 13, 2012 - The New York Times

The 1970 Concept Los Angeles plan is a history lesson for urban planners and a vision of what the city could have looked like.

November 12, 2012 - cate miller

Call it "manipulation" or "visioning," but any way you look at it, illustrations of proposed projects have an immense impact on whether they get funded, approved, and built. Tristin Hopper looks at the "toolbox of tricks" employed by illustrators.

November 12, 2012 - National Post

As part of Bloomberg BusinessWeek's "Fix This" city planning series, the World Bank's Daniel Hoornweg considers how cities can often be a reflection of the cultural and institutional personalities of their citizens.

November 12, 2012 - Bloomberg BusinessWeek

Drexel University is proceeding with a study to determine the feasibility of capping and building over the Schuylkill Rail Yards, a transformational project that could unite West Philadelphia with the Center City, reports Susan Snyder.

November 12, 2012 - philly.com

Howard Blackson walks through the planning layers of San Diego for a history lesson as well as a look to the Next Urbanism.

November 11, 2012 - PlaceShakers

Across the strait from Singapore, Iskandar Malaysia is being planned as the world’s next eco mega-city. Its architects and developers hope it will offer an alternative to Asia's polluted cities and a glimpse of the future of urban living.

November 10, 2012 - The Guardian

"The City That Never Was" is the title of an upcoming symposium, and series of essays, organized by the Architectural League of NY to explore two decades of growth and decline in Spain through the prism of unrealized architectural ambitions.

November 8, 2012 - The Architectural League NY

A tower proposed by William Gottlieb Real Estate for a site adjacent to the High Line, being designed by architect Jeanne Gang, "promises to be one of the most talked-about buildings in New York," if it can get planning approval.

November 8, 2012 - Architectural Record

As an increasing percentage of the world's population, and economic assets, confront the threats of climate change, the aftermath of Sandy provides an opportunity for New York to set a global example for building stronger, smarter cities.

November 7, 2012 - New York Daily News

No sooner had the ink dried on the Times' "Obama's Night" headline, than planning advocates began offering suggestions for what the President should focus on in his second term. With an enduring split in Congress it's unclear what is achievable.

November 7, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

Forty-five miles southwest of the Twin Cities sits the exurb of New Prague, a town with state-of-the-art infrastructure but crushing debt. It’s an example of what happens when the “Ponzi scheme” underlying sprawl development comes crumbling down.

November 7, 2012 - Star Tribune

As the Sandy clean-up gets underway, could this be an opportunity for the Eastern Seaboard to apply some of the rebuilding lessons learned along the Gulf Coast after Katrina? Ben Brown shares some pointers.

November 6, 2012 - PlaceShakers