Urban Development
Montreal Needs to Tap Into the "Development Charge"
A group of McGill University planners have released a report on municipal funding highlighting untapped sources of revenue. The most glaring of them: fees levied on developers to pay for city services.
Extensive Cycling Infrastructure Created By Mass Protest
The Netherlands gains the title of 'Safest Place to Cycle,' which is mainly due to their extensive infrastructure. But how did these high quality cycle paths come to exist?
Best Smart Growth Projects in America
This year, the Environmental Protection Agency looked at "articulate" city plans that aimed for a more sustainable future. There were five plans across that nation that were awarded for "achievement in smart growth."
Bright Future For New Apartment Construction; Not So For Home Ownership
Colorado Public Radio investigates the housing market in Denver, noting the revival of apartment building while single family homes and even condos remain at a standstill. Demand for rentals continues to outstrip supply in other cities as well.
Chicago River Finally Getting Cleaned Up
Once reversed to keep its filth out of the drinking water, the Chicago River is finally getting cleaned up, on orders from the EPA. Now recognized as an asset, re-reversal and clean-up is predicted to infuse the city with $1 billion in investments.
Issues of Transparency Raised Over Brooklyn Development
As proposals for the large-scale development at Brooklyn Bridge Park come in, some members of the public are crying foul over a perceived lack of transparency and public involvement during a recent meeting.
Apartment Prices Controlled by Computers
Landowners with fewer apartments units are starting to use software similar for pricing airline tickets and hotel vacancies to determine rental rates for their properties, reports Matt Hudgins for The New York Times.
Maryland Mall to Be Transformed into a Town of its Own
North Bethesda's White Flint Mall is your standard 850,000 sq. ft. mall surrounded by parking structures. The developer has announced it will be replacing the whole thing with a 5 million sq. ft. collection of apartments, offices and shops.
Cycling Superhighways Raising Debate
In the summer of 2010, London launched a new program that had established bright blue bike lanes known as 'Cycle Superhighways' alongside main roads. These initiatives are intended to provide the quickest routes into the city centre.
New Urban Design Looks at Shared Spaces
In urban street design, a new movement known as 'shared spaces' has been emerging. This new movement "aims to reduce the dominance of cars by getting people and vehicles to share the road space," according to Walkonomics.
Housing Guarantee Planned for Families in Mumbai Slums
Pending government approval, state housing department plans to grant all slum-dwelling families in Mumbai houses may become reality. The houses are free for families settled prior to 1995.
Redevelopment Project Sweeps The Bay Area
In San Francisco, almost one out of every six acres is slated to become parkland in the new urban infill projects in Mission Bay.
Tracking America's "Urban Reboot"
Salon.com has launched a new series called "Dream City" which will focus on the "spectacular innovation and dizzying demographic shift[s]" underway in America's cities.
Asia's "Instant" Cities: Perfect Cities or Perfect Storm?
The "utopian" cities being built from scratch in Asia to accommodate its fantastic rate of urbanization are striving to be smarter and greener, but may also be financially risky.
An Ancient Neighborhood Booms in Vietnam
Hanoi's Ancient Quarter, founded in 1010 A.D. and built around a plan from the 15th century, is seeing an entrepreneurial boom. Planners are struggling to maintain the unique character of the community in the process.
Why Have the Exurbs Declined?
Christopher B. Leinberger expounds on the mortgage crisis plaguing America, particularly the exurbs. Rather than being a product of the excesses of bank lending and regulation, Leinberger attributes it to demographic changes benefiting cities.
"Environmental Architecture" at its Finest
Sarah Williams Goldhagen profiles The Sea Ranch; despite its failure as an alternative to suburban sprawl, it is considered a model for its environmentally sensitive, "sublimely beautiful" development.
Assessing Asia's Brand New Cities
In this piece, Greg Lindsay take a cautiously optimistic stance on whether or not from-scratch Asian cities are the way to address urban overpopulation.
Vacant Historic Hotel to be Reused as Transitional Housing
Plans for the transformation of the art deco Viceroy Hotel date back to the Daley administration. The project will be financed by both state funds and the current mayor's revamped tax-increment financing program.
Defending Modernism and Ignoring Preservation
A new book called The Lure of the City argues that planners today have "a lack of ambition" and argues against the "[Jane] Jacobs-influenced orthodoxy."
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.
Greater Baltimore Committee
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association
