Urban Development
Experiencing Debtenfreude
Schadenfreude is a German concept that means "taking pleasure in the suffering of others." Columnist Meghan Daum is experiencing 'debtenfreude'; the pleasure in watching house flippers and McMansion builders fall to the economic downturn.
How is the Fate of Historic Complex Space?
Concern: Ames Shovel Shops might be demolished.
Bad Habits Persist in Designs for Future Malls
A competition to design the shopping mall of the future produces some surprisingly non-futuristic results, according to juror and commentator Allison Arieff.
Suburbs 2.0
A review of Retrofitting Suburbia: Urban Design Solutions for Redesigning Suburbs by Ellen Dunham-Jones and June Williamson, from Residential Architect Online.
Vancouver Planners Propose to Alter Zoning on Shoreline
The False Creek Shoreline in northeast Vancouver has been slated for decades for significant commercial development. Today, planners proposed taking the area in a new direction.
Preserving A Modernist Hotel in LA
A debate over preserving the Century Plaza Hotel in Century City is a question of not just a building, but the historic preservation of an entire model of planning, says Christopher Hawthorne.
Transit Stops Increase Property Value- But Why?
Sam Staley argues that the increase in property values around transit stations isn't attributable to increased ridership, and in fact the locations with the least investment had the highest ridership.
Making Public Space Hip
The group tasked with reenergizing Bermondsey Square in southeast London see their target audience as "urban safarians."
A Village Takes Shape Near Atlanta
Serenbe is a new master-planned community outside of Atlanta that is creating a new model for placemaking in the U.S., taking its form from English villages and working within the natural environment.
Master Planning Underway for Early LEED-ND Project
A 212-acre urban infill project in Yakima, Washington will be one of the first communities to be planned according to developing LEED-ND (Neighborhood Development) principles.
Massive Redevelopment In The Works In St. Louis
Developer Paul McKee has secretly assembled 500 acres of land in north St. Louis, and recently unveiled a plan that includes 4 and a half million sq. ft. of new office and retail and 10,000 new homes.
Green Developments Getting Green Light
Developers are finding it easier to get funding for sustainable building projects due to federal incentives and investor interest in green certification.
California Housing Market Looking Rosier
The median home price in California notched up 1.4% in April from the previous month, prompting some to announce the market has bottomed out and is recovering.
Pedestrian Planning Coming to Tennessee
Shelby County and Memphis are on the verge of adopting a new smart growth zoning code to slow urban sprawl and breathe reinvigorate urban centers. The county's Main Street Mall will remain car-free. "Pedestrian-friendly" is the new planning theme.
The Challenge of Turning Blue Collars Green
The new documentary The Greening of Southie follows construction workers in Boston as they adapt to the new rules and regulations of green development (sometimes unwittingly).
Downtown Plan Showing Wear
A battle over the height of a proposed skyscraper in San Francisco emphasizes the need for an update to the city's 25-yr old plan, says critic John King.
Closing Dealerships Spell Opportunity
Seems some developers are taking Planetizen's recent poll to heart and are looking at closing car dealerships as perfect locations for new, dense development.
PBS Doc Examines Development In Denver, Portland, and NYC
Three cities - three directions on how their transportation infrastructure was shaped by national transportation and housing legislation, and the role of influential leaders like CO Gov. Lamm, OR representative Earl Blumenauer, and NY's Robert Moses.
The Rowhouse Returns
The rowhouse, a style of housing that began in 17th century Europe, is gaining in popularity in the U.S.
Is the Housing Market on the Mend?
The consensus seems to be that its so bad, we must have hit bottom. But "a drop in housing starts might actually be good news," says one economist.
Pagination
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.
Caltrans
City of Fort Worth
New Jersey Institute of Technology
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Portland
City of Laramie