Urban Development
A Community Built Around Food
Vancouver's South East False Creek community is making the production of food one of the major aspects of its preparation for the 2010 Winter Olympics. Its emphasis on local food production is a model other cities may look to follow.
Paris Considers Ditching Building Height Limits
Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoë has proposed abandoning the city's long-held building height restriction of 37 meters, citing the city's need to grow.
Do Cities Have Room For Golf Courses?
Stakeholders in Austin debate the future of a public golf course in the center of town while the University of Texas, owner of the land, debates whether to seek greater profits off the land. Neighbors champion the course as vital open space.
A Public Housing Experiment Faces Problems
The Chicago Tribune examines what became of an ambitious city project, led by Mayor Daley, to revolutionize public housing. Private developers received public funding to tear down old projects and replace them with mixed-use neighborhoods.
What's In A Neighborhood's Name?
Officials in Los Angeles have renamed the former "South Central" to remove the stigma of riots in the 1990's. But some business owners and residents say that's had a greater negative consequence than keeping the old name would have.
Fulton to Kotkin: Those Aren't Suburbs
Joel Kotkin's recent LA Times Op-Ed is critiqued by Bill Fulton of the California Planning and Development Report. Fulton argues the suburban areas Kotkin defends are actually urbanizing, whereas true suburbia show signs of becoming the new slums.
Wrangling Growth As An Exurb Expands
The exurban town of Buckeye, Arizona, is expected over the next two decades to grow from a population of 25,000 to more than 400,000. Planners are trying to do what they can to control the flood.
Theaters Catalyze Downtown Development
Former single-screen cinemas in New York City and Long Island are reopening as multi-use art centers and helping to stimulate the revitalization of dormant downtowns.
Corner Store Signs: Are They Blight?
Dallas's city council passed an ordinance restricting the percentage of window space a storefront can use for advertisements. Council members say the signs are creating or adding to blight.
World Trade Center Plans Pushed Back
Plans for redeveloping the World Trade Center site in Manhattan have been pushed back again, possibly to 2013.
Protests as Union Square Gets Privatized
New York's Union Square is the scene of a lively protest featuring Rev. Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping. At stake is the square's pavilion, which is set to be transformed into a restaurant.
A New Face for Phoenix
Downtown Phoenix prepares for a facelift with a new form-based code and downtown master plan.
Property Values vs. Affordable Housing
In suburban St. Paul, Minnesota, homeowners are losing the battle to keep affordable housing our of their neighborhoods. This Pioneer Press article includes a video that nicely shows both sides of the issue.
What Makes A Neighborhood Historic?
Older districts are often marked by high property values and traditional architecture, but it's not just aesthetics and history that define them. Some historic neighborhoods have gone through vast changes, while others don't appear "historic" at all.
Best American Cities for Design
Business Week looks at a recent list of the best cities for design in America.
Bad Mortgages and Gas Prices = Good For Cities?
The article suggests that rising gas prices, enduring subprime mortgage crisis, and some changing demographics (i.e., the aging of Baby Boomers) are all contributing to the greater popularity of central city neighborhoods.
Honolulu Gets Higher
A new condo proposal in a Honolulu neighborhood is 70 feet over the current height limits. Developers say new heights are necessary to make projects pencil out with rising construction costs.
Should Public Meetings Offer Translation?
Rezoning in New York's Lower East Side brings the issue of language to the fore, as members of the Spanish and Chinese communities find themselves unable to participate in important decisions about their neighborhoods.
The Shaper of Boston
The Boston Globe features an extensive profile of Kairos Shen, the city's new chief planner. Shen has had a hand in shaping most major projects in Boston already, and is poised to be a key player in Boston's future.
Land Use Takes Back Seat In CA's Global Warming Plan
Energy-efficient vehicles,buildings, appliances, low carbon fuels,and renewable energy took center stage in the Climate Change Draft Scoping Plan released June 26 by the CA Air Resources Board, a major step in meeting the landmark AB 32 climate goals
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.
City of Moorpark
City of Tustin
Tyler Technologies
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
