Georgia
Atlanta's Big Mistake: Rushing Movie Studio Deal for Fort McPherson
Checking in on the status of negotiations for the redevelopment of Fort McPherson's 488 acres of rolling hills, historic buildings, and a lake, among much more, the Saporta Report argues that Atlanta has been far too accommodating.
MARTA Launches Planning Effort for Northern Extension of the Red Line
A plan in the earliest possible stages of outreach and environmental review would extend the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority's existing Red Line north of Atlanta farther into Fulton County.
Georgia to Increase Gas Tax Through Conversion to Excise Tax
Gov. Nathan Deal will sign legislation to increase gas taxes through a state sales tax conversion to an excise tax. With new weight-based truck fees, motel fees, and electric vehicle fees, it will add $1 billion in new transportation funding.
Atlanta's Favorite Architect Inspires Science Fiction
Even movies set long ago and far, far away have to be filmed somewhere. With uncanny frequency, many of them, including "The Hunger Games" and "Insurgent," have been filmed in the futuristic/dystopian landscape designed by John Portman in Atlanta.
Georgia Could End LEED Ratings for State Buildings
The LEED green building rating system doesn't acknowledge lumber from the state of Georgia as sustainable, so one state lawmaker suggests throwing out LEED altogether. Critics call it throwing the baby out with the bathwater.
Surveying the Results of 150 Years of Persistent Growth in Atlanta
The American Institute of Architects will visit Atlanta this year, a month after the 150th anniversary of the end of the Civil War. What should we know about the city as it exists today?
Millennial Advisory Panel Convened for Atlanta's Regional Planning Effort
The Atlanta Regional Commission is engaging Millennials in an ongoing planning effort that will determine the shape of the region through 2040.
Atlanta Announces Bikeshare Plans; Targets 2016 to Double Bike Commuters
The contract is signed, after years of planning, Bikeshare is coming to Atlanta as part of an ambitious goal to double the number of bike commuters in the city by 2016.
Expiring Leases Causing Headaches for EV Manufacturers
The Nissan Leaf, the world's best selling electric vehicle (EV), has a major depreciation problem: leasing contracts are so favorable that when the lease expires, dealers return many of them to the manufacturer because of low demand.
The Best and the Worst Airports to Access
If you want great access to an airport, go overseas—that's the main finding of a study by Golden Gateway Alliance, a Manhattan-based airport advocacy organization. Tied for dead-last in terms of access is Denver and a certain New York airport.
Atlanta Voters to Decide on $250 Million Infrastructure Bond
States aren't the only ones looking for new ways to fund crumbling transportation infrastructure. Atlanta voters, for instance, will consider a $250 infrastructure bond proposal in the March election.
Trains Are Always Better than Buses, Right?
Josh Barro provide examples galore of why the answer to that question isn't always yes—where costly rail investment has been to the detriment of existing transit. His column targets proposed projects, such as New York's LaGuardia Airport AirTrain.
How to Revive a Transit Agency
Under CEO Keith Parker, Atlanta's formerly desperate transit agency is picking up steam after suffering annual deficits of up to $33 million. The service area has expanded, the fleet is being modernized, and voters approved a new transit tax.
Friday Funny: What Makes a Nerd-Friendly City?
Movoto has produced a pair of rankings: "The 10 Nerdiest Cities in America" and "The 10 Nerdiest Small Cities in America." According to the lists, there must be something in the water in Georgia.
Atlanta Suburb Pitches Gaming Resort for Economic Development
An Atlanta suburb is moving forward with a plan to create a gaming report, unprecedented in the state, to invigorate a languishing part of town.
Obama to Open Controversial Atlantic Region to Offshore Drilling
A mere day after the Interior Department announced it would permanently block drilling in much of the Arctic Refuge by designating it as wilderness, it proposed allowing drilling in the Gulf, along Atlantic coast, and surprisingly, offshore Alaska.
Op-Ed: Transportation Funding is Only One Part of a Fair Budget
A guest column on the Saporta Report offers a reminder of the many critical public needs that compete with transportation funding for state dollars.
Poll: Voters Remain Opposed To Raising State Gas Taxes
Notwithstanding plummeting gas prices, Keith Laing of The Hill reports on poll results that reveal an uphill battle for political leaders in Utah, Georgia, and New Jersey, who are advocating gas tax increases to fund roads, bridges, and transit.
Riding New Atlanta's Streetcar for a Week: a Commuter's Diary
The debate about the effectiveness of streetcars as an alternative form of transportation (rather than just a driver of property values) isn't going anywhere. The latest test case for the ongoing experiment: Atlanta.
A Small Town Supports Citywide 25-mph Speed Limit
One town in Georgia recently conducted a public opinion poll finding that most of its 19,000-plus citizens support reduced speed limits on all city streets.
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.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority
