Illinois
Chicago Gears Up for Bike Share
Not to be outdone by its big (and small) city brethren, the nation's third largest city is launching its long-awaited, and relatively secretive, bike-sharing program next month. And according to Paul Merrion, they're starting with a bang.
Killing Chicago's Economy: Quantifying the Costs of Gun Violence
The value of a single life lost or destroyed by gun violence is incalculable. But the cumulative impact of such savagery has consequences for a city's economy in the form of 'shuttered businesses, lost wages, disability checks and depopulation.'
Chicago’s Top Tourist Attraction to Get Green Makeover
The $176 million Phase I design concept for Navy Pier unveiled last week promises a "parklike" feel along the banks of Lake Michigan.
Chicago Plans Largest School Closing in Nation's History
Seeking to trim budgets and 'distribute scarce resources more efficiently,' Mayor Rahm Emanuel's controversial plan to shrink Chicago's school system moved ahead yesterday with the Board of Ed's vote to shut 49 of the city's elementary schools.
Poor Planning Brings a Flood of Water Problems
A new study by the Chicago-based Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT) compares that city's flood insurance claims with its floodplains, and finds a 'completely counter-intuitive' relationship between the two.
Is CA High-Speed Rail Stalling the Federal Rail Program?
House Republicans object to further funding of the High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail program - largely due to California's expectation to receive $42 billion in federal funding - yet less ambitious projects have shown much promise.
Is Collaboration the Key to Successful Implementation?
In order to more efficiently carry out its long-range comprehensive plan, Kane County, Illinois has created the Kane County Planning Cooperative as the central implementing body to work with various stakeholders.
Craft and Context: Architecture that Connects Place and Time
Architect Mark Sofield explores the essential meaning of craft in architecture, which he says lies in the nature of the connections a building or space creates.
Get Ready for 'Divvy', Chicago's Soon to Launch Bike-Share System
Jon Hilkevitch details the roll-out of the Second City's first bike-share system. The handsome three-speed bikes painted in "Chicago blue" will start appearing on city streets in June.
Can One Dogged Enthusiast Polish Olmsted's Tarnished Chicago Jewel?
On Chicago's South Side, Jackson Park once inspired million of visitors to the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition, including a young Frank Lloyd Wright. After years of neglect, Robert Karr Jr. wants to revitalize the park along a Japanese theme.
Massive Chicago Master Plan Bridges Downtown Chasm
A speculative master plan for Chicago's West Loop would add a new layer to downtown's complex multi-level weaving of street strata and infrastructure with a highway cap park.
Chicagoland Interventions Show the Value in Temporary Projects
Jared Green looks at some of the innovative projects recognized by Chicago's Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC) for their ability to creatively transform blighted lots into community assets.
Architecture Firms Look to Hire; But Where Are the Qualified Candidates?
After five rough years, architecture billings are on a sustained upswing. In Chicago, where the number of employed architects dropped 33 percent between 2008-2011, this means firms are staffing up to meet a growing number of commissions.
Chicago's Infrastructure Trust: A Guide for Funding Projects, or Building Bad Deals?
Tim Logan dives deep on Mayor Rahm Emanuel's bold plan to help fund Chicago's infrastructure improvements with private capital. American cities need new ways to pay for projects, but can a city with a history of making bad deals provide the road map?
Chicago Policy Shift Gives Pedestrians a Leg Up
With the coming release of Chicago's new Complete Streets Design Guidelines, the city is undertaking a "seismic policy shift" in how it evaluates all transportation projects: by making pedestrians the primary mode for consideration.
Planning Chicago: An Interview with D. Bradford Hunt and Jon B. DeVries
After decades of decline, Chicago is reveling in its resurgence as America’s hottest urban center and a “port of the global age.” However, these successes conceal a city struggling with increasing inequality and a planning culture “in retreat.”
Vision for Chicago Riverwalk Set to Get Big Check from Feds
An ambitious vision for transforming a six-block segment of the Chicago River into six themed recreation areas looks almost certain to become a reality now that Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has promised the project a $100 million federal loan.
America's Largest Indoor Vertical Farm Opens in Chicago
Chicagoans sure take their urban agriculture seriously. While the city focuses on converting vacant land to farms in some of the city's struggling neighborhoods, entrepreneurs are doing the same indoors.
Chicago to 'Facilitate and Accelerate' Growth in Seven Promising Neighborhoods
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel has identified seven city neighborhoods as "Opportunity Planning Areas" where public resources will be directed to help shape and accelerate nascent redevelopment efforts, reports Fran Spielman.
Urban Ag Incubator Seeks to Grow Farmers in Chicago
Lori Rotenberk reports on a new seven-acre urban “accelerator farm” announced yesterday by Mayor Rahm Emanuel that seeks to fill Chicago's farmer drought and deepens the city's investment in building its agricultural sector.
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
