New Mexico
Slow Growth of Albuquerque's Answer to Sprawl Raises Questions
Stan Alcorn checks up on the status of Mesa del Sol, a 12,900-acre public-private project that broke ground outside of Albuquerque in 2006, and was planned to be the largest New Urbanist development in the Southwest.
Exploring the Impact of Public Interest Design
A new series of documentary films seeks to explore the value and impact of public interest projects designed using the SEED process, which is based on a belief that design can be a catalyst for positive change within the public at large.
New R&D City Missing One Key Ingredient: People
In New Mexico, construction will begin this summer on a fully functioning 15-square mile new town, designed "to test everything about the future of smart cities, from autonomous cars to new wireless networks," reports Emily Badger.
California's 'Other' HSR Line Receives Key Go-Ahead
The privately funded, 190-mile grade-separated high-speed line linking Victorville, San Bernardino County and Las Vegas received clearance from the federal Surface Transportation Board provided DesertXpress implement mitigation measures..
Fake City in Middle of Nowhere to Be Used as Simulator
A tech firm is building a simulated city across 20 miles of New Mexico desert as testing grounds for new green technologies and renewable energy.
Repurposed Railyard Becomes Award-Winning Park
The City Parks blog looks at Santa Fe Railyard Park and Plaza, one of the winners of this year's Rudy Bruner Awards for Urban Excellence.
Mobile Markets Bring Groceries to Food Deserts
Mogro is a new for-profit company in New Mexico that is targeting neighborhoods with little access to healthy food with temperature-controlled grocery trucks.
State Subsidies Enable the Southwest's Largest New Urbanist Development
It's at Albuquerque's edge, it's the size of Manhattan, and it's happening, despite drought, recession and tightening state budgets. An annotation of Mesa del Sol's master plan explains how and why.
Physicist Tackles Urban Theory
Physicist Geoffrey West of the Santa Fe Institute applied his talents to unraveling urban issues like population growth in a similar vein that he did earlier with biology. He found answers that explain how all cities work if enough data is supplied.
Volcano-Oriented Development
The Albuquerque City Council and staff are drafting plans for Volcano Heights, Volcano Cliffs and Volcano Trails, three sites bordering Petroglyph National Monument. A simmering debate over open space conservation seems cooled by public process.
Small-Town Environmental Justice
This piece from Next American City looks at pollution in small town New Mexico and how court rulings have made it hard for a local organization -- and those in other communities -- to fight environmental battles.
On the Mesa, Off the Grid
A mesa in New Mexico is home to nearly 400 people, which makes up one of the largest communities of people in the U.S. living almost completely off the grid.
A City Burns its Troubles Away
Every year, residents in Santa Fe, New Mexico send a huge human effigy into flames. Burning with it are physical representations of the bad memories and experiences of the past year.
City Tackles Antique Zoning Code
The zoning code of Alamogordo, NM hasn't been revisited since April of 1950. Today, the zoning rewrite group is finally updating the code and making the switch to a form-based code in the process.
Films a Blessing and a Curse for Small New Mexico Towns
Small towns in New Mexico are increasingly being used as film locations. But for some locals, the invasion of Hollywood is not worth the economic benefits.
Western States Trying to Get on the High Speed Rail Bandwagon
Officials in New Mexico, Colorado and Texas are pooling efforts to try to secure federal funding for a high speed rail link between their urban areas.
Rainwater Collection Rules Evolving in the West
Two new laws in Colorado make legal the formerly prohibited act of collecting rainwater. Other states aren't so lenient.
Are Form-Based Codes 'Green Zoning'?
Albuquerque's new "form-based codes" could offer city planners another model for denser, more pedestrian-friendly growth.
Megapolitans Rise in the Mountains
This column from Neal Peirce looks at the new megapolitan stronghold of the Intermountain West.
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 Thousand Oaks
City of Wisconsin Rapids
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
