New York

MoMA Rethinks Folk Art Demolition

After weeks of blowback to a controversial plan by MoMA to demolish its acclaimed neighbor, the museum announced that its newly hired design consultants will be allowed to consider integrating the former Folk Art Museum into its expansion plans.

May 10, 2013 - The New York Times

Camera Cultivation: Urban Security in the Austerity Age

In the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombings, Eric Jaffe explores how cash-strapped cities will handle terrorism. "The short answer is public surveillance cameras. The long answer is smarter public surveillance cameras."

May 8, 2013 - The Atlantic Cities

Plan for Queens Park Flushed in Favor of Soccer Stadium

In the waning days of the Bloomberg era, environmental and social responsibility have given way to economic development and developer subsidy. Such is the case, at least, in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, where a new soccer stadium is planned.

May 8, 2013 - The New York Times

Residents Near Brooklyn Enviro Cleanup Fear 'Cure Is Worse Than the Disease'

Residents living near Brooklyn's toxic Gowanus Canal are fighting the E.P.A.'s $500 million environmental cleanup effort over disagreement with the methods proposed by the agency. Will their opposition thwart the long-sought remediation.

May 7, 2013 - The New York Times

Gatsby's Enduring Popularity With Developers

Since its publication, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 'The Great Gatsby' has epitomized affluence and excess, especially for New York, where the book is set. Leonardo DiCaprio aside, Elizabeth Harris looks at the enduring attraction of Gatsby for developers.

May 7, 2013 - The New York Times

Urban Camouflage: Using Buildings to Disguise Infrastructure

The infrastructure necessary to keep a city's systems running can frankly get kind of ugly. See what some cities have done to help disguise unsightly infrastructure.

May 4, 2013 - WebUrbanist

Social Media Apps

For Planners, Investment in Social Media Pays Dividends

With the right approach, social media can expedite the exchange of information between stakeholders, facilitate participatory planning, and build better places. Two case studies offer insight for using social media to connect with communities.

May 3, 2013 - Jessica Hsu

NYC from Hoboken

Reverse Migration Threatens New Jersey Suburbs

After a half century of growth driven by families fleeing New York City, New Jersey's northern suburbs face an uncertain future as young families, young professionals and retirees find a resurgent Big Apple more to their liking.

May 3, 2013 - NorthJersey.com

Innovative Model Expands the Sharing Economy to Underserved Areas

Expanding car and bike share services beyond America's big cities and affluent demographics requires adaptability and old economy technologies. Buffalo CarShare is providing a model for success that even the big boys could learn from.

April 30, 2013 - DC.Streetsblog

Bike Share Rolls Out in NYC and Haters Multiply

Polls show widespread public support for New York City's new bike share program. But as stations begin to appear on city streets, pitched battles are being waged over the control of public spaces.

April 29, 2013 - The New York Times

Is a Costco Superstore a 'Tourist Attraction'?

New York prohibits County Industrial Development Agencies from granting tax breaks to retail projects, but will waive this rule if the project is a "tourist attraction." The Onondaga County IDA thus declared a proposed Costco a tourist attraction.

April 29, 2013 - Syracuse.com

Is There a Future for Low-Rise High-Density Housing?

An exhibit that's just opened at NYC's Center for Architecture examines the brief history of a housing type that incorporated elements of suburban housing at higher densities. Can low-rise high-density houding provide a model for affordable infill?

April 26, 2013 - Architizer

A PAC You Might Actually Want to Donate To

StreetsPAC, a new political action committee launched this week, seeks to mobilize New York City residents, and back candidates, who support bike and pedestrian infrastructure.

April 25, 2013 - The Wall Street Journal

New York City: More Affordable Than You'd Think, for Some

For professional-class workers with annual household incomes in the top income quintile, New York is a comparatively affordable place. A recent study attributes lower costs to competition between businesses that cater to upper-income people.

April 24, 2013 - The New York Times

Are Nefarious Forces Behind the Transformation of Downtown Brooklyn?

Doug Henwood explains how "elite bodies", rather than pure "market forces", guide the growth of New York City. He begins his story with the Regional Plan Association's influential 1929 plan and focuses on the transformation of Downtown Brooklyn.

April 23, 2013 - The Nation

Will Vitality Be Trampled in the Rush to 'Modernize' Midtown Manhattan?

In a scathing op-ed for The New York Times, architect Robert Stern challenges the city's drive to densify East Midtown without paying the requisite attention to preservation, infrastructure, and the elements that give vitality to great cities.

April 23, 2013 - The New York Times

Number of New Yorkers In, or Near, Poverty Continues to Rise

Despite the end of the recession, the number of New Yorkers in, or near, poverty continues to creep up, with 46 percent of the city's residents making less than 150 percent of the poverty threshold, reports Sam Roberts.

April 22, 2013 - The New York Times

New York's Seedy History Hides in Plain Sight on the Bowery

Despite a decade of gentrification, New York "oldest streetscape" still retains enough of its historic character to warrant recent listing on the National Register of Historic Places. Sam Roberts explores the "palimpsest of New York City history."

April 21, 2013 - The New York Times

Opposition to Planned Museum Demolition Grows

Distinguished critic Paul Goldberger decries the Museum of Modern Art's recently announced plan to demolish the neighboring American Folk Art Museum. Meanwhile, social media campaigns are organizing opposition to the plan.

April 20, 2013 - Vanity Fair

Should Boston Have Been Shut Down?

Michael Tomasky asks the fundamental question of whether MA Gov. Deval Patrick overreacted by requiring Boston area residents to "shelter-in-place" as all forces were mobilized to apprehend the one remaining suspecting in the Boston Marathon bombing.

April 20, 2013 - The Daily Beast

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.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

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The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.