United States

Has Preservation Gone Too Far?

Ben Adler writes about the growing contingent of policy wonks, architects, and architectural critics who believe that preservationists have acquired too much power.

February 6, 2012 - Architectural Record

The Collapse of the Architecture Profession

Recounting the exalted heights that the profession reached in the last decade, and its complete meltdown during the Great Recession, Scott Timberg asks: where does architecture go from here?

February 6, 2012 - Salon.com

A Shift of Attention to Local Planning Policies by the Tea Party Becomes National News

The 'lamestream media' picks up the story of Tea Party activists railing against efforts to control sprawl and conserve energy.

February 6, 2012 - The New York Times

Think Environmental Rules Are Holding Up Transportation Projects? Think Again.

Brad Plumer investigates widely echoed Republican claims that environmental rules are a major reason why it takes so long to build highways and bridges, and finds scant evidence to back up the claims.

February 6, 2012 - The Washington Post

Preserving Transit-Oriented Affordable Housing

As developers across the country increasingly recognize the market advantages of redevelopment oriented around transit, and property values rise in response, hundreds of thousands of units of affordable housing are at risk.

February 5, 2012 - Shelterforce

Reassessing Obama's Urban Policies

Having promised a new and progressive direction in urban policy, President Obama has instead been "destructive" for America's cities, argues Yana Kunichoff.

February 4, 2012 - Truthout

Bankruptcy Ahead, Warns CBO On Highway Trust Fund

Treasury Secretary Ray LaHood warned Congress that according to a recent Congressional Budget Office report, the Highway Trust Fund will be broke come fiscal year 2014, due largely to more fuel-efficient vehicles and less driving.

February 4, 2012 - The Hill's Transportation Blog

America's Third World Infrastructure

Alex Marshall investigates the reasons why America's infrastructure resembles a third world country's, and decides that we have our arcane budgeting processes to blame.

February 3, 2012 - Governing

Public Transit's Gender Imbalance

Gendered Innovations, a Stanford University project devoted to gender analysis, has revealed that miscategorization has obscured the fact that women ride public transit much more than previously believed, and much more than men.

February 2, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

Fill Cars, Fight Traffic

According to the Ridesharing Institute, filling out cars with more passengers may be the cheapest, simplest way to ease congestion, reports Emily Badger. However novel strategies must be introduced to overcome the broad decline in carpooling.

February 2, 2012 - Miller McCune

House Transportation Bill: Can It Be Salvaged?

The long awaited Transportation bill unveiled this week by House Republicans, the “American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act,” follows an unsurprisingly partisan path to solving few of the country's transportation challenges.

February 2, 2012 - Streetsblog Capitol Hill

Letting Fannie and Freddie Off the Hook

Although they played a part in the ensuing financial panic, noted economist Mark Zandi argues why Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac don't deserve to be blamed for the housing bubble.

February 1, 2012 - The Washington Post

Exploring the Art of Wayfinding

Emily Badger explores the art of environmental graphic design, or wayfinding, and what it takes to strike the right balance between intuitive navigation and individual discovery.

February 1, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

How the Built Environment Became a Leading Cause of Death in the 21st Century

Writing for the Well blog, Jane Brody traces the direct link between 20th century development patterns and the leading causes of disease and death. Put simply, public health is the biggest challenge facing planners today.

February 1, 2012 - The New York Times

Lessons From the World's Great Biking Cities

Christine Grant was fortunate enough to win a fellowship that allowed her to spend six months in the world's most bike-friendly cities. In this article she shares with us the 10 essential lessons she learned along the way.

January 31, 2012 - Grist

Are U.S. Cities Effectively Desegregated?

Sam Roberts reports on a new study of census results that found the nation’s cities are more racially integrated than at any time since 1910.

January 31, 2012 - The New York Times

On the Popularity of Biking and Walking in Rural America

A new report by the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy titled "Active Transportation Beyond Urban Centers,” debunks the myth that "nobody walks" in rural America.

January 31, 2012 - Streetsblog D.C.

A Paradigm Shift in Urban Runoff

Christine MacDonald looks at efforts by everyone from home gardeners to municipal water authorities to rethink and rebuild the infrastructure to handle urban runoff.

January 30, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

California Passes Historic Zero Emission Vehicle Regulations

The CA Air Resources Board unanimously approved new rules that require 15% of new vehicles sold in the state to emit zero emissions and require conventional vehicles to reduce smog and climate emissions by 75% and 50%, respectively, by 2025.

January 30, 2012 - San Jose Mercury News

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.

Top Schools

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.