History / Preservation

Pullman Yards Atlanta

Disused Atlanta Industrial Site Slated for Historic Status

Currently owned by the state of Georgia, Atlanta's Pullman Yard may get a lot harder (but not impossible) to redevelop. Atlanta's Urban Design Commission is considering a proposal to grant protected status to the property.

December 1, 2016 - Saporta Report

Arborea, Sardinia, Italy

Inside Mussolini's Fascist New Town

Founded in 1928, the fascist new town of Arborea (formerly known as Mussolinia) still shows hints of the divergence between the traditional towns of Sardinia and the modernist leanings of its founders.

November 30, 2016 - Wallpaper

Houston Astrodome

Preservation Comes to Houston

For the first time in its 70-year history, the National Trust for Historic Preservation will hold its annual conference in the city of Houston.

November 18, 2016 - The Houston Chronicle

St. Petersburg, Florida

Historic Block in Downtown St. Petersburg May Not Survive

Failing to receive protection from the St. Petersburg, Florida city council, a historic downtown block faces an uncertain future.

November 15, 2016 - Creative Loafing Tampa Bay

Santa Fe Railyward

How Good Planning Remade the Santa Fe Railyard

A planner reflects on one of New Mexico's great planning successes, the Santa Fe Railyard.

November 11, 2016 - Santa Fe New Mexican

New York Moves Ahead on New Historic District

The new district may be both preservationist and political.

November 7, 2016 - The Architect's Newspaper

Mario Lopez

Why Is Actor Mario Lopez Promoting a Stadium Next to an Historic Barrio in San Diego?

In San Diego, a battle is taking place between residents of historic Barrio Logan and proponents of an NFL stadium which threatens it. Actor Mario Lopez has been hired to sell the stadium proposal.

November 6, 2016 - UrbDeZine

Parkchester

Affordable Living in The Bronx

A look at Parkchester, one of four planned communities built by the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company in New York City, circa 1940s. The complex includes over 12,000 rental and ownership apartments, located near the #6 subway.

October 29, 2016 - The New York Times

Los Angeles in 1939, as determined by the  Home Owners’ Loan Corporation (HOLC).

Mapping the Racist History of Real Estate in New Deal America

The Mapping Inequality website documents how the liberal ideals of the New Deal devolved into discrimination and inequality.

October 20, 2016 - National Geographic

St. Louis

Historic Missouri-Illinois Bridge Completes Rehabilitation Funded by Recovery Act

Remember President Obama's 2009 economic stimulus program? Add another completed project to the program's successes: the restoration of the multi-modal 1874 iconic Eads Bridge connecting St. Louis and East St. Louis, Ill. over the Mississippi River.

October 19, 2016 - AASHTO Journal

Why Can't My Zoning Create a Diversity of Places?

Struggling with zoning that thwarts the construction of new hamlets, villages, towns, and cities? Susan Henderson has a bit of place type inspiration from across the pond.

October 18, 2016 - PlaceShakers

China

98 Buildings from the 20th Century Added to Chinese Heritage List

The Chinese Society of Cultural Relics and the Architectural Society of China added 98 buildings to the 20th-Century Chinese Architectural Heritage List.

October 18, 2016 - Curbed

Harlem

The Langston Hughes House and a Gentrifying Harlem

Artists and community members seek to preserve the culture and identity of Harlem amid the growing popularity and expense of housing in their community and all over New York.

October 18, 2016 - Next City

Philadelphia Renaissance Threatens Working Diamond District

Heretofore preservationists in the City of Brotherly Love have been focused on finding new uses for vacant, historic buildings, but the city's economic resurgence now threatens five, occupied low-rise buildings city's in vibrant Jewelers Row.

October 13, 2016 - The New York Times - Real Estate

Embarcadero

The 11 Most Endangered Places in the U.S.

These historic sites—be they buildings, districts, or natural landscapes—are closer to destruction than any others in the United States.

October 7, 2016 - Next City

Donald Trump

A Sordid History: Race in Real Estate

Commentators relentlessly debate whether Donald Trump's support hinges on economics or race. Alexis C. Madrigal discusses how the two are joined at the hip, especially in real estate.

October 6, 2016 - Fusion

The Plan of Çatalhöyük

Jane Jacobs, 'Cities First,' and the Virtues of Being Wrong

The great urbanist may have offered a flawed theory of urban origins, but that doesn't mean her idea is completely worthless.

October 3, 2016 - Dean Saitta

Terrifying Train Crash at Hoboken Terminal on Thursday Leaves One Dead

Disaster struck New Jersey Transit commuters at 8:38 AM on Sept. 29 when train #1614 failed to stop at the end ot the track and slammed into the wall, then the ceiling of the historic station, killing at least one person and injuring up to 100.

September 29, 2016 - CNBC

Gehry Fondation Louis Vuitton

Foolish Utopianism in Today's Top Architecture

Reviewing Douglas Murphy's book "Last Futures: Nature, Technology and the End of Architecture," Jonathan Meades lays into the new utopianism of contemporary architecture. Silicon Valley gets portrayed as both foolish and hypocritical.

September 27, 2016 - London Review of Books

Teotihuacán

Friday Eye Candy: Images of the World's Cities Through History

Tour the history of the world's most famous cities.

September 23, 2016 - Business Insider

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.

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.