History / Preservation

Master Plan Envisions New Neighborhood Around Philly’s 30th Street Station
A partnership led by Amtrak plans to redevelop the area around a historic train station with mixed-use buildings, cultural amenities, and open space.

D.C. Preservation Board Includes Parking Lot in Historic Designation
The decision to protect a non-historic parking lot as part of designating an adjacent historic bank building is being derided by critics as another form of exclusionary zoning.

Los Angeles Reveals New Citywide Adaptive Reuse Proposal
An adaptive reuse ordinance limited to the city’s downtown core helped create roughly 12,000 units of new housing.

Ten Signs of a Resurgent Downtown
In GeekWire, Chuck Wolfe continues his exploration of a holistic and practical approach to post-pandemic urban center recovery, anchored in local context and community-driven initiatives that promote livability, safety, and sustainability.

A Historic Courthouse Becomes Senior Housing
A New Orleans courthouse will now provide assisted living facilities, along with street-facing balconies and a bar.

Planning for a Post-Climate World
A series of 19th century paintings that illustrates the rise and fall of empire highlights the limits of growth.

Ten Parks and Sites for Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander History
Learn more about some of the parks and historic sites that preserve and share the stories of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander people and communities in the U.S.

Save the Clocktower! Advisory Council on Historic Preservation Chair Sara Bronin Joins The Planning Commission Podcast
Sara Bronin was recently appointed by President Biden to chair the ACHP. In this episode she takes us back to the future on what historic preservation means to American cities and what planners can do to balance preservation with contemporary needs.

Is it Time to Revise D.C.’s Height Act?
The century-old rule has shaped the District’s iconic horizontal skyline, but some Council members say it need revision in light of the region’s growing housing crisis.

Most Influential Urbanists: Call for Nominees
Change doesn’t happen accidentally. Who are the people shaping cities and communities through the Covid-19 pandemic and beyond?

Honoring a Complex History at Mount Vernon
Those tasked with interpreting the significance of historical sites like Mount Vernon must weave together the often contradictory threads that contribute to the nation’s story.

Bitter Irony Behind Brooklyn’s Sweet Domino Sugar Sign
A new feature on the Brooklyn waterfront is a reminder that Domino Sugar has made several unsavory appearances in the history of Puerto Rican communities.

L.A. County's Regional Planning Commission Celebrates 100 Years of Service
The first planning commissioners were appointed by the Board of Supervisors in 1923, making the Regional Planning Commission the oldest county planning commission in the United States.

Restoring the Vacant Middle: Creating Middle Housing Through Historic Preservation
How flexible zoning in historic districts can support preservation and create affordable housing.

Boba as a Symbol of Identity and Culture
The Chinese American Museum in L.A. currently features an exhibit exploring the drink’s journey from the cassava root in South America, to the tapioca balls in the Taiwanese confection, and back to the U.S. as a symbol of Asian American identity.

‘Facadism:’ Historical Preservation, Fakery—or a Little of Both?
Developers in cities like Oakland, California are turning to vintage architectural elements to inform building renovations, but this repackaging is far from traditional preservation work.

6 International Models of Urban Revitalization
The New York Times recently published an article exploring six cities from around the world reinventing themselves for the 21st century: Paris, Sydney, Medellin, Lisbon, Singapore, and Durban.

The Pseudoscientific Foundations of Racist Planning Practices
Racist and colonialist narratives in old geography textbooks help explain the prevalence of segregationist and discriminatory policies and other nasty planning practices. It’s time to understand and reconcile.

Biden Designates a New National Monument in West Texas
The Castner Range National Monument in West Texas is the second of two new national monuments announced by President Joe Biden this week.

Houston Leaders Debate Merits of ‘Conservation Districts’ Proposal
A proposal by the city’s mayor would create a new type of preservation district designed to protect historic structures and slow gentrification.
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