Land Use
Bright Metro Futures Hinge on Transit
Creating transit, and planning around it, will be the key to success for metro areas, according to a new report from New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
Portrait of a Commuter Town
A NY Times profile of Suffern, NY focuses on real estate, but in the process creates a miniature of the struggles of all small towns- keeping the historic downtown vibrant, offering varied housing options, and competing with neighboring cities.
Location, Location, Location: Brought To You By GIS
A new GIS-based service promises to improve on real estate agents by using GIS data to locate promising sites to locate for business.
People Who Live Alone Are Big Energy Wasters
A new study from SMR Research Corporation reveals that people who live alone use 18% more energy than two-person households, and 30% more than three-person homes. McMansions are, or course, cited as big wasters.
Skyscraper Farms, Agriculture for the Future?
Thirty-story buildings used for crop-growing is a good idea on paper, but the challenges still outweigh the benefits.
Living at the Mall - Not Just a Figure of Speech
What comes next for the doomed, enclosed mall across America? This article highlights a number of solutions, including an adaptive reuse model that incorporates housing units inside the mall itself.
Oregon UGB Expanded
Bend, Oregon councilmembers took no more than five minutes to vote to expand the city's urban growth boundaries, adding nearly 9,000 acres of developable land to the city's map.
Obama Knows Jane Jacobs
Last summer in Toledo, former mayoral candidate Keith Wilkowski handed Barack Obama a book, saying it is the most important book about rebuilding cities. Obama responded, 'Is it Jane Jacobs?'
Cities and Cognitive Burnout
Compared to natural settings, busy urban environments can be detrimental to cognitive functioning and self-control. Well-designed, biodiverse parks are integral to counterbalancing the concrete jungle.
Inauguration Puts D.C. in Crowd Control Mode
The city of Washington D.C. is trying to get ready for the Presidential Inauguration -- likely to be the largest gathering of people in U.S. history.
The End of the Age of McMansions
Fewer teardowns and new home starts back up the perception that the age of the McMansion is coming to an end.
California's Biggest Land Use Story Is Not The Housing Market
The deepening of the housing market crisis is certainly a big deal in California. But the land use story of the year was the Legislature's passage of a measure mandating regional planning.
Obama Plan: Stimulating The Economy Or Sprawl?
Obama has compared the size of the stimulus package he wants to the 1956 National Highway Act. If the states have their way, it may be just that -- a new highway bill with little left for transit.
Bike Lane Controversy Drags On in Brooklyn
Brooklyn residents have built a makeshift detour sign in an attempt to redirect drivers away from their street. A new bike lane was implemented in the fall that has removed stop signs and, according to residents, made their street unsafe.
Planning Palestine
Suisman Urban Design was hired to design a theoretical Palestinian State, in the hopes that the plan might encourage the peace process. The plan was released in 2005, and has been gaining traction and admiration ever since.
Parks May Allow Bikes on Trails
The Interior Department is proposing a rule change for National Parks that would open thousands of miles of park trails to mountain bikes. Conflicts between bikers and hikers are expected.
Revisiting the Future of Ecotopia
Ecotopia is a '70s cult novel that imagines a future where the Pacific Northwest secedes from the U.S. to become an environmentally-conscious utopian state. The NY Times reflects on the influence of this under-recognized novel.
Unprecedented Urbanization
A new global map released by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre reveals that 95% of the world's population lives on 10% of the land.
Proposed Road Through Park Blocked
The federal government has blocked plans to build a 16-mile road through a Southern California state park, mainly over environmental concerns.
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.
EMC Planning Group, Inc.
Planetizen
Planetizen
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service
