Land Use
Patches of Grass Attract Unexpected Users
In Abu Dhabi, medians and 'leftover spaces' are attracting unanticipated users playing soccer, exercising or just hanging out. Planners are grappling with why people use these spaces and the public parks they've designed are less successful.
Can Dallas Densify?
The Dallas City Council ponders a form-based code, designed to encourage neighborhoods where driving isn't required to get around.
German Suburbs: Look Familiar?
According to Kirk Rogers, European suburbs are not all that different from American ones--they indulge the need for space, good schools, and cars-- and they're there to stay.
On Molokai, A Development is Stopped
The plan: 200 luxury homes on Molokai's waterfront, in exchange for jobs and preserving thousands of acres of land. Locals fought the compromise, and the economic shift brought an abrupt halt to the project- dragging other businesses down with it.
Cooling Markets May Halt Sprawl in Maine
For decades, development in Maine sprawled away from cities and across the landscape. The flailing economy may be the only thing that can change the pattern.
New Suburbs Attract New Wildlife
Around Puget Sound, the spreading suburban fringe is changing the types of birds that live in those areas, pushing some out and attracting others. 'It's a change in who's top,' says a local biologist.
Obama Puts Focus on Public Works
President-elect Barack Obama has announced a promise to institute a broad-ranging package of building programs, from infrastructure to schools -- the nation's largest public works program since the post-war era.
Zoning Out Bikini Car Washes
San Antonio's city council attempts to make it harder for bikini carwashes to attract oglers by forcing them to accept a new zoning category.
Rural Town Brings in Students for Preliminary Planning
Middlebury College students have been commissioned to simply get to know Starksboro, Vermont for a semester. The hope is that their findings will help develop a plan that embraces growth while upholding the things unique to the small town.
Duany Not a Fan of Modern British Architecture
Architect Andres Duany spoke in front of architects on Tuesday, pointing out 50 years of mistakes made by architects and planners in the UK.
Effect of California's New Anti-Sprawl Law Uncertain
Clearly it has aroused enormous excitement and hope amongst California's smart growth advocates, but the new anti-sprawl, greenhouse gas-reducing law, SB 375, may do more in the tone it sets than in the changes its supporters hope it makes.
Clearing the Way for Mixed-Use, But Economy Puts Projects On Hold
The people of Salt Lake City have gotten behind the switch to mixed-use, and developers have been clearing away old sprawl. But the flailing economy has put projects on hold, leaving the city with a landscape full of holes.
L.A Billboard Policy 'Worst in Nation'
Kevin Fry, president of Scenic America, explains the threat to the urban fabric posed by lax billboard policies. He also explains how cities can avoid L.A.'s problems enforcing outdoor advertising codes.
Energy Companies Get No 'Parting Gift' from BLM
The Bureau of Land Management hasn't gone through with its plans to auction off leases on land, apparently intended to be explored for oil and gas.
Cities: Use What You've Got
According to Philip Myrick, communities that will fare the best economically are the ones that think locally and employ placemaking strategies.
NOLA Medical Campus to Replace Historic Buildings
A proposed New Orleans hospital will have to be built on top of an historic neighborhood that some residents feel that they have just regained. Those in favor of the project insist that the selection of that site was necessary.
From Garbage Hole to Park
Turning a New York landfill into a park may just reorganize the way people think about public parks in America.
ACLU Takes RLUIPA Case in Pennsylvania
Evangelical pastor Rev. Jack L. Wisor was giving shelter to four homeless people in his church in downtown Brookville, PA. When he was ordered to move them on a zoning violation, Wisor - and the ACLU - sued the city.
L.A. Freeway Cap Park Edges Towards Feasibility
For years, citizens have been calling for a freeway cap and park in Hollywood. Now, a preliminary design has been released and advocates say work could begin as soon as 2012 -- if funding comes through.
A New 'Wave' On Toronto's Waterfront
Toronto has created new public space where there was none, building a curvy wooden plaza designer Adriaan Geuze calls a 'WaveDeck' directly over the water.
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
