Kaid Benfield revisits the results of a plan to revitalize the town center of Plessis-Robinson, a suburb of Paris, with the suggestion that its success could inform similar efforts in the United States.
Begun in 1990, the revitalization of Plessis-Robinson consists of public buildings, retail, market-rate and subsidized affordable housing, parks, schools, gardens, sports facilities, and a hospital under the vision of creating "a highly walkable environment, while using locally sourced materials as much as possible, and preserving wetland habitat."
Completed after a decade of construction, the project was named "the best urban neighborhood built in the last 25 years" by the European Architecture Foundation. Benfield links to a video showing the town's progress and suggests that, "American suburban communities currently contemplating transformative updates, such as Dublin, Ohio, parts of Prince George's County, Maryland, and parts of Silicon Valley in California might do well to take note."
FULL STORY: Can US communities learn from this European suburban retrofit?
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Balancing Bombs and Butterflies: How the National Guard Protects a Rare Species
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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