Ontario

The Contrasting Urban Outlooks of Canada's Big City Mayors

In Canada, the mayors of two of the country's biggest cities are at the opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to cities and urban issues.

February 17, 2011 - The Toronto Star

Unstoppable Toronto

Toronto is growing up, up, up, with a very hot downtown condominium market, including a number of very small (500 sq. ft.) apartments for young professionals.

January 23, 2011 - The National Post

The Unfortunate and Persistent Reality of Sprawl in Toronto

Sprawl is seen as an unfortunate reality in Toronto, and one that some fear it's too late to unwrite.

January 18, 2011 - The Toronto Star

End of an Era in Toronto

Toronto Star critic Christopher Hume predicts a lackluster 2011 for Toronto -- both in terms of architecture and urbanism.

January 11, 2011 - The Toronto Star

Niagara Falls, New York: The Epitome of Bad Urban Planning

An extensive piece in Bloomsburg BusinessWeek uncovers the bad ideas and worse decisions that led to the downfall of Niagara Falls, New York. Step one? Replacing the historic downtown with "a bunch of modernist follies."

December 25, 2010 - On Street Level

New Toronto Mayor Kills Transit Dreams

The newly installed mayor of Toronto has swiftly abandoned an $8.1 billion mass transit plan for the city.

December 3, 2010 - The Toronto Star

Can Planning Rebuild "Ghettos of the Mind"?

Dehumanizing urban renewal-era public housing developments across North America are being replaced by mixed-use, mixed income neighborhoods with affordable housing. Yet in Regent Park, Toronto at least, many troubling social problems remain.

December 2, 2010 - The Globe and Mail

The Most Miserable City in Canada

Toronto takes the crown in a new study from the Canadian Centre for the Study of Living Standards, ranking lowest in happiness for the country.

November 28, 2010 - Yahoo News

New Toronto Mayor Backs Away From Anti-Streetcar Sentiment

Toronto's mayor-elect had campaigned on a platform that included plans to ditch the city's streetcar system. Now he seems to be backing away from that stance.

October 27, 2010 - The Toronto Star

Brownfields Into Beaches

Alex Bozikovic hits the beach with his son at a new public space in Toronto: Sugar Beach, an urban park built on a former industrial site.

September 8, 2010 - No Mean City

Mapping Toronto's Class Divide

Richard Florida plots the geography of class on a map of Toronto to show the deep economic divisions at work in an almost "completely post industrial," city.

August 28, 2010 - Creative Class

Learning From and Reshaping the Urban Food System

With her Foodprint project, Nicola Twilley wondered what one could learn about a city by looking at it through the lens of food. In this piece on Urban Omnibus she shares what she's learned.

August 19, 2010 - Urban Omnibus

All-Ages Design in Toronto

Designing cities for all age groups means designing places where everyone from kids to seniors can feel safe walking, according to this column. Groups in Toronto are calling on mayoral candidates to get behind that idea.

August 13, 2010 - The Toronto Star

Cycling in Toronto Leaves Much to Be Desired

Toronto Star architecture critic Christopher Hume blasts the city's lackluster bicycle planning efforts, calling them disjointed.

August 10, 2010 - The Toronto Star

Turning Car Parking into Bike Parking

This post from Spacing Toronto gives a personal look at the conversion of a car parking space into a bicycle parking area -- and how quickly the facility filled up.

July 15, 2010 - Spacing Toronto

Electricity and Urban Vulnerability

In the aftermath of a brief power blackout that basically shut down large parts of Toronto, Marcus Gee ponders the vulnerability of modern cities and their "pathetic" dependence on electricity.

July 6, 2010 - The Globe and Mail

Auckland's Privatized Transit a Warning for Toronto

As part of their "free advice" to Toronto's next mayor, that city's business lobby group the Board of Trade is recommending that the city privatize its public transit services. Bad idea, says Jim Stanford.

June 16, 2010 - The Globe and Mail

Seeking Quality Not Quantity for Toronto's Bike Network

The head of Toronto's Cycling Committee is calling on the city to shift its focus from the quantity of bike lanes it creates to the quality of connections their planned infrastructure will create in the city's existing bike network.

June 1, 2010 - The Toronto Star

Legal Case Argues for Right to Housing in Ontario

A coalition of social welfare organizations in Ontario is preparing a legal case compelling the federal and Ontario governments to provide affordable housing as a human right.

May 28, 2010 - The Globe and Mail

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.