History / Preservation

Hiking Trail

Grand Canyon Development Plans Will Wait Another Year

The Navajo Nation is not moving forward with a controversial plan to build a tram that would connect tourists from the rim of the bottom of the Grand Canyon, along with commercial and retail space. The proposal isn't totally dead yet, however.

April 21, 2017 - The Arizona Republic

Demolition

Texas State Legislator Targets Historic Preservation for Demolition

A bill under consideration in the Texas House of Representatives would tie the hands of preservationists, making it much easier for building owners to demolish or alter buildings without regard to historic significance.

April 19, 2017 - Houston Chronicle

Renderings Alamo Master Plan

A First Look at the Alamo's $450 Million Master Plan

The Alamo's 300th birthday is coming up in 2024, and a $450 million project to reimagine the Alamo Plaza aims to make a visit to the historic site a more memorable experience.

April 16, 2017 - Rivard Report

Texas

Design Activism, Texas-Style

With suburban sprawl a long-standing issue in Texas, one San Antonio-based architecture firm is aiming to strengthen and revitalize its city's downtown core.

April 10, 2017 - Doggerel

Long Beach Viewer

A Glimpse Into The Past On The Streets of Long Beach

Viewers installed throughout downtown Long Beach gives visitors a glimpse into the city's past.

April 8, 2017 - Modern Cities

D.C. Metro

D.C. Metro's Recent Controversial Decision: Painting Over Brutalism

Controversy erupted last week in Washington, D.C., after D.C. Metro decided to paint Union Station's vaulted ceilings—a famous icon of the District, it's regional transit system, and the architectural style of Brutalism.

April 6, 2017 - WAMU

Shotgun Homes, New Orleans

Restore Old Affordable Homes, Or Build Anew?

Fighting a plan to develop new affordable housing, some residents of Apalachicola, Florida prefer an effort to restore the town's dilapidated, though historic, housing stock.

April 2, 2017 - The New York Times

Modern Kitchen

The Revenge of the Kitchen

Long relegated to the back of the house, the kitchen as utility space is being replaced by the modern show kitchen. Located squarely front-of-house, newer kitchens often reinstate the "great room" idea.

March 31, 2017 - Construction Dive

Fresno State

FresYes: How Fresno Fueled and Funded a Comeback

Recently termed-out Mayor Ashley Swearengin sits down for an exclusive interview about how she planned for high speed rail investments, championed sustainable water management, and took steps to rebuild the local economy.

March 30, 2017 - The Planning Report

paris

Crumbling Of Democracy Bodes Ill For Urban Design

Ironically, some of the greatest architecture of the past came from the most nefarious of sources: monarchies and dictatorships. Democratic design, though, can be bland and generic. What of design in our new undemocratic age?

March 13, 2017 - Common Edge

Bunker Hill

Los Angeles' Iconic Angels Flight Railway To Utilize P3 Model

After appearing in the film La La Land, the world-renowned, iconic, 116-year-old Angels Flight will reopen to the public after a three-year modernization process.

March 10, 2017 - The Planning Report

National Monuments

Revoking a National Monument Not Easy, Even with Republican Congress

But that's no reason not to try, figures Republican Rep. Rob Bishop of Utah, chair of the powerful House Natural Resources Committee, who has his sights on the Bears Ears National Monument, barely a month old.

February 8, 2017 - NPR

The Tenderloin

Nation's First Transgender Cultural Historic District Coming to San Francisco

Developers will fund the Compton's Cafeteria Transgender, Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual District to quell opposition to a proposed mixed-use development in the Tenderloin neighborhood of San Francisco.

February 4, 2017 - The Architect's Newspaper

Boyle Heights

A Community Planning Process—Even a Good One—Is Not Enough

Simply inviting residents to participate in design charrettes or a community planning process does not mitigate the significant loss they feel as they witness the physical destruction of their homes and lived history.

January 31, 2017 - Shelterforce/Rooflines

Kansas City Bridge

The Other $1 Trillion Infrastructure Plan

President Trump is not the only one proposing a huge infrastructure plan—Senate Democrats have their own. The cost is the same, but financing is different. The Democrats' plan does just what Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell warned against.

January 31, 2017 - The Hill

Jefferson City, Missouri

Missouri Tax Reform Package Targets Housing and Preservation Tax Credits

Republicans in Missouri want to reduce taxes for corporations, so they are reducing tax credits for affordable housing, infrastructure, and historic preservation.

January 30, 2017 - St. Louis Public Radio

Little Tokyo

Preserving the Character of Little Tokyo

In the wake of rapid gentrification, an organization in Los Angeles is leveraging the arts to celebrate a community's rich heritage and keep social equity a priority.

January 30, 2017 - Shelterforce/Rooflines

Houston Astrodome

Houston's Astrodome Finally a State Antiquities Landmark

The arc of history has bent back to the Astrodome.

January 28, 2017 - Houston Chronicle

Los Angeles Downtown Historic Core

A Survey of State Historic Tax Credits

Historic tax credits are common at the state level—though they are contested and championed on a recurring basis all over the country.

January 25, 2017 - National Trust For Historic Preservation

Friday Eye Candy: A Mashup of New York and Paris of the 1920s

Paris and New York, seamlessly photoshopped together—that's a cause we can get behind.

January 20, 2017 - CityLab

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.