The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

San Francisco's Bicycle 'Policy Framework'

San Francisco moves closer to being bicycle-friendly by approving a policy framework to make pro-bicycle planning part of The City's general plan.

May 20 - San Francisco Examiner

Are College Campuses Turning Into Country Clubs?

As competition for students heats up, universities are expanding campuses and physical amenities.

May 19 - Wall St. Journal

Trinity River Restoration Finally On Track

Plans for the California river finally overcome all obstacles.

May 19 - Los Angeles Times

Cleveland Supercenter Plans Revived

Labor interests and city council are concerned about the fate of neighborhood stores.

May 19 - The Cleveland Plain Dealer

McMansions or 'Recycled Homes'?

Homeowners calls them McMansions. Developers consider them reinvesting and recycling homes.

May 19 - Housing Zone


Planning For A Peaceful Palestine

A plan for Palestine reimagines the landspace and the Palestinian experience with a high-speed train liking major towns and cities.

May 19 - The New York Times

Chaos To Condos: Lower Manhattan's Rebirth

rly four years after 9/11, there are more homes, grassy parks -- and new challenges, too.

May 19 - The Christian Science Monitor


U.S. Senate Approves $295 Billion Transportation Bill

In defiance of the White House, the U.S. Senate approved a $295 billion highway and mass transit bill.

May 19 - The New York Times

Mall Builder Bets On Sprawl

Arizona's Vestar Development strikes early in less-populated suburbs with huge malls that anticipate growth.

May 19 - The Arizona Republic

Interview With The Author of 'A Field Guide To Sprawl'

An extensive interview with Dolores Hayden, the author of "A Field Guide to Sprawl" and "Building Suburbia."

May 19 - UnionDocs

Bush Has A '60s Flashback

The Bush administration is backing away from urban programs that Republicans of a generation ago supported.

May 19 - California Planning and Development Report

Wal-Mart Gives In To City's Demands

Wal-Mart modified its standard store design to satisfy the City of Ottawa's requirements for a unique landscape and architectural design that fostered a pedestrian environment.

May 18 - The Ottawa Citizen

Does Bad GIS Data Equal Hidden Taxes?

Does unreliable data and analysis result in hidden taxes in the form of higher costs for infrastructure?

May 18 - American Planning Association

Talks Underway To Turn Old Rail Line Into Trail

King County and the BNSF Railway in Seattle have begun negotiations to build 47-mile 'super-trail' over existing rail line.

May 18 - The Seattle Times

When The Biggest Tourist Attraction Is The Biggest Polluter

Hawaii's Kilauea Volcano is the state's most popular tourist attractions, but also by far the state's worst source of air pollution.

May 18 - Environmental News Network

Houston Needs Innovative Traffic Solutions

Can combining technology, incentives and HOV lanes solve Houston's traffic problems?

May 18 - The Houston Chronicle

BLOG POST

The Powerful Advantage of Open Source

<img src="http://www.technologyreview.com/articles/05/06/images/feature_linux.gif" alt="Linux v. Microsoft" align="right" />This article, <a href="http://www.technologyreview.com/articles/05/06/issue/feature_linux.asp?trk=nl">How Linux Could Overthrow Microsoft</a>, in MIT's <em>Technology Review</em> caught me off-guard.<br /> <br /> The article is a fascinating overview of the open source and proprietary software models. It appears to be well-researched and written, and makes a compelling case for open source:<br /> <br /> <blockquote>...For all its flaws, the open-source model has powerful advantages. The deepest and also most interesting of these advantages is that, to put it grossly, open source takes the bullshit out of software. It severely limits the possibility of proprietary "lock-in"--where users become hostage to the software vendors whose products they buy...</blockquote>

May 18 - Chris Steins

Wal-Mart Drops Twin Wal-Mart Concept

The large chain had planned to circumvent a local law in place for size-caps on retail stores.

May 18 - The Washington Post

Why Enviromentalism Doesn't Work In Urban Areas

The environmental movement makes no plans for economic development -- something that is vital for environmental growth in inner-city communities.

May 18 - AlterNet

Harnessing The Power Of Gentrification

Washington D.C.'s New Communities program sells market rate housing to help subsidize adjacent low-income homes, but do the city's poor really benefit?

May 18 - The Washington Post

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A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.

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.