The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Who Should Pay For Citywide Wi-Fi?

Wireless networking is becoming an increasingly popular amenity for cities and town. But who will pay for it?

September 23 - Technology Review

Density Debate: Getting The Numbers Right

David Sucher examines the numbers cited in a recent Op-Ed about density.

September 23 - City Comforts Blog

Most Expensive Places To Own A Car

A management consulting firm publishes a study detailing the costliest places to own and operate a car.

September 23 - CNNMoney

Bridge Shutdown Prompts Groundbreaking Growth Study

Former opponents unite to find best solutions to sprawl.

September 23 - Michigan Land Use Institute

University Commits $75 Million To Turn Its Neighborhood Around

Cincinnati employers hope to raise $100 million more for related projects and job creation.

September 23 - The Cincinnati Enquirer


BLOG POST

Questions About Conservation Software

In recent years, many large conservation plans -- including the plan that led Australia to ban fishing on a third of the Great Barrier Reef -- were produced using a computer program called <a href="http://www.ecology.uq.edu.au/marxan.htm#about">Marxan</a>. <br /> <br /> <img src="http://www.ecology.uq.edu.au/marxan/fig3.jpg" align="right" alt="Marxan image" />Software developer and Australian professor Hugh P. Possingham is now raising questions about the validity of the software in certain circumstances, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/21/science/earth/21reef.html?8hpib">Second Thoughts for a Designer of Software That Aids Conservation</a>

September 22 - Chris Steins

New Museum On The Mall Blends History And Nature

The National Museum of the American Indian opens in Washington D.C.

September 22 - Voice Of America


Can Eminent Domain Benefit Private Developers?

A case that property rights advocates say may be the most important land use issue in decades goes before the Supreme Court September 27.

September 22 - Legal Times

Paris' Love-Hate Relationship With The Car

Paris is one of 1,100, most of them in Europe, to observe a "car-free" day.

September 22 - Yahoo! Newswire

A Silver Bullet For Downtown Phoenix

Downtown Phoenix will be reshaped if officials purchase $30 million worth of land for a downtown ASU campus.

September 22 - The Arizona Republic

When Architecture Tells A Story

A review of the new museum on the Washington Mall and a profile of the architect who designed it.

September 22 - The Seattle Times

Can Downtowns Survive?

An economist's reading of recent trends suggests the future of the downtown is anything but certain.

September 22 - Reason Public Policy Institute

Sovereignty Or Scam To Duck Zoning?

Joe Rodriguez says that what may appear to be an issue of Native American sovereignty may actually be a scam to skirt around local zoning laws.

September 22 - San Jose Mercury News

Unsprawl Case Study: Lenox Village, Nashville

The current issue of Terrain profiles Lenox Village, Nashville's first full-scale traditional neighborhood development.

September 22 - Terrain

Blueprint For An Oil-Free America

The Rocky Mountain Institute announces the release of "Winning the Oil Endgame: Innovation for Profits, Jobs, and Security", a market-based plan to eliminate oil dependence by 2050.

September 22 - Common Dreams

Oceans 212

A new report paints a dire picture for the future of the nation's lakes and oceans, and offers 212 specific recommendations.

September 22 - Naples Daily News

BLOG POST

My Kind of Town? Not So Much.

Today's <em>New York Times</em> has a kinda terrifying <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/21/national/21cameras.html">article</a> (reg. req'd) about Chicago's new network of "smart" surveillance cameras. Don't worry; <del>everything's going to be okay</del> we're all doomed:<br /> <blockquote>Police specialists here can already monitor live footage from about 2,000 surveillance cameras around the city, so the addition of 250 cameras under the mayor's new plan is not a great jump. The way these cameras will be used, however, is an extraordinary technological leap.<br /> <br /> Sophisticated new computer programs will immediately alert the police whenever anyone viewed by any of the cameras placed at buildings and other structures considered terrorist targets wanders aimlessly in circles, lingers outside a public building, pulls a car onto the shoulder of a highway, or leaves a package and walks away from it. Images of those people will be highlighted in color at the city's central monitoring station, allowing dispatchers to send police officers to the scene immediately.</blockquote>

September 21 - Anonymous

The Twisting Tower Of Venice

The new skyscrapers are unlike anything you may have seen before.

September 21 - The New York Times

Florida's Irresponsible Growth

Now that Hurricanes Charley and Frances are gone, critics are wondering if it is madness to continue to build (and rebuild) along an eroding shoreline.

September 21 - The Miami Herald

Elderly On Scooters Overrun Town

A government-sponsored explosion in the use of scooters by the elderly highlights need for sidewalks.

September 21 - CNN

Post News

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.

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.