The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Author William Gibson talks to Scientific American about how "the future's arrived," and the many ways you can see the future around you.

August 31 - Scientific American

Urban infill housing is becoming a major part of business for large homebuilders, even those building modular homes.

August 31 - Builder

A bill to forcibly disband the tiny city of Vernon, California and incorporate it into Los Angeles County failed to pass earlier this week on concerns that it would economically weaken the county.

August 31 - The Los Angeles Times

Local Tea Party activists gather 10,000 signatures to place an initiative on the ballot to remove Ventura's new parking meters, only to discover that they're pre-empted by the California Vehicle Code.

August 31 - Mayor Bill Fulton's blog

Nina Rappaport of UrbanOmnibus explores the history of the urban factory, examining the social, economic, and environmental benefits of the modern vertical factory industry.

August 31 - UrbanOmnibus

As millions of rural poor move into Chinese cities, the country's legal residency system is making life difficult for the illegal rural migrants.

August 31 - The New York Times

This infographic explains the new green techniques that will revise the way Philadelphia catches and processes stormwater.

August 31 - OnEarth Magazine

Neglected for decades, a group of tenement buildings in New York City are set to be renovated to provide a new source of affordable housing.

August 31 - The New York Observer

Google Maps searches include a pinpoint of what the search engine has determined are the centers of cities. One artist has built sculptures of those pinpoints in their real-life locations.

August 31 - Architizer

Unlike a state gas tax, SB 791 calls for regional planning agencies to prepare a measure to go before voters in their jurisdiction that would place a new fee on fuel to improve mobility, called a "regional congestion reduction charge".

August 30 - LA. Streetsblog

New government efforts in South Africa are trying to improve mobility for those who rely on public transportation, walking and biking.

August 30 - This Big City

Community organizers in Philadelphia are leading an effort to convert a disused elevated railway into a park.

August 30 - The Philadelphia Daily News

Graphic designer Tor Weeks captures the essence of the bicycle culture in San Francisco by classifying the types of bikes by neighborhood.

August 30 - The Huffington Post

When city leaders proposed redeveloping the South Lake Union area of Seattle, they made big promises for job growth. Just a few years in, their expectations have already been exceeded.

August 30 - The Seattle Times

Minorities are becoming the majority in the United States, and the shift is most pronounced in populations under one year of age.

August 30 - The Brookings Institution

With a high rate of foreclosure, Cleveland instituted a land bank to rein in rampant vacancies. After two years, the program has made some headway.

August 30 - NPR

Two separate developments are planning to bring supertall "observation wheels" to Las Vegas in an effort to bring tourists to the city as it struggles through the recession.

August 30 - MSNBC

Cities across California are proposing new stadium projects in hopes of luring football teams and economic growth as a result of their new megadevelopments.

August 30 - The Architect's Newspaper

The annual Burning Man festival is underway in Nevada, and this piece from <em>The New York Times</em> looks at the urban plan that undergirds the event.

August 30 - The New York Times

Tea Party activists have spoken out at regional planning meetings in California to protest what some consider conspiratorial plans to crush civil liberties under the guise of smart growth.

August 29 - California Planning & Development Report