The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Tony Hsieh, CEO of shoe retailer Zappos.com, wants to change how people think about Las Vegas and create a more people- (and business-) friendly community downtown.

March 19 - Las Vegas Sun

Analyst Vikram Mansharamani thinks China's construction bubble is going to burst, and he says the number of skyscrapers going up in the country is a clear indicator.

March 19 - Tech Ticker

Randy Salzman says that Australian cities like Perth and Melbourne have found "the key to moving individual transportation behavior away from the convenience of the single-occupancy vehicle."

March 19 - Miller-McCune

This video from <em>Streetfilms</em> explains the concept of congestion pricing and looks at how it can affect cities and their mobility.

March 19 - Streetfilms

As one of the highest ranking federal officials to take on the role of city mayor, newly elected Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel could provide a boon to his city and others.

March 19 - Governing

It's official, says the EPA: Living in a TOD reduces greenhouse gas emissions more than living in a green, single family home and driving a Prius. The study places major emphasis on local land use decisions in an effort to fight climate change.

March 18 - New Urban Network

Planner Sam Gennawey uncovers the inspirations and influences that Walt Disney was pulling from in designing his unbuilt "Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow," a real city of 20,000 people that was to go where the EPCOT theme park is today.

March 18 - MiceAge

Are parks landscapes or infrastructures -- or can they be both? This question is broached in this wide-reaching interview on the role of parks in cities with landscape architect Gerdo Aquino.

March 18 - Archinect

As it prepares to host the 2014 Winter Olympics, the Russian resort city of Sochi has transformed from a "blank slate" into the "world's biggest construction site".

March 18 - Business Insider

This slideshow from <em>Grist</em> takes a tour of the top ten cities in the world for walking.

March 18 - Grist

In an effort to encourage thinking about the future of the city, a new group of urban planners/artists has created a series of posters depicting imagined urban developments in New Orleans and posted them around town.

March 18 - Places

Plans to build a football stadium in downtown Los Angeles hinge on more than football. A major element in making the idea work financially for the city is to make it an attractive site for conventions and conferences.

March 18 - Los Angeles Times

America's first public parks were cemeteries. But over time, they've moved from the center of town to the edges. A new book looks at the history of these places of the dead.

March 18 - The Atlantic

Suburban areas are increasingly in the sights of planners and designers who are thinking of new ways to reform the sprawled out land use patterns. This interview looks at how those efforts relate to Houston.

March 18 - Transportation Nation

In 2006, Kaohsiung City recorded a paltry 4.3 percent share for public transportation usage. In the years since, the Kaohsiung City government launched an ambitious plan to increase ridership in Taiwan’s second largest urban area.

March 18 - TheCityFix.com

Urban Omnibus takes of tour of Queens' Jackson Heights neighborhood with author Suketu Mehta, exploring the vibrant urban culture that has permeated the neighborhood even before Mehta's family moved in in 1977.

March 17 - Urban Omnibus

Blair Kamin says that Chicago's new master plan for the Lakeview neighborhood is full of big and "audacious" ideas, including a park under the El and many pedestrian improvements.

March 17 - The Chicago Tribune

FEATURE

Our annual list of the 10 best planning, design, and development websites represents some of the top online resources for news, information and research on the built environment.

March 17 - Abhijeet Chavan

Census data shows that Lacrosse, WA (pop. 315) and other small, rural towns are getting smaller. Some blame the Conservation Reserve Program. But Lacrosse and many others aren't going quietly - they're fighting to hang on.

March 17 - The Spokesman-Review

A 2001 study showed that we can save more oil by building more fuel-efficient cars than by expanding drilling under U.S. soil or in our oceans. Deron Lovaas sees black gold in our cities and suburbs.

March 17 - NRDC Blog