The Daily Source of Urban Planning News

Subway Train Under Full Surveillance

In an effort to deter crime, the New York MTA is planning to fully equip one subway train with security cameras that record every inch of the interior.

July 30 - The New York Times

London's Sexiest Olympics Architecture is for its Infrastructure

As it prepares to host the 2012 Summer Olympics, the City of London is getting closer to completion on some of its event-related infrastructure. So far, the best buildings are more nuts-and-bolts than flash, according to this piece.

July 30 - Blueprint

FEATURE

Visualizing and Analyzing Plans with CityCAD

Planning technology expert Charles A. Donley reviews a new piece of software that combines the worlds of Computer-Aided Design and Geographic Information Systems to help site planners visualize and analyze their plans.

July 30 - Charles A. Donley, AICP

Top Cities for Young Canadians

Focusing on aspects like earning potential and lifestyle cost, a consulting group has determined the 20 best Canadian cities for young people.

July 30 - The Vancouver Sun

Un-Damming America's Rivers

Dams are increasingly being removed in the U.S. as part of an effort to save fish.

July 30 - Good


'Invisible' Cities Want Bigger Role in Climate Bill

Officials in big cities are expressing disappointment that the House-approved climate bill looks to state capitals for guidance, not the metropolitan areas the bill will largely impact.

July 30 - The New York Times

Exporting the Impoverished

The City of New York has been spending thousands of dollars to send people out of the city -- opting to pay for one-way plane tickets instead of providing social services.

July 30 - The New York Times


BLOG POST

The Baltimore Red Line: Maximizing Benefits and Minimizing Impact

An account of planning for the Red Line Project in Baltimore.

July 29 - Tamika Camille Gauvin

Oh, Who Are the People in Your Neighborhood?

Researchers at the Pew Charitable Trust have found that the neighborhood in which a child is raised is a powerful indicator of adult economic success.

July 29 - The Washington Post

A Cost-Benefit Analysis for High Speed Rail

In the first of a series of posts to the NYTimes' Economix Blog, Edward Glaeser explores the value of high-speed rail in the US.

July 29 - Economix Blog: NYTimes

Midwest Governors Coordinate to Seek High Speed Rail Funding

At the Midwest High Speed Rail Summit today in Chicago, an agreement was struck between eight states to work cooperatively to achieve Recovery Act funding to develop the Chicago Hub High Speed Rail Corridor - also called the Midwest corridor.

July 29 - Environmental News Service

Water Tunnel Beneath Bay to Protect San Francisco in Face of Quake

Utilities officials in the San Francisco Bay Area are hoping to secure their water resources in the face of another devastating earthquake by building a 5-mile long water tunnel beneath the Bay.

July 29 - San Jose Mercury News

BLOG POST

Vancouver approves Laneway Housing and "Suites within Suites"

<p> <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial">A quick post to note that on Tuesday of last week, Vancouver City Council unanimously approved bylaws to put into place Vancouver&#39;s new &quot;suites within suites&quot; housing option, across the City. Also referred to as &quot;lock-off suites&quot;, these secondary suites within apartments are meant to represent an opportunity for housing flexibility, with such suites usable as a rental mortgage helper (a “mortgage helper in the sky”, as one article puts it), a separated but related unit for an elderly parent or aging teenager, a unit for a care-giver, or any other relationship an apartment owner might need.

July 29 - Brent Toderian

Remaking the Suburbanized Metropolis of Paris

This piece from <em>Worldchanging</em> takes an in-depth look at the competition to redesign metropolitan Paris for the year 2030.

July 29 - WorldChanging

Herb-an Planning

Medical marijuana dispensaries are in high supply in Los Angeles. But without zoning regulations to determine where they should and should not go, the dispensaries are causing some concerns from locals.

July 29 - KCET

'Fertile Crescent' Doomed by Century's End

Water projects and diversion efforts in Iran, Iraq, Turkey and Syria are draining the marshlands near the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, known as the 'Fertile Crescent'.

July 29 - New Scientist

U.S. Behind in Drive for Clean Energy

China, South Korea and Japan are all investing teh equivalent of hundreds of billions of dollars in clean energy technologies, while the U.S. is debating a mere 1.2 billion in the Waxman-Markey bill.

July 29 - San Francisco Chronicle

Jane Jacobs vs. Robert Moses

A review by John King of Anthony Flint's new book, <em>Wrestling With Moses: How Jane Jacobs Took On New York's Master Builder and Transformed the American City.</em>

July 29 - The San Francisco Chronicle

Reset America

Author Kurt Andersen's new book describes the last three decades as a period of wanton growth, from homes to waistlines. He sees the economic bust as a way to return sanity and size appropriateness.

July 29 - Boing Boing

Top Cities for Local Food

The Huffington Post offers a mouth-watering slide show of the top 10 cities for locavores, and asks readers for suggestions of examples they might have missed [Slideshow]

July 28 - Huffington Post

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.