With rapidly urbanizing metro areas, some cities are not looking to build up, or spread out, anymore. Rather they have begun to grow into underground spaces.
Flavia Krause-Jackson, Kati Pohjanpalo, and Sharon Chen contributed to a piece in Bloomberg News regarding underground development. With limited space, and sky-rocketing real estate prices, some cities are looking down to create much needed space.
As Clara Irazábal, assistant professor at the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation at Columbia University, shared with the writers, "[t]here are real opportunities to develop underground to accommodate density for cities that are already overcrowded or growing... It can expand efficiency, reduce commuting times and improve quality of life."
A perfect example is in the third-most densest sovereign nation, Singapore. With a huge population of 5.4 million crammed onto a tiny 277 square mile island, wealthy Singapore's skyline is already jammed with more than 4,000 high-rises. This month, Singapore opened an underground oil-storage facility, "freeing space three times the size of New York’s Grand Central Station for chemical manufacturing above ground. The project caps a 30-year effort to create a petrochemical hub. It began when officials merged seven offshore islets and then spent S$950 million ($749 million) to dig rock caverns that can hold enough liquid hydrocarbon to fill 600 Olympic-sized swimming pools."
The piece describes efforts utilizing underground space in places like Helsinki, Beijing, and New York City.
FULL STORY: People Plunge Underground to Work and Play as Streets Above Get Crazy Crowded
Hotels Could Play a Critical Role in Containing Coronavirus in Crowded Cities
Some cities are leasing entire hotels to provide rooms for people who have tested positive for COVID-19 or been exposed to infected people, to allow for safe and supportive isolation away from family or household members who risk being infected.
Asian, Australian Property Markets Begin to Cool
Markets for residential property income of East Asia's most expensive cities are slowing down. The U.S.-China trade war is one factor, along with local controls and a mainland Chinese economy applying the brakes.
New York City Congestion Pricing Plan Deserves to Move Forward
Congestion pricing, done right (details matter), mitigates a downside of urban density: traffic congestion. Professor John Rennie Short explores the history of congestion pricing, its application in Singapore and London, and why it's good for NYC.
What ‘The Brutalist’ Teaches Us About Modern Cities
How architecture and urban landscapes reflect the trauma and dysfunction of the post-war experience.
‘Complete Streets’ Webpage Deleted in Federal Purge
Basic resources and information on building bike lanes and sidewalks, formerly housed on the government’s Complete Streets website, are now gone.
The VW Bus is Back — Now as an Electric Minivan
Volkswagen’s ID. Buzz reimagines its iconic Bus as a fully electric minivan, blending retro design with modern technology, a 231-mile range, and practical versatility to offer a stylish yet functional EV for the future.
Healing Through Parks: Altadena’s Path to Recovery After the Eaton Fire
In the wake of the Eaton Fire, Altadena is uniting to restore Loma Alta Park, creating a renewed space for recreation, community gathering, and resilience.
San Diego to Rescind Multi-Unit ADU Rule
The city wants to close a loophole that allowed developers to build apartment buildings on single-family lots as ADUs.
Electric Vehicles for All? Study Finds Disparities in Access and Incentives
A new UCLA study finds that while California has made progress in electric vehicle adoption, disadvantaged communities remain underserved in EV incentives, ownership, and charging access, requiring targeted policy changes to advance equity.
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.
City of Albany
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research