Chicago
After a Lost Decade, How Can Chicago Get Back on Track?
Aaron M. Renn looks at Chicago's struggles over the last decade - one that saw the city "increasingly falling behind its large urban brethren" - and asks whether its aspirations for becoming a global city are delusional.
Chicago Works to Add People to its Places
On Wednesday, Mayor Rahm Emanuel kicked-off Chicago's “Make Way for People” program, an effort to "promote economic development and make Chicago streets safer for pedestrians," by transforming the city's paved surfaces into people places.
Can Chicago Eliminate Traffic Deaths?
Sarah Goodyear reports on the Windy City's ambitious plan to eliminate all traffic fatalities in the city within 10 years.
Will a New Plan for Chicago's Union Station Stick?
20 years after its last makeover, and with successive grand renovation plans developed and abandoned in between, last week saw the release of a new master plan for America's third-busiest railroad terminal, reports Fran Spielman.
So We've Got All This Data. Now What?
Ben Hecht offers his insights on what civic leaders should do to capitalize on big data and how efforts in Chicago are turning these ideas into reality.
Design for Chicago's Bloomingdale Trail Takes Shape
As it wraps up the first stage of a community planning progress, Alan G. Brake checks in on the latest designs for Chicago's answer to the High Line.
What Gets Left Behind in the Rush to Privatize Public Improvements?
As public-private partnerships to invest in aged urban infrastructure gain in popularity in Chicago, and across the country, Christopher Weber asks who will fund the improvements unaligned with corporate interests.
Chicago: America's Freight Rail Speed Bump
John Schwartz looks at Chicago's rail mess, which seems entirely inadequate a word to describe the "sprawling traffic jam" that keeps some rail traffic crawling through the city at an average speed of 1.13 miles per hour.
The High-Tech Urban Experience, Now Standardized
The seven largest metros in the nation are teaming up to unify the technologies that are revolutionizing life in the city, Steve Towns reports.
What Are the Biggest Challenges Facing America's Mayors?
Earlier this week, Charlie Rose hosted a roundtable discussion with the mayors of Chicago, Baltimore, Jacksonville, and Louisville on how they're working to revitalize their cities in challenging economic times.
The Dream Team Behind America's Transportation Revolution
In the first of a five-part series, Angie Schmitt pays tribute to three "visionary bureaucrats" who are changing the face of transportation in the United States.
How Can America's Infrastructure Challenges Be Solved?
Planetizen managing editor Jonathan Nettler recently spoke with Steven Anderson, founder and managing director of InfrastructureUSA, about the country's infrastructure challenges and how local communities are finding creative ways to solve them.
A Closer Look At Growth Data Showing An Urban Revival
On April 5, the U.S. Census Bureau released growth data from April 2010 to July 2011 showing that for the first time in 20 years, urban growth surpassed exurban growth. Yonah Freemark takes a closer look at the data for 21 metropolitan areas.
Bus Rapid Transit: from Adelaide to Zurich
Emily Badger profiles a new web-based information resource on all things BRT, launched this week by EMBARQ, with the International Energy Agency and the Bus Rapid Transit Centre of Excellence.
Decline in Chicago Parking Demands Have Developers Taking Notice
Mary E. Morrison reports on a precipitous drop in the percentage of renters leasing parking spaces in new downtown Chicago residential buildings, causing developers to rethink the way they build and market their buildings.
Emanuel Fills In the Details on Massive Chicago Infrastructure Plan
Today, Mayor Rahm Emanuel will sketch out a fuller picture of the ambitious $7 billion public-private plan to upgrade Chicago's transit, schools, and parks, reports John Schwartz.
America's Best Bike Cities
With gas prices at an all time high, bike riding has never looked better. Shermans Travel identifies the top cities to bike through, noting a bounty of amenities to save on costs for the urban biker.
'Stuck' in the City, Chicago Parents Yearn for Better Schools
A sluggish housing market has stemmed the flow of young parents into Chicago's suburbs, putting pressure on city officials to make public schools better, John Pletz reports.
Transportation Experts See Bright Future for Rail
Jeff McMahon explores the potential of passenger rail in coming years as automobiles and airplanes "become a little more obsolete."
Pagination
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