Design

Toward a More Sightly Future for Public Notice Signs
Public notice signs rarely garner much attention. Atlanta's planning department is changing that by partnering with a private design firm. The result? More striking signage.

Higher Quality Won't Prevent NIMBYism
Some argue that neighborhoods will be willing to accept new housing as long as it is high quality; this argument overlooks a wide variety of other objections to new housing.

The Scourge of Setbacks
Accepted by planners as a way to make buildings feel less 'crowded' and baked into many zoning codes, setbacks achieve no benefit other than giving opponents of development a bargaining chip.

Solar Power Turning Energy Consumers Into Energy Producers
As the energy grid evolves to accommodate more and more solar energy, conflicts emerge.

Could Algorithms Best Architects in Designing Variety for the Suburbs?
What if an algorithm could meet the needs of the economic system driving suburban housing development while also designing more diverse building types? One architect has already experimented with this provocative thought experiment.

Building Trails
Designing trails means serving many masters. Those who do it professionally must balance aesthetics with practical concerns like drainage.

Duany on the Imperatives of Urban Design Codes
Andres Duany takes to the CNU's Public Square to argue for the critical need for codes in a built environment awash in mediocrity.

Op-Ed: San Francisco's New Urban Design Guidelines Could Backfire
John King argues that the city's new guidelines may leave too many loopholes open, potentially defeating their purpose: well-integrated new buildings.
Spotlighting the Women Shaping Seattle
The Urbanist is publishing a series of articles focusing on the leadership of women is shaping the past, present, and future of Seattle.

New York City Moving Beyond Manhattan
Citing several recent projects, Alan G. Brake argues that New York City is developing an urban identity that no longer transmits every experience through the lens of Manhattan.
'50s Researchers Saw Architects as Key to Understanding Creativity
What would Richard Neutra do with a third arm? UC Berkeley researchers once asked him that and more, for science.

Looking for Solutions in a World of Innovations
Current trends in the design community require a pointed question: "When everything is characterized as 'world-changing,' is anything?"

Solar Canopies Provide a Solution for New York Roofs
A design fix helps Brooklyn brownstones go green.
Who is NYCxDESIGN?
NYCxDESIGN, New York City’s annual celebration of design, recently wrapped up its fourth season. To learn more about who makes up the design community, photographer Charles Aydlett asked attendees how they would like to see design evolve in the city.

8 Lessons from the Paris Metro
Transportation planner Dan Malouff shares eight insights into what makes the Paris Metro one of the world's great subways.

New York Museum of Modern Art Closing its Architecture and Design Galleries
The first museum to have a "sustained department of architecture and design" is closing down its architecture and design galleries.
A Call for a New Design Advocacy Platform
Looking for a greater awareness of social responsibility, the founder and editor-in-chief of The Architect's Newspaper calls for a new organization tasked with advocacy in New York City.
Cautious Optimism in the Wake of COP21
With the historic climate agreement reached in Paris at COP21, what implications will it have on the architecture, engineering and design industries? Doggerel spoke to U.S. Green Building Council Chair-elect Fiona Cousins for her perspective.

Philadelphia Alleys Ranked for Makeover
In advance of what may be a wider program, Philadelphia's alleys have been ranked for their aesthetic quality. Those in the "average" range are most suitable for retrofits.

Landscape Architecture Unites Impact and Design
In a field that seems divided between aesthetes and the activists, landscape architects may be closest to reconciling the two trends.
Pagination
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.
Caltrans
Smith Gee Studio
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service