New York City

Working Families Charged Rent to Live in New York Shelters

Families who have income will now be charged a small rent to stay in public housing shelters in New York City, part of a 1997 state law that had up until now gone unenforced.

May 12, 2009 - The New York Times

Ground Zero Plans Taking Shape, But Still Troubled

The long-delayed and troubled design for Manhattan's Ground Zero site has undergone some improvements and been revealed in a new model. But as New York Times architecture critic Nicolai Oroussoff notes, the design is still lacking.

May 12, 2009 - The New York Times

New Plaza Conversion Projects Chosen For New York City

Nine new sites have been selected by New York City's Department of Transportation for conversion into public plazas.

May 4, 2009 - Streetsblog

The Contested Future of Coney Island

Redeveloping Coney Island could be the biggest rezoning effort in New York City history. The controversial plan has many in the city up in arms.

April 27, 2009 - New York Daily News

Plans for Retrofitting, Audits Announced for NYC

In a step toward accomplishing PlaNYC's goal of reducing the city's carbon emissions by 30% in the next twenty years, Mayor Bloomberg has announced that larger buildings will be retrofitted to be more energy efficient.

April 24, 2009 - The Architect's Newspaper

The Best Laid Plans of New York City's Building Boom

This slideshow from New York looks at a handful of residential and office buildings in New York City that have either stalled or completely halted development.

April 22, 2009 - New York

New York's Unprecedented Park

Preconceptions and lofty goals surround New York's soon-to-open High Line park. But the unprecedented inner city rail line conversion leaves much up in the air, according to this piece from The Architect's Newspaper.

April 20, 2009 - The Architect's Newspaper

The Birth of the Map of the Cool

Certain parts of the city generate "buzz" -- through events, parties, or other attractions. Just how much buzz they create is hard to nail down. But a new study focusing on L.A. and New York seeks to quantify the cool factor that makes places pop.

April 9, 2009 - The New York Times

Bronx Boomer

Big-name and big-budget projects in New York are basking in the spotlight, but smaller, community-based projects are also flourishing in the Bronx.

April 2, 2009 - The Architect's Newspaper

Urban Bicycle Theft, a Fact of Life

In this City Room post, J. David Goodman blogs about his observations on bicycle theft in New York City--arguably the bike theft capital of the world.

April 2, 2009 - The New York Times

One City, Two New Stadia

Paul Goldberger looks at the two new baseball stadia opening in New York this Spring.

March 30, 2009 - The New Yorker

New York City: Light it Right

What light is right? How much is too much? These questions don't typically get asked in cities, as they simply rely on what they've always done. But now the Municipal Art Society in New York is bringing these issues to the table.

March 29, 2009 - The New Yorker

San Francisco Plans Pedestrian Street

San Francisco is looking to follow New York City's lead as it moves forward with plans to convert a portion of street into a pedestrian plaza.

March 26, 2009 - Streetsblog SF

New York's 'Slaughtered Neighborhoods'

Likening the impact of the economic crisis to a dirty bomb or a "second 9/11", Tom Engelhardt takes the reader on a tour of what remains of his once-vibrant New York neighborhood.

March 24, 2009 - TomDispatch

New York's Post-Bubble Future

The economic downturn and burst of the real estate bubble have thrown a wrench into New York City's broad plans for redevelopment and environmental redesign. This piece looks at what lies ahead for the city.

March 19, 2009 - The New York Times

Where's the Weird?

Architectural eccentricity is becoming a rarity in New York, as evidenced by the demolition of the O'Toole Building--a fairly weird building.

March 19, 2009 - New York Magazine

Public Housing Elevators Under Scrutiny

Records show that there have been about 300 injuries related to faulty New York public housing elevators since 2001. Ironically, a problem stemming from chronic underfunding has cost the Housing Authority $3.5 million in settlements over six years.

March 18, 2009 - The New York Times

Art to Bring New York Plaza Back to the Public

In an effort to reclaim a public plaza at the foot of the Manhattan Bridge that was demolished in the 1960s by Robert Moses, artist Brian Tolle is reconstructing the statues that once adorned the plaza.

March 14, 2009 - Bloomberg

Broadway Opening is a Leap Towards Better American Cities

This month's Broadway "opening" proposal is as much a clarion to the new thinking of public street space in America as it is a gift to the people of New York City.

March 10, 2009 - Ian Sacs

How to Make BRT Work for New York City

In this fourth and final installment on Bus Rapid Transit, Streetsblog and Walter Hook discuss how to make BRT work along 1st or 2nd Avenue--two ready-made BRT corridors.

March 5, 2009 - Streetsblog

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.

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.