Public Space

Robert E. Lee

Search the Location of the Nearest Confederate Monument

Public spaces are full of monuments to a rebellion fought to maintain slavery.

August 18, 2017 - Quartz

Charlottesville Downtown mall

Charlottesville and the 'War Against Public Space'

A think-piece published by CityLab argues that public space, and the ideals it embodies, are under threat from the racist groups that gathered in Charlottesville, Virginia last weekend.

August 15, 2017 - CityLab

DAPL Protests

Six States Considered Laws to Make it Legal to Run Over Protestors This Year

A day of reckoning has come for state lawmakers who proposed protections for motorists who attack protestors from behind the wheels of their car. A tragedy at protests in Charlotte has cast new light on the dangerous potential of such laws.

August 15, 2017 - The Dallas Morning News

San Francisco, California

Lawrence Halprin and the Public Realm: Can the United Nations Plaza Unite San Franciscans?

Since its inauguration in 1975, San Francisco’s United Nations Plaza has not served its intended purpose.

July 20, 2017 - Linda Day

Chicago

New Public Space Outside Wrigley Field Just Another Win for Chicago

Chicago Cubs fans looking to bask in the glory of the team's first World Series victory since 1908 will find a new public plaza and lawn next to the stadium. The plaza will be open to the public on non-baseball days too.

April 21, 2017 - Chi.Streetsblog

Thailand

The World's Best City for Street Food Bans Street Food

The city of Bangkok, Thailand, is famous for its cheap and flavorful street food. City leaders, however, have decided that the city would be less appealing without street vendors.

April 21, 2017 - The Nation (Thailand)

Los Angeles

Lawsuit Closes Popular Hiking Trail to the Hollywood Sign

Closing today: one of the most popular hiking trails in the Hollywood Hills, another case of the antipathy between public access and private property.

April 18, 2017 - KPCC

What a National Green Infrastructure Plan Looks Like

The American Society of Landscape Architects this week announced a list of green infrastructure priorities, full of specifics, without mentioning the Trump Administration.

March 30, 2017 - ASLA The Dirt

Arch Rock Beach

Oregon Residents Could Soon Pay a Fee to Hit the Water

The state of Oregon will consider legislation that would raise $2.17 million a year by implementing a fee on non-motorized users of public waterways.

January 29, 2017 - Mail Tribune

Rittenhouse Square

Sitting on the Walls Prohibited in Philadelphia's Rittenhouse Square

The list of prohibitions for the use of public spaces grows—this time to the seemingly innocuous and park-perfect activity of sitting.

January 14, 2017 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

Venice Beach

Proposed Law Would Ban Unaccompanied Adults from City Playgrounds in L.A.

There is plenty of debate surrounding a proposed law that would prohibit adults from entering city-owned playgrounds unless in the company of children.

January 12, 2017 - Los Angeles Times

How To Turn a Contaminated Parking Lot Into a World-Class Public Space

Tulsa's Guthrie Green proves Tulsa, Oklahoma isn't just known for parking craters any longer.

December 12, 2016 - Modern Cities

Denver Union Station

Denver City Summit 2016: Place, Culture, Meaning

Keynote speeches and break-out sessions at this year's Rocky Mountain City Summit implicated the importance of cultural knowledge for planning inclusive and equitable cities.

November 21, 2016 - Dean Saitta

Santa Fe Railyward

How Good Planning Remade the Santa Fe Railyard

A planner reflects on one of New Mexico's great planning successes, the Santa Fe Railyard.

November 11, 2016 - Santa Fe New Mexican

Providence

Op-Ed: Programming the First Priority for Keeping Public Spaces Safe

Providence, Rhode Island is looking ways to make Kennedy Plaza, located in the city's downtown, safe for all users. Increased law enforcement in only one way to achieve that goal, according to an op-ed in the Providence Journal.

October 10, 2016 - Providence Journal

McCoppin Hub

San Francisco Debates an Anti-Homeless Fence

The deployment of so-called defensive architecture is in the news again. This time the controversy is in the public realm, as San Francisco considers a fence to keep homeless out of McCoppin Hub.

July 29, 2016 - Curbed SF

Innovations in Street Furniture Reflect New Approach to Public Space

After a tour of Los Angeles street furniture, Alissa Walker offers her reflections on cities' changing approach to public space.

July 26, 2016 - Curbed

Are freeway overpasses curtailing public discourse?

Freeway overpasses instead of town squares are now often selected as the preferred public space to promote a non-commercial point of view, but such messaging does little to enhance public discourse, writes planner and urbanist Howard Blackson.

June 22, 2016 - UrbDeZine

Anchorage Town Square

Anchorage to Renovate a Prominent Public Space in the Name of Public Safety

A popular public meeting space in downtown Anchorage faces renovations due to claims of illegal activity. A now defunct water fountain feature has created conditions that some believe are unsafe with a need for more eyes on the street.

May 27, 2016 - Alaska Dispatch News

Creative Placemaking: Lead, Follow, AND Get Out of the Way

For governments and institutions, creative placemaking means knowing when to let go. Scott Doyon explains.

May 18, 2016 - PlaceShakers

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.