Urbanism

Buffalo Light Rail

Urbanists Soak Up Buffalo: PlaceMakers Empty Their Notebooks

Many of you attended CNU in Buffalo last week, but for those of you who couldn't make it, here's a quick collection of a few of the ideas shared.

June 9, 2014 - PlaceShakers

How are California’s Bullet Train and Affordable Housing Connected?

California Gov. Brown’s support of high speed rail contrasts sharply with his gutting of affordable housing. Michael Russell, real estate developer and advisor, reviews pending bills and potential fixes for affordable housing.

May 27, 2014 - UrbDeZine

Airport

Should Urbanists Care Which Airline They Fly? These Two Programs Say Yes

Los Angeles County Planner Clement Lau examines how airline companies and other private sector businesses can help with the greening of communities.

April 27, 2014 - UrbDeZine

Advocating a New Planning Covenant for Los Angeles

Two well-known Los Angeles civic leaders advocate a new framework for understanding the built environment and landscape of Los Angeles, setting a trajectory for sustainable development.

April 12, 2014 - The Planning Report

The red carpet at the Oscars

And the Feel-Good Oscar Goes To...

Discussing some of the most pro-urban movies ever made.

March 1, 2014 - Michael Lewyn

Movie Marquee

Ranking the Top Movies About Urbanism

The Oscars are this weekend, so its an appropriate time to turn to movie magic as a powerful force for how American’s perceive environments—from rural to urban and everything between.

February 28, 2014 - Next City

New Urban Math

To forge a coalition for urban places, let’s start by trumpeting an important fact: The value of cities and towns transcends simple arithmetic.

February 27, 2014 - Better! Cities & Towns

Seattle SUper Bowl Parade 12th Man Flag

Placemaking Lessons Learned from Seattle's Super Bowl Parade

Last Wednesday, an estimated 700,000—more than the city's population of 635,000—welcomed the Seahawks home, without major incident. Writing in The Atlantic Cities, Chuck Wolfe describes five lessons for placemaking through words and photographs.

February 8, 2014 - The Atlantic Cities

The Mythical Search for 'Congruity' in the City

In the eighth installment of the Urban Juxtapositions series profiled in Planetizen on January 16, Chuck Wolfe asks if we are using the right language when it comes to densifying urban spaces.

February 1, 2014 - myurbanist

In "Her," the L.A. of the Future Speaks to Some of Today's Anxieties

In his latest film, “Her,” Spike Jonze presents a one-of-a-kind vision of L.A.'s future.

January 20, 2014 - Los Angeles Times

Are We Designing the Wrong Solutions to America's Health Problems?

From encouraging physical activity to improving access to healthy food, planners and designers are increasingly tackling America's public health challenges. But what if cars, suburbs, and food deserts aren't to blame for our unhealthy lifestyles?

December 17, 2013 - The Atlantic Cities

people eating ice cream on sidewalk seating

The Next Big Thing: "Sit-able Cities"

Supported by imagery of human urban conduct, Chuck Wolfe argues that walkable is good, but sit-able is better—and that "it’s time for the next big focal point and the next big idea, the 'Sit-able City'."

October 14, 2013 - myurbanist

photo of abandoned buildings in Broves, France

What Is a Place Without the People?

In an illustrated essay, Chuck Wolfe contrasts the ideal form of the New England town with an abandoned French village, calling out the human infrastructure essential to successful urban places.

October 8, 2013 - myurbanist

Teaching Urban Lessons from Rural Landscapes

Chuck Wolfe's photoshoot in the Palouse region of southeastern Washington State shows the timeless issues of human settlement, from agrarian to urban.

July 9, 2013 - The Huffington Post

Nice Tramway

Three Everyday Ways to Inspire Urban Change

Chuck Wolfe suggests three, perhaps non-traditional ideas for how to inspire acceptance of change in our cities through accessible experiences.

June 23, 2013 - The Huffington Post

A Streetcar to Desire: An Argument for Converting Roads to Rails

Terra Nova author Eric W. Sanderson builds a refreshingly wonky case for a modern streetcar revival.

June 12, 2013 - Places Journal

Urban Ruins and the High Line Next Door

Chuck Wolfe suggests we all have the inspiration within us to envision how to remake our cities--from the conjecture of a Seattle restauranteur about Seattle's monorail to neighborhood examples of "we used this before, let's use it again".

May 26, 2013 - Crosscut

The Urban Diary as a City-Dweller's Tool

Chuck Wolfe champions the 'urban diary' tool as a universal means to understand the city around us.

May 20, 2013 - Crosscut

The Rise of Municipal Urban Design Departments

San Antonio City Design Center's Executive Manager Mark Brodeur describes his observations of the nationwide trend in cities establishing independent urban design departments.

March 25, 2013 - UrbDeZine.com

The Enduring Attraction of Containerized Urbanism

Architectural historian Mitchell Schwarzer traces the historic roots of container architecture and argues that today's shipping container developments, like Proxy in San Francisco, are leading the way to a new kind of urbanism.

February 14, 2013 - Places Journal

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.