Urbanism

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.
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.

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.
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.

And the Feel-Good Oscar Goes To...
Discussing some of the most pro-urban movies ever made.

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.
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.

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.
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.
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.
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?

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'."

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.
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.

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.
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.
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".
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.
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.
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.
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