Nevada

Why More than 100 Million Trees Have Died in the Sierra Nevada
Though the drought is ending in much of California, it's too late for the million's of trees that have died due to the ravages of recent water shortages.

Las Vegas Tests the Country's First Autonomous Shuttle
The city hopes to alleviate traffic in a popular corner of Downtown Las Vegas with an electric, self-driving shuttle fleet.

Five Years Later: Zappos Founder's Downtown Las Vegas Project
Tony Hsieh laid out a grand ambition two create a more dynamic downtown in Las Vegas that would change cities all over the world. Now, after a series of setbacks and with dwindling funds, that vision seems unlikely to be realized.

Slurpees By Air: Drone Delivery Takes Off in Reno
77 successful drone deliveries were made in the month of November from one 7-Eleven store in Reno, Nevada to customers in the city.

Obama Designates Two New National Monuments
Before this week, President Obama added more acreage to national monuments than any previous president. The final 1.35 million acres, designated this week, are a controversial final flourish.
One of the Most Important Energy Measure on the Ballot on Tuesday
While billed as an "anti-fracking initiative," Measure Z in Monterey County, the 4th-largest oil-producing county in California, does far more. It bans new oil drilling and requires the cleaning of wastewater from current drilling operations.
RTC Bike Share Shows Las Vegas' Bike-Friendly Side
An intrepid reporter took a tour of the new RTC Bike Share system in Las Vegas—along the way illustrating the bike-friendly realities of Sin City.
Reno, Throwing Away Benches to be 'Business Friendly'
Reno's blight initiative drew criticism when it removed 68 benches from a park it was renovating.

Las Vegas Solar Arrays and the Future of Power Utilities
Casinos are energy intensive and often located in areas with specific resource constraints and surpluses (i.e., Las Vegas), thus they offer a perfect case study for the future of solar energy.

West Las Vegas Attempts to Balance Revitalization and Gentrification
As Las Vegas focuses attention on the city's West Las Vegas neighborhood, residents worry about possible displacement.

Designing the Black Rock City of Burning Man's Dreams
An unofficial, international competition for the Black Rock City master plan applies the imagination inherent to its setting.

Inside Tesla's $5 Billion, 5.8-Million-Square-Foot Gigafactory
The scale of Tesla's vision for the Gigafactory, already under construction in Storey County, Nevada, is unparalleled.
Preserving Las Vegas' Midcentury Residential Neighborhoods
In a region infamous for blowing everything up and starting over again, a growing constituency is interested in preserving the residential neighborhoods of yesteryear.

Burning Man Buys 3,800 Acres in Northwest Nevada
Let the year-round party commence.

Study: Bureaucracy Restricts Housing Supply
A recent study by Trulia concentrates on elasticity (i.e., the rate at which housing stock grows, relative to demand), and arrives at the conclusion that bureaucracy, not regulation, is responsible for rising housing prices.

Is Glen Canyon Dam Obsolete?
As climate changes in the Rockies and the southwest, Lake Powell is gradually shrinking. The debate over Glen Canyon Dam is on again, and this time environmentalists aren't the only ones against it.

Las Vegas to Consider New 30-Year Downtown Master Plan
The Las Vegas City Council will consider a new Downtown Las Vegas Master Plan this week.

Welcome to a Changed Climate: It Even Floods When it's Sunny
A new report by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration documents the increasing frequency of nuisance floods and "clear-sky flooding."
China Railway Drops Out of L.A. to Las Vegas High-Speed Rail Project
China Railway, which had agreed to put up $100 million for XpressWest to build a 230-mile, 190 mph train from Victorville, Calif. to Las Vegas last September, withdrew from their agreement, primarily due to the inability to use their own trains.

Plans to Create a Community of Start-Ups in Las Vegas Hits Speed Bumps
The Downtown Project was envisioned as a five-year plan to develop a hub of start-ups, small businesses, and cultural attractions in Downtown Las Vegas, but things haven't gone according to schedule.
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