Dallas Downtown Plan - Paved with Good Intentions?

Dallas Observer
Robert Willonsky // January 21, 2010

The real issue that plagues real downtown redevelopment: "the inner ring highway loop."

"The city of districts is alive and well in Dallas," and insisted Downtown Dallas 360 would be about connecting those districts into one "seamless" city. How? Transit-oriented developments, of course, as evidenced by its 179-page presentation on the subject.

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Suburbia vs. the Planet

Huffington Post
Seth Bauer // January 18, 2010

A really good rant takes a rare combination of passion, knowledge, wit, and intelligence. Recently, in a long phone conversation with Andres Duany, the architect and urban planner, I was privy to one of the best I've ever heard.

The origin of global warming. The cause of American cultural malaise. The inanity of our planning, zoning, transportation, political, and community processes. Duany has a lot to rant about. Ostensibly our conversation was about the carefully distilled, practical advice contained handbook-style in his new release, The Smart Growth Manual, published by McGraw Hill. But our conversation about the book showed why Duany and his coauthors, Jeff Speck and Mike Lydon, had to pare down to core concepts: Otherwise, Duany was just going to explode with it all.

Duany began by identifying three concurrent crises that he traced directly to the American lifestyle: Peak oil (the likelihood that we've already consumed more than half the planet's petroleum in barely 100 years), the housing bubble, and global climate change. "It's where we live, the size of our houses, the distances we drive for work, commerce, play--everything."

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Dallas May Get Subway Downtown

WiredPRNews.com
February 2, 2010

Dallas city planners are considering plans for further developments in the area that may include a subway station downtown. As reported by NBC DFW News, the subway plans of Dallas Area Rapid Transit are being considered as a possible means to relieve congestion in the downtown area.

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How to Create Livable & Sustainable Communities

Greg Lindsay has a new column in Fast Company entitled "The Master Plan" explaining how we can create more livable and environmentally sustainable communities.

Urbanist bloggers who make me think

Kaid Benfield at NRDC Switchboard suggests some urban bloggers to follow

Urbanist bloggers who make me think

North TX Leaders to Take Another Stab at Local Transit Option Bill

Dallas Morning News
Michael Lindenberger // February 2, 2010

The Star-Telegram reports that after the hearing North Texas leaders laid out their plans for another run at the local-option tax bill that would allow local communities to vote to raise their own fees or taxes to pay for additional transportation investment.

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Pentagon: ‘Climate change, energy security, and economic stability are inextricably linked’

grist.org
Brad Johnson / February 1, 2010

Climate change and energy are two key issues that will play a significant role in shaping the future security environment. Although they produce distinct types of challenges, climate change, energy security, and economic stability are inextricably linked.

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