Urban relocation is often used, whether justifiably or not, as a part of the urban renewal project of Istanbul in its endeavor to become a “world-city.” As the main actor to carry out urban renewal projects, Mass Housing Administration has the authority to relocate squatter communities whenever it’s deemed appropriate, and usually these communities are relocated to [...]
Chapter 9 is the section of the National Bankruptcy Code that provides for the reorganization of debt incurred by municipalities such as cities, towns, counties, and villages. The very first municipal bankruptcy was filed in the United States in 1934 during the Great Depression. While the provision has been around for 60 years, there have [...]
In October 2011, I began my internship writing for The Grid. I had always been interested in the potential that social media can provide as a platform for discussions about urban planning and design. Aside from this, I did not quite know what to expect from the experience. Six months later, I am leaving my blogging position at Global [...]
Urban design is the bridge between urban planning and architecture design. It connects the feelings inspired by the architecture of a building and how the building interacts with the fabric of the neighborhood, and that neighborhood’s future development. A rendering for the new Seneca Casino in downtown Buffalo, New York, shown left, is an example [...]
There is a strong paradigm shift in the literature recently, on how rural development and urban development affect one another. The conventional wisdom of the last three decades suggests that urban and rural developments are separate and compete with each other for resources. However, a closer looks reveals that this is far from the truth. [...]
In 2010, I was involved in a campaign to bring light rail and bus rapid transit (BRT) to Tampa and Hillsborough County, Florida. The measure did not pass, and every day I see a portion of land that was purchased for the light rail line from my office. Seeing that every day, combined with my [...]
During rainfall and snow storms, 27 billion gallons of raw sewage and stormwater are released into New York City’s waterways. These discharges are called Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOS). CSOs occur when treatment plants are overwhelmed by water flows that are more than twice the design capacity. A number of sustainable methods of stormwater management have [...]
The sky is limitless, they say. So if there’s no space to your left, or to your right, or below, then look up! Land, limited in the City of Los Angeles, is slowly becoming a commodity. And as new land becomes occupied by never-ending construction projects, it’ll eventually vanish so we need start thinking straight, [...]
A big Global Site Plans welcome to our newest blogger, Erman Eruz from Istanbul, Turkey. Erman Eruz is an undergraduate at Princeton University where he is pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Architecture and Civil Engineering, along with a certificate in Urban Studies. Having grown up in Istanbul, Turkey, he is interested in a wide [...]
Montreal has long been a bike-friendly city, with well over 500 kilometres (or 310 miles) of bike paths on Montreal Island to date. An interactive map of bike paths in the metropolitan area shows these paths. In fact, in 2011, Montreal was ranked the best city in North America for bicycling (and eighth worldwide). In [...]
