This week, we’re sharing an article that originally appeared in Volume 41 of the Carolina Planning Journal back in 2016. The theme of that edition was Just Creativity. To kick it off, DCRP Professor Andrew Whittemore reviewed the literature on placemaking and explored where the arts and creativity intersect with planning. Volume 41 and other back issues of the Journal can be found on our … Continue reading From the CPJ Archives: Creative Placemaking
By Lizzie Tong In the realm of sustainability and urban planning, Singapore is often hailed as a city-state worthy of envy and comparison – a Garden City. Through 40 years of rapid economic development and a transformation into an international financial hub, Singapore has been mindful to protect its natural environment, developing a reputation as a leader in green design. As a small island about … Continue reading Can America Replicate Singapore’s Garden Cities?
In January, I set out on my own to spend a semester in Copenhagen. My professors had told me tales of cycling culture and ski-slope-power-plants, and I was determined to see it for myself. I was a little nervous, very excited, and more prepared than I thought for life in Denmark’s capital city. Some part of me had this expectation that all of Copenhagen is … Continue reading Life in Copenhagen, a Living City
Earlier this month, first-year Master of City and Regional Planning student Emily Gvino interviewed Kate Wagner, the creator of the viral blog McMansion Hell and whose work was recently included in the Web Cultures Web Archive through the Library of Congress. Kate’s writing focuses on architecture and design, and Emily was interested in hearing her thoughts on the state of housing today, new design trends, … Continue reading Planning, Design, and McMansions: A Conversation with Kate Wagner
As a mission-driven, educational initiative, the Rural Studio has been able to commit almost a decade of rigorous analysis to the careful development of these affordable housing prototypes, illustrating the important potential of community design to explore ideas and provide services that the private market is unable to support. In 1968, civil rights leader Whitney M, Young Jr. addressed the National Convention of the American … Continue reading REPOST: Rural Studio & the 20K House
Looking at a map of downtown Greensboro, it becomes apparent that something big is coming. The entire eastern side of the downtown is undergoing a major shift, and much of it is entrenched in public dissent tied to development choices being made by the City and local developers. This is apparent in various current projects in Greensboro, from the Tanger Performing Arts Center, controversy around … Continue reading The Battle for the Heart of [Downtown] Greensboro
As part of the Community Design and Green Architecture (ENEC 420) course with Eric Thomas, the Project Manager and Lead Designer at Development Finance Initiative, undergraduate UNC students evaluated public space. Using video and behavior mapping techniques, students evaluated how different local spaces are used, or not, at different times of the day and on different days. They noted weather and other factors that would … Continue reading Undergrads analyze UNC spaces
Seeing the Weird in a Rapidly Changing Austin This winter break, I crossed another city/state off my bucket list by visiting Austin, Texas. Known for its unique flair (“Keep Austin Weird” is the city’s marketing slogan), music, barbeque, and other fried foods, the city’s rapid change in population over the last couple of decades has transformed its physical landscape. The US Census estimates that from … Continue reading Seeing the Weird in a Rapidly Changing Austin
Planning for Preventative Health Urban green space provides a place to escape the concrete and steel of urban city centers, spend time in nature, connect with others, and get moving. As Americans become increasingly sedentary, a push towards funding and implementing green space as a means of increasing individual health has gained traction. Doctors now write green prescriptions for patients to go walk at their … Continue reading Got Green Space?
This piece was originally published by UNC undergraduate students Adam Hasan and Ezra Rawitsch on their personal blog, Global Third Space, on June 15, 2017. If the sun hadn’t traced a low, southerly path across the sky that morning, it’d have seemed like the first day of autumn. A chilly breeze wound its way through the enormous oak that hangs over the Weaver Street Lawn, and … Continue reading Weaving together the Threads of Our Community: Weaver Street Market
