Urban Renewal, A Blight on Other American Cities, Sparked an Architectural Renaissance in Pittsburgh
The editors of the new volume Imagining the Modern argue that the reviled federal program was responsible for creating the postcard Pittsburgh.
Planning
Design Cities 2019: Tirana, Albania
The 430,000-square-foot Skanderbeg Square should intimidate but doesn’t. That has a lot to do with the plaza’s intricate design.
In Detroit, Empty Lots Become Parks, Helping to Rebuild Lost Social Equity
An ongoing plan by landscape architects Spackman Mossop Michaels (SMM) is tying together the neighborhood of Fitzgerald, which has been atomized by vacancy and foreclosure.
A Public Park in Montreal Aims to Right the Wrongs of Past Development Schemes
The city and local firm Groupe Rousseau Lefebvre turned a 1960s expressway into "a prestigious, functional, and user-friendly gateway to downtown."
Bjarke Ingels Group Makes Its Own Proposal for Brooklyn's Looming BQE Repairs
The fate of the BQE's cantilevered stretch of highway—which must be fixed or repurposed—in Brooklyn Heights has stirred extensive controversy and multiple proposals. Now the Danish-American firm is throwing its hat into the ring.
Year in Review 2018: Whose Resilient Future?
Our contributors comment on an event or a moment from the last year that demanded more of how we should practice, frame, and respond to design.
Urban Planning Lessons from the D.C. Region
Developments in Crystal City, Virginia and the Potomac waterfront were the focus of a Metropolis Think Tank discussion hosted at Perkin Eastman's D.C. office.
Let There Be...Real Estate? How Developers and Churches Are Joining Forces in London
Several new projects in the English capital are seeing churches create new places of worship and community service—provided they find the right business partner.
Lessons on Participatory Design from San Francisco
At the San Francisco offices of Perkins Eastman, designers and policy wonks discussed their experiences with participatory design in a panel led by Metropolis's Susan Szenasy.
Landscape May Be Architects' Best Tool for Tackling Inequality
This past July, Ross Barney Architects hosted a Think Tank discussion on inequality that included representatives from the Metropolitan Planning Council and Related Midwest, as well as moderator Susan S. Szenasy.
The Miller Hull Partnership Proposes Turning a Defunct Seattle Tunnel Into a Landscaped Canyon
The tunnel's transformation is part of a wider proposal to create a new greenbelt for the city's downtown that would connect its parks and waterfront.
In New York City, a Bold Urban Plan Seeks to Revitalize Miles of Shoreline
As part of our 2018 Design Cities issue, Metropolis looked at projects, firms, and places that are driving global design culture today.
The New Development That Promises to Transform Boston's Waterfront
The Boston Seaport development features planning by James Corner Field Operations, Sasaki, and NADAAA, as well as a new high-rise by OMA's New York office.
New Talent 2018: Nonprofit LA-Más Is Revitalizing Los Angeles's Overlooked Corners
The nimble L.A. practice seeks to unlock the city’s potential by conceiving policy solutions and reimagining unglamorous spaces throughout the basin.
Smart Cities Conference Raises Concerns About Those Left Behind by Technology
Numerous panels of a recent smart cities conference in New York–including a keynote from Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel—highlighted how technology could exacerbate today's inequalities.
This Book Imagines How Cities Let Humanity Survive Cataclysmic Climate Change
2100: A Dystopian Utopia, written by architect Vanessa Keith and her firm StudioTEKA Design, depicts a world where humanity has dramatically adapted to risen seas and extreme weather.
Secret Cities: Upcoming Exhibition Will Explore the Architecture and Planning of U.S. Nuclear Sites
Secret Cities: The Architecture and Planning of the Manhattan Project opens at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. on May 3rd.
Preview James Corner Field Operations' New Brooklyn Park
Metropolis toured the soon-to-open six-acre park, which features a 1,200-foot-long esplanade and a series of industrial "artifacts" salvaged from the Domino Sugar factory.
This Tiny Amsterdam Neighborhood Is a Prototype for Grassroots Urban Planning
Using a mix of social media, apps, and planning sessions, a coalition of urban designers and residents are planning their neighborhood from the ground-up.
New Journal Delves into the Political Realities of Architecture and Urban Planning
The debut issue of Take Shape, which centers on the re-use of lofts, features a mix of long-form journalism and critical essays.
