Joel Thibert explores the hotly debated question of what really influences people's decisions on where to …

Urban Planet is a daily roundup of  blogs from around the world dealing specifically with urban environments. We’ll be on the lookout for websites outside the country that approach themes related to urban experiences and issues.

Mark Lamster and Alexandra Lange at Places:The Design Observer discuss Supertall - a recent exhibit on the world's tallest buildings at New York's Skyscraper Museum. The exhibition focuses on buildings built between 2001 and 2016 that are taller than the Empire State Building (100 stories plus) - a total of 48 projects worldwide. Lamster notes, "The irony is that these supertall buildings are designed to be iconic, memorable signs for the cities that build them, but their similarity works against that desire, and instead we seem to be creating placeless modern places that look great in ads for luxury automobiles."

Image from Places:Design Observer

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Well, here it is: Spacington. The new look of 21st century urbanism- well, kind of. The truth is there is nothing here yet, and that is because this is just the beginning. Every week this plot of land, slowly or quickly, will become our Sim City version a 21st century urban city.

During the week the Spacing team and myself will attempt to develop Spacington into a walkable, densely populated, diverse cityscape. Borrowing some suggestions from urban theorists such as Jane Jacobs, Jan Gehl, and Ken Greenberg, as well as the LRT focus of 21st century urbanism, Spacington will become a simulated version urban city we all want. Check the blogs every Thursday and keep on track with our city's evolution.

(Editor's note: In the upcoming national issue of Spacing, senior editor Dylan Reid presents his outlook on urbanism for the next century)

Oh, and for all you Sims gurus out there, join in and comment on the cities development. Give us your suggestions, disagreements, or encouragement, and help us build Spacington into the best 21st century urban city.

It begins now folks, so post away will pre-planning suggestions.

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Urban Planet is a daily roundup of  blogs from around the world dealing specifically with urban environments. We’ll be on the lookout for websites outside the country that approach themes related to urban experiences and issues.

Grist talks to urbanist Witold Rybczynski about his recent efforts to call out Richard Florida for playing "fast and loose" with income statistics for American urban centres. Florida posited a positive relationship between density and household income, using figures for metropolitan areas rather than city centres. Rybcyznski wants to shed light on what we believe to be true about the city and whether we have the data to back up those beliefs.

Image from The Atlantic

For more stories from around the planet, check out Spacing on Facebook and Twitter.  Do you have an Urban Planet worthy article you'd like to share? Send the link to urbanplanet@spacing.ca…

photo by Images of Centretown…

Urban Planet is a daily roundup of  blogs from around the world dealing specifically with urban environments. We’ll be on the lookout for websites outside the country that approach themes related to urban experiences and issues.

Anthony Flint at The Atlantic Cities explores the expansion of urban highway removal across more North America centres and notes the cultural tensions that can flare when such a major piece of infrastructure is slated for demolition. Also worth checking out, the Atlantic Cities has a slideshow of urban highways on death row.

Video from WorldScott

For more stories from around the planet, check out Spacing on Facebook and Twitter.  Do you have an Urban Planet worthy article you'd like to share? Send the link to urbanplanet@spacing.ca…

WHAT: Spacing's 2nd national issue release party
WHEN: Friday February 3rd, 2012, 9pm-1am
WHERE: Canvas Lounge (99 Powell St. in Gastown)
HOW MUCH: free! (mag costs $5)
RSVP: Let us know if you can come at our Facebook event listing

The editors of Spacing and contributors of Spacing Vancouver are excited to announce that the magazine will host a release party at the Canvas Lounge in Vancouver to celebrate the publication of the newest national issue. We will have some fun activities and a few door prizes.

This event is held in conjunction with the annual conference for the Canadian Association of Planning Students (CAPS).

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE ISSUE:

• Q&A with Mayor Gregor Robertson: Can he become North America's greenest mayor?

• The Rise of Roadsworth/Peter Gibson: Contributing editor Christopher DeWolf looks back how this stencil graffiti artist transformed the streets of Montreal and changed how we view street art

• Urbanism for a New Century: Spacing senior editor Dylan Reid outlines the urban design trends of the last decade and where city-building is headed in Canada

• There are also loads of photos, book reviews, and features on the details of Canadian …

The weather was atrocious. Mind you, the design of our streets doesn’t help. Our carefully engineered sidewalks deliver the wetfoot experience to every pedestrian. Motorists are not ignored. Here are two of the puddles on Booth. Note the splash zone includes all of the sidewalk.

First, the Good Neighbour comes out with a shovel to uncover the catch basin:

As vehicles approach, he waves the shovel, signaling drivers to slow down. But do they? Let’s see now…

Nahh, whatever the trip, it’s too important to slow down. The spray doesn’t go any higher than his knees, anyway.

But does our good neighbor give up? No, he stays around for more:

Mind, it’s his house on the right of the picture, and maybe he got tired of the splashing all over his living room windows.

Who ever goes out on those dreadful wet days deserves every pedestrian’s prayer of thanks for their collective efforts to make the world a little bit safer for others.…

Urban Planet is a daily roundup of  blogs from around the world dealing specifically with urban environments. We’ll be on the lookout for websites outside the country that approach themes related to urban experiences and issues.

The Smithsonian Magazine explores Who to Believe?, a Parisian garden in front of City Hall designed by Francois Abelanet. Playing with the traditions of the French garden and Anamorphosis, Abelanet shows that the view of City Hall is quite different depending on where you stand.

Video from WorldScott

For more stories from around the planet, check out Spacing on Facebook and Twitter.  Do you have an Urban Planet worthy article you'd like to share? Send the link to urbanplanet@spacing.ca…

Urban Planet is a daily roundup of  blogs from around the world dealing specifically with urban environments. We’ll be on the lookout for websites outside the country that approach themes related to urban experiences and issues.

“The map user has now become the map creator,” says Fraser Taylor, Director of the Geomatics and Cartographic Research Centre at Carleton University. In a recent article on This Big City, author Christine McLaren explores the phenomenon of citizen cartographers. With the proliferation of mobile GIS technology and open-source mapping tools, citizens are increasingly finding and creating new datasets to map and overlay. Traditionally a way for authorities to control their jurisdictions, citizen-driven cartography is being used to hold governments to account.

Image from This Big City

For more stories from around the planet, check out Spacing on Facebook and Twitter.  Do you have an Urban Planet worthy article you'd like to share? Send the link to urbanplanet@spacing.ca…