Research Paper (postgraduate) from the year 2006 in the subject Geography / Earth Science - Demographics, Urban Management, Planning, grade: none, Humboldt-University of Berlin (Institute of Geography), language: English, abstract: In many urban regions, awareness of the specific challenges facing water-connected areas is increasing, and for the last forty years waterfront revitalization has been a hot topic worldwide. This has also been the case in the seven-million citizen region of Chicago. The factories and industries that once lined the Chicago River are now mostly gone (having closed or moved to greenfield sites). Nowadays a new mode of thinking is needed to decide how riverfront areas should best be redesigned and redeveloped. Even in the last few years, awareness of the importance of enhancing the conditions along the Chicago River corridor and developing new valuable urban areas for residential and recreational utilization has grown. In 2005, Chicago’s mayor labeled the river as “Chicago’s second shoreline” and claimed that the river’s banks are no longer “forgotten areas”. Against this political background the following paper investigates the research question: How does the City of Chicago approach comprehensive planning for the Chicago River Corridor? To answer this question an analysis of the planning process and a plan assessment is done. The paper proceeds as follows. In the next section is an overview given of the history of the development and utilization of the Chicago River corridor. Sections 3 and 4 discussed the comprehensive plan making process as a basic planning tool and the specific content and features of the Development Plan, respectively. Section 5 presents a critical assessment of the river and riverfront planning approach of the City of Chicago. The paper concludes with suggestions of how planners can improve comprehensive waterfront plans and comprehensive plans in general as well as approach best plan making processes associated with urban riverfront development.

In metropolitan areas across the country, you can hear the laments over the loss of green space to new subdivisions and strip malls. But some city residents have taken unprecedented measures to protect their open land, and a growing movement seeks not only to preserve these lands but to link them in green corridors. Many land-use and urban planning professionals, along with landscape architects and environmental advocates, have joined in efforts to preserve natural areas. MetroGreen answers their call for a deeper exploration of the latest thinking and newest practices in this growing conservation field. In ten case studies of U.S. and Canadian cities paired for comparative analysis-Toronto and Chicago, Calgary and Denver, and Vancouver and Portland among them-Erickson looks closely at the motivations and objectives for connecting open spaces across metropolitan areas. She documents how open-space networks have been successfully created and protected, while also highlighting the critical human and ecological benefits of connectivity. MetroGreen's unique focus on several cities rather than a single urban area offers a perspective on the political, economic, cultural, and environmental conditions that affect open-space planning and the outcomes of its implementation.

This new handbook provides a platform to bring together multidisciplinary researchers focusing on greening high-density agglomerations from three perspectives: climate change, social implications, and people’s health. Written by leading scholars and experts, the chapters aim to summarize the “state-of-the-art” and produce a reference book for policymakers, practitioners, academics, and researchers to study, design, and build high-density cities by integrating green spaces. The topics covered in the book include (but are not limited to) Urban Heat Island, Green Space and Carbon Sequestration, Green Space and Social Equity, Green Space and Public Health, Biophilic Cities, Urban Agriculture, Vertical Farms, Urban Farming Technologies, Nature and Biodiversity, Nature and Health, Biophilic Design, Green Infrastructure, Urban Revitalization, Post-Covid Cities, Smart and Resilient Cities, Tall Buildings, and Sustainable Vertical Cities.