Grab bag

1. Transit oriented land use planning in Pittsburgh. "Transit stations' futures being plotted: Meetings consider how to develop around LRT stops," from the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.

2. "Why Parks are Important" from the Toronto Star. "No longer considered frills, green spaces are integral to intellectual and physical growth, writes Christopher Hume--one of the best newspaper journalists in North America covering urban design.

3. And speaking of visitor services, the State of Virginia opens a new visitors center in Fredericksburg. See "Welcome center gets official tour," from the Fredericksburg Free-Lance Star.

4. And speaking of the grass is reasonably green in DC with regard to transit, "Massive cuts coming to Toronto transit: commission chair," from CBC Ottawa. "he Toronto Transit Commission is planning to close the Sheppard subway, drop 21 bus routes and raise fares because of city funding shortages,..."

The same is happening in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.

Not here.

The Toronto Transit Commission has reportedly been told to slash $100 million from its budget.(Aaron Harris/Canadian Pres)