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Criticizes the Regional Plan of New York as produced under the auspices of the Russell Sage Foundation. Guidance in the plan by Thomas Adams, an experienced city planner and administrator; Confront of the imposing staff of authorities and experts that assisted Adams; Need for a study of the complex forces that affect the balance between farm and city populations; Introduction to the assumptions and criteria in the Regional Plan; Discussion on the Regional plan's difficulties on the fundamental matters of area and population; Focus on the alternatives and weaknesses in fundamentals of the plan; Views on land use under the Regional Plan.

This article presents a critique of the 1931 Regional Plan for New York City, which attempted to lay out a vision for the future growth of the city. The author feels the plan neglects sociological realities about the city and forcing inorganic systems of growth while forgetting those areas are comprised of people.

Presents the results of a critical enquiry into the Regional Plan of New York and Its Environs. Estimate by the Plan that New York City wastes roughly $500,000 a day because of congestion, and the region, approximately $1,000,000; View that assumptions of Frederick Johnstone Adams, layer of the Plan, do not merely do away with a clear presentation of the problem, but with an effective solution; Lack of the sense of alternative possibilities; Statement that land values will adjust themselves to any density of building permitted by the city, and should not be allowed to force high building; Consideration of the suburb as merely a temporary transitional area, awaiting the last degree of metropolitan exploitation.

Offers a look at lessons from the rebuilding of the World Trade Center site in New York City following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Discussion of how New Orleans, Louisiana, can learn from New York in its rebuilding after Hurricane Katrina; Lack of public input into the rebuilding process in New York City; Control of the process by Governor George Pataki, the Port Authority, and Larry Silverstein; Criticism of Pataki and Silverstein for failing to consider a variety of rebuilding strategies that would meet the long-term needs of the city; Consideration of how the rebuilding of New Orleans can improve the regional economy.

The article focuses on an unusual affordable housing plan in Brooklyn, New York City. Starting next month, finished units will be loaded onto flatbed trucks, moved under cover of darkness to a 45-acre site at Spring Creek in East New York. The project's first phase, 117 homes, could be ready next summer. The project is part of a larger community to be called Gateway Estates, a mixed-use development.

Several letters to the editor are presented in response to topics in previous issues including the mission of the Long Island Regional Planning Board to assist towns, villages and elected officials with a master plan for the future and provision of additional mass transit service to the new Mets stadium in Queens, New York City.

Reports on the Long Island Regional Planning Board's analysis of affordable housing needs in Long Island, New York. Estimated number of units needed to satisfy demand; Inconsistency of the findings with the estimates of experts.

The article presents New York's agenda for development in 2005. High on the accomplishment list is the aggressive rezoning program of the City Planning Commission. By spending the time and the money to bring the zoning of large swaths of the city up to date, the administration has enabled development to proceed more efficiently and more rapidly than it would if the city waited for developers to initiate change through a series of one-off requests. That is especially important for increasing our woefully inadequate housing supply and for jump-starting development of the West Side of Manhattan.

The article presents a special report on economic development in New York. When Robert Weisz, an executive in real estate development company, first laid eyes on 800 Westchester Ave., he was impressed by its Class A amenities and location across the street from the Rye Town Hilton. But what helped convince him to actually buy the 582,000-square-foot office property in Rye Brook was that it has its own well and a backup generator that can keep the lights burning for two weeks. "Manhattan companies are looking for space that can operate during disasters," says Weisz, president of RPW Group Inc., a real estate company based in White Plains. "Most offices don't have their own generators and wells." Since the terrorist attack of Sept. 11, scores of Manhattan-based businesses have shifted portions of their operations out of town or created backup facilities as a way to spread their risks in the event of disaster.

Focuses on the results of a report from New York City's Commission on the Year 2000. Recommendations of the Commission that were adopted by the city; Areas in which the city still needs improvements, including rebuilding the infrastructure, encouraging economic development and improving health care; Opposition to the Commission's proposal to place non-violent criminals under house arrest in lieu of imprisonment.

Reports that Katherine Heaviside has been named to the Long Island Advisory Committee of the Regional Plan Association (RPA).

The article reports on the establishment of the Manhattan Crosstown Architects Committee by New York City's Regional Plan Association in preparation for the Third Regional Plan. Architects and volunteers were invited for the initiative. The committee will generate ideas for improvement of infrastructures in Manhattan.