Best Urban Plans in the U.S.

Buffalo, NY

Designed by brothers Joseph and Andrew Ellicott, Buffalo showcases a baroque street layout with a grid overlay, with streets radiating from the city center. A radial design creates more direct sightlines, giving the city's residents a terrific vista of downtown and the surrounding lakes. Buffalo's system of parks was designed by Frederick Law Olmstead, made famous for his development of New York's Central Park, who also called the Upstate city "the best planned city in America, if not the world."

Washington D.C.

Spearheaded by French architect Pierre L'Enfant, Washington D.C. was designed in the same spirit as Buffalo, NY. Centered around Jenkins Hill, where the Capitol Building currently stands, Washington D.C.'s radial design gives the country's capital beautiful roundabouts and plazas, creating an urban design that is visually consistent yet accommodates diverse topography. The city's design is anchored by the White House and Capitol Building, a symbolic expression of the power that resides within them.

Portland, OR

Seeing itself tip towards a car-centric design that has rendered many major cities unlivable, Portland underwent a major transformation in the early 1970's. Freshly minted mayor Neil Goldschmidt invested heavily in a light-rail system after axing plans for a new freeway. The mayor also redesigned the downtown core to make it more pedestrian friendly, making local businesses easier to access. Today, Portland is at the forefront of alternative transportation after having installed 350 miles of bike lanes in recent years.

Chicago, IL

Chicago is one of the quintessential examples of urban development in the 20th century. It was one of the first cities that was intentionally designed rather than being a result of the topography and population migrations. The plan for Chicago was developed in 1903 by Daniel Burnham, fresh off designing the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Jackson Park. Burnham's plan focused on a few major public works operations: using landfill to expand the lakefront, improvement of the railway terminals to allow the business district to grow, preservation of natural areas, organization of the streets, and the construction of civic and cultural centers. More than a hundred years later, Chicago's grid system, parks, and museums are as iconic as the skyscrapers that crowd the city's downtown.

Savannah, GA

Savannah's design is more than a civic project: it's political. James Oglethorpe founded Georgia to be a utopia, a place where English debtors could start their lives over, and Savannah's original design reflected the equitable and nonhierarchical beliefs of the founders. Savannah is divided up into distinct wards, with each one made up of eight blocks: four for residential and four for civic purposes. All but two of the wards contain a central square, creating a beautiful pedestrian-centric area for each neighborhood, while wide streets surrounding each ward allows for uninterrupted traffic. Savannah's charm lies in its repetitiveness. Once you've seen one neighborhood, you've seen them all.