Sustainability is catching on in more cities than New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago. Ventura City Manager Rick Cole explains how his city's land use practice can impact California's climate change efforts.
"We can't reduce greenhouse gas emissions to meet the AB 32 goals without smarter growth-and we need regional collaboration to achieve it."
"The International City/County Managers Association calls sustainability "the issue of our age." Local governments are highly reactive-after all, we are the level of government closest to the people. But this is an issue we are going to have to be strategic about-even as we work to apply the strategic perspective to everything we do day to day."
"The problem is that key drivers of California's success aren't sustainable. We won't be able to count on cheap energy, economic advantage, and debt finance to sustain our success. History is littered with examples of success stories that ran out of gas-although we will be the first where that happens literally. As the late economist Herb Stein rightly observed, "That which is unsustainable eventually comes to a stop." We are not there yet, but we don't have the luxury of waiting to make major change, despite the fact that such changes cause anxiety and discomfort. Because if we don't change, that anxiety and discomfort is nothing compared to the future calamity that will confront our children due to our failure to act today."
FULL STORY: Ventura City Manager Rick Cole Surveys Green Clout of Local Government to Transform 'The Way We Live'
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
A recent ranking of “declining” cities heavily features some of the most expensive cities in the country — including New York City and a half-dozen in the San Francisco Bay Area.
California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Chicago to Turn High-Rise Offices into Housing
Four commercial buildings in the Chicago Loop have been approved for redevelopment into housing in a bid to revitalize the city’s downtown post-pandemic.
EV Infrastructure Booming in Suburbs, Cities Lag Behind
A lack of access to charging infrastructure is holding back EV adoption in many US cities.
Seattle Road Safety Advocates Say Transportation Levy Perpetuates Car-Centric Status Quo
Critics of a proposed $1.3 billion transportation levy say the package isn’t enough to keep up with inflation and rising costs and fails to support a shift away from car-oriented infrastructure.
Appeals Court: California Emissions Standards Upheld
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the California Air Resources Board, the nation's two most powerful environmental regulatory agencies, won an important round in federal court last week. But the emissions standards battle may not be over.
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This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
