Already a national leader in green building and looking to expand its leadership, the Los Angeles Community College District is launching several collaborative efforts to train a new, green workforce.
The article features an interview with Los Angeles Community College District Vice Chancellor for Economic and Workforce Development Marvin Martinez:
"[the city of Los Angeles] received their portion of the stimulus dollars for workforce development-about $22 million-which they plan to release through a number of RFPs. In most of those RFPs, community colleges will be a mandatory partner so that we can work with the city's workforce centers and other organizations. We will partner with them to prepare the workforce. A lot of those dollars are being dedicated to the green sector."
"I am pleased that in the federal stimulus legislation colleges are seen as a mandatory partner-education and training is a requirement. Under the old Workforce Investment Act it was a "work first" policy, meaning that the goal is always to place students, place anyone who is unemployed, in a job. The problem with that approach today is, number one, there are not as many jobs. There are not a lot of jobs for people to go into. Secondly, there is a need for training. A lot of jobs require that you have a certain knowledge base and technical skills."
FULL STORY: LACCD Launching New Sustainability Workforce Institute

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
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Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths
Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

Adaptive Reuse Will Create Housing in a Suburban Texas Strip Mall
A developer is reimagining a strip mall property as a mixed-use complex with housing and retail.

Study: Anti-Homelessness Laws Don’t Work
Research shows that punitive measures that criminalized unhoused people don’t help reduce homelessness.

In U.S., Urban Gondolas Face Uphill Battle
Cities in Latin America and Europe have embraced aerial transitways — AKA gondolas — as sustainable, convenient urban transport, especially in tricky geographies. American cities have yet to catch up.
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