As Los Angeles ambitiously builds public transit infrastructure, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority is working on plans to update Union Station so that it will better serve the Los Angeles of the future.
In 2011, Metro purchased the 40-acre site in Downtown Los Angeles that includes a historic passenger terminal built in 1939 to serve western railroads. An intensive master planning process has been in progress for the property since 2012. With the undertaking nearing completion, Metro's Deputy Executive Officer of Countywide Planning Jenna Hornstock elaborates on recent refinements to the preferred approach--with final plans expected to go before Metro's Board of Directors in September.
Hornstock shares the proposed changes to Union Station as they currently stand, highlighting key transit improvements that include a new multimodal concourse and future integration with high-speed rail. The team has prioritized connectivity and place-making across the site, intending these goals to yield both improved transit functionality and a greater sense of continuity with the surrounding neighborhoods.
Development on the site was viewed through that same lens. Hornstock explains, "We focused on the transit improvements as our building blocks, and from there we identified places for new commercial development that enhances access to transit and connectivity across the site. Whether it’s overbuilding on the relocated bus facility, or thoughtfully integrating development into the site, we looked at creating a place that is connected through plazas, terraces and bridges... With all of this study, we came up with a development program showing 3.25 million square feet of commercial development."
FULL STORY: Jenna Hornstock Shares Refinements to Metro’s Union Station Master Plan

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Map: Where Senate Republicans Want to Sell Your Public Lands
For public land advocates, the Senate Republicans’ proposal to sell millions of acres of public land in the West is “the biggest fight of their careers.”

Restaurant Patios Were a Pandemic Win — Why Were They so Hard to Keep?
Social distancing requirements and changes in travel patterns prompted cities to pilot new uses for street and sidewalk space. Then it got complicated.

Platform Pilsner: Vancouver Transit Agency Releases... a Beer?
TransLink will receive a portion of every sale of the four-pack.

Toronto Weighs Cheaper Transit, Parking Hikes for Major Events
Special event rates would take effect during large festivals, sports games and concerts to ‘discourage driving, manage congestion and free up space for transit.”

Berlin to Consider Car-Free Zone Larger Than Manhattan
The area bound by the 22-mile Ringbahn would still allow 12 uses of a private automobile per year per person, and several other exemptions.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
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.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
Custer County Colorado
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)