The Planning Report
Demystifing the Development Process
The L.A. City Planning Commission president and architect, Bill Roschen, talks about how the commission is implementing clear and consistent policies toward their goal of "Doing Real Planning" in Los Angeles.
The Planning Report
Preservationists Fighting for Century Plaza Hotel
The Los Angeles Conservancy has been building a coalition to preserve the Century Plaza Hotel after developers announced plans to replace the hotel with new mixed use development.
The Planning Report
City Styrofoam Bans Send Food Packaging Industry Scrambling
More than 30 cities and counties in California have passed some form of a ban on the use of polystyrene containers, and a new state law under consideration, AB 1358, would ban the use of polystyrene foam and non-recyclable food containers statewide.
The Planning Report
Community Colleges Set Green Workforce Training Mission
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 Planning Report
Reductions in Vehicle Miles Traveled a Slow, Difficult Process
Two representatives of a committee charged with implementing reductions in VMT to meet California's SB 375 goals discuss the challenges.
The Planning Report
Finding the Silver Lining in California's Drought
Water Lawyer Michael George details the causes and effects of the current California drought, and sees hope that pinched water supplies may drive innovation and collaboration in building sustainable water systems in the West.
The Planning Report
California Budget Crisis Derails Open Space Acquisition
With a budget proposal that threatens to close 80 percent of California state parks on the table, Joe Edmiston, executive director of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, explains how the state's budget crisis left the SMMC "dead in the water."
The Planning Report
Cities Search for Neighborhood Stabilization Tools
Cities struck by the foreclosure crisis are implementing a number of measures to help prevent foreclosures and stabilize neighborhoods already racked by vacancies.
The Planning Report
Will Congress Follow California's Lead on Climate?
A recent panel at the VerdeXchange Conference in Los Angeles featuring discussion by Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Oregon) and former Speaker of the California Assembly Robert Hertzberg on the state's role in influencing federal climate change legislation.
The Planning Report
Time for Real Estate to 'Get Real'
Ventura, CA, City Manager Rick Cole Op-ed argues for a comprehensive paradigm shift in the real estate and development industries.
The Planning Report
Can Trade Reform Beget Economic Recovery, Environmental Sustainability?
Apropos to the debates dominating the G20 conference in London, former U.S. Trade Rep and Commerce Secretary Mickey Kantor argues for trade as the centerpiece of economic and environmental sustainability.
The Planning Report
Retiring Environmental Hero Shaped Water Policy
An exit interview with Tom Graff, who joined Environmental Defense Fund in 1971, when the environmental movement was just getting started.
The Planning Report
Serendipity for Downtown L.A.?
At a recent event in Los Angeles, Cecilia Estolano, CEO of the Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of Los Angeles, presented her vision for the Downtown of the future in one of the country's most notoriously diffuse urban centers.
The Planning Report
Inland Empire Seeks Solutions to Foreclosure Crisis
Ron Loveridge, the mayor of the Inland Empire's largest city, Riverside, details how regional and local leaders are working to recover from the effects of the foreclosure crisis.
The Planning Report
L.A Billboard Policy 'Worst in Nation'
Kevin Fry, president of Scenic America, explains the threat to the urban fabric posed by lax billboard policies. He also explains how cities can avoid L.A.'s problems enforcing outdoor advertising codes.
The Planning Report
RAND Corp. Offers SoCal Short Term Congestion Fixes
Author Paul Sorensen details the findings of a recent RAND study recommending short term (i.e., within five years) fixes for rampant congestion in Southern California.
The Planning Report
Inland Empire Prepares for 350,000 Foreclosures
Local and regional governments in Riverside County, California, have assembled a "Red Team" task force to mitigate the impacts of the foreclosure crisis in the fastest growing region in the state.
The Planning Report
County Enacts Far-Reaching Green Building Reform
The L.A. County Board of Supervisors recently approved a package of green building ordinances that may be the most comprehensive and far reaching green building legislation at the local level in the country.
The Planning Report
Congestion Pricing Gains Political Traction
California State Senator Mark Ridley-Thomas (D-Los Angeles) makes the case for a congestion pricing pilot program funded by the federal government.
The Planning Report
California Water Policy Deadlock Deepens Regional Crisis
Michael George of Golden State Water Company makes an impassioned plea for leadership from Sacramento as the state’s deepening water supply crisis gets lost in another budget battle.
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