California Planning & Development Report

Plans are moving forward to redevelop a massive railyard site near downtown Sacramento. It could be a major boon for the city, but as California Planning and Development Report's Paul Shigley writes, the city should moved ahead cautiously.

California Planning and Development Report's Paul Shigley reviews the recent report on walkability released by the Brookings Institution and finds some of its claims dubious.

In California, the 2008 election year may result in victories for two contrasting interest: those who want to limit eminent domain powers and those seeking increased regulation of land use, writes William Fulton.

People who drive in L.A. have a lot of time to think about the urban form while they sit in traffic. Specifically, they wonder why everything in Southern California requires a trip in the car.

As the Disney Corporation and the city of Anaheim, California, squabble over a proposal to build affordable housing near the Happiest Place on Earth, Morris Newman suggests turning the affordable housing project into an "urban theme park".

A number of cities in California are adopting policies to limit the conversion of industrial lands to housing and, in some case, retail development. Cities insist they need to defend their industrial job bases.

As fires devastate Southern California and cause the evacuation of more than half million people, Bill Fulton laments how land use planning has largely been ignored as a fire risk reduction method.

California voters are likely to decide on two eminent domain initiatives in 2008. One is a very limited measure backed by local government organizations, while the other is a far-reaching measure that would also prohibit rent control.

CP&DR's Aaron Engstrom's offers his irreverent take on his very first APA conference.

At their annual conference, California's planners are obsessed with global warming.

Will tightening emissions standards be enough, or do we have to cut down on driving, too?

Seattle planner, architect and journalist Mark Hinshaw's new book, "True Urbanism," explains the theories behind why droves of people are abandoning the suburbs and flocking to dense, diverse urban environments.

In a ranking of California's best and worst mid-sized city downtowns, California Planning & Development Report concluded that Pasadena's reputation is well-earned. Many say the transformation has been miraculous -- and it continues today.

Proponents of the "creative class" theory argue that hip cities will be the most successful because they lure highly educated professionals who are essential in today's economy. But detractors say this is simply an argument for bread and circuses.

Los Angeles pundit Joel Kotkin's most recent diatribe about the alleged "Manhattanization" of Los Angeles has put Bill Fulton over the edge. Kotkin's arguments are old, tired and contradictory, says Fulton.

A 1,400-unit condo project in Irvine demonstrates Orange County's newfound urban qualities, as well as its reluctance to shake suburban design values, according to Bill Fulton, who recently visited the construction site.

New urbanist designs can be beautiful in the hands of experts, but the developer's version of idealistic plans may be something else altogether, says Morris Newman, who examines the design of a 500-acre project in Fresno.

San Francisco and San Diego are the No. 1 downtowns in California, according to California Planning & Development Report. L.A. is #4, behind Long Beach. Last? Fresno, Fresno, Fresno.

California is full of various plans to solve congestion with toll roads and congestion pricing. But Bill Fulton suggests that none of the plans is radical enough to make a real difference.

Everyone assumes that California's population will continue to grow for decades to come. But even with current projections for growth, history tells us that this fact isn't inevitable.