California Planning & Development Report

With the real estate market in the doldrums, developers are pressuring local government officials in California to cut impact fees. Will fee cuts spur new development? Maybe, writes Bill Fulton.

Generating energy from renewable sources such as wind and water often requires stringing new transmission lines to remote areas, a prospect that concerns some environmentalists.

The Silicon Valley cities of Mountain View and Sunnyvale are alike in many ways. But their downtowns offer a study in contrasts because of land use decisions made 30 years ago.

California Planning & Development Report columnist Morris Newman doesn't think much of the Disney Company's attempts to prevent housing development in Anaheim's resort district.

Voters in Monterey County, California, have rejected environmentalists' general plan initiative, and appear to have tossed aside a county-written plan as well. The June 5 election was the latest conflict in the seven-year general plan process.

Cities and counties in California's Central Valley are starting to adopt policies to offset the development of farmland. The new policies require developers to fund or purchase agricultural conservation easements.

State agencies in California are starting to review projects based on their greenhouse gas contributions, an approach that may conflict with the state's energy policy.

For the first time, residents in a Ventura County city have voted to substantially expand their urban growth boundaries in order to accommodate a residential development -- following two previously failed attempts redraw the line.

While many eyes were on the Democratic primary, CP&DR was focused on California's land use ballot measures. Voters said no to sales tax increases for transportation purposes in five central and northern California counties.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's infrastructure program bumps into California's 21st century reality.

William Fulton recalls the late Ed Bacon, Philadelphia's chief planner for more than two decades, as more than the cranky and quirky man he became in his later years.