James Brasuell, AICP is the former editorial director of Planetizen and is now a senior public affairs specialist at the Southern California Association of Governments. James managed all editorial content and direction for Planetizen from 2014 to 2023, and was promoted from manging editor to editorial director in 2021. After a first career as a class five white water river guide in Trinity County in Northern California, James started his career in Los Angeles as a volunteer at a risk reduction center in Skid Row. Prior to joining Planetizen, James worked at the Cal Poly Pomona College of Environmental Design, as an editor at Curbed LA, as editor of The Planning Report, and as a freelance contributor for The Architect’s Newspaper, the Urban Land Institute – Los Angeles Chapter, FORM, KCET, and the California Planning & Development Report.
How Good Planning Remade the Santa Fe Railyard
A planner reflects on one of New Mexico's great planning successes, the Santa Fe Railyard.
Exploring the National Equity Atlas
Online mapping platforms are continuing to find new and improved ways to represent the inequities of American society.
Lower Speed Limits Are the Law in Seattle
The city of Seattle moved quickly in enacting a speed limit change on streets around downtown. File this under real change to achieve the goals of Vision Zero.
Nashville Mulls Funding Ideas for its $6 Billion Regional Transit Plan
The Nashville Metropolitan Transit Authority and the Regional Transportation Authority of Middle Tennessee adopted the most comprehensive and expansive version of the nMotion plan. Now they have to fund all those big ideas.
Detroit's Failed Regional Transit Plan Strikes a Blow to the City's Revival
Voters in the Detroit region had a chance to reverse 40 years of neglect for regional transit. Instead, they kicked the can down the road.