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.

A New Master Plan for the University of Washington
The University of Washington's growth pattern mirrors that of its home city of Seattle. Now the university must make room for 20 percent more of everything—students, faculty, and staff.
RTC Bike Share Shows Las Vegas' Bike-Friendly Side
An intrepid reporter took a tour of the new RTC Bike Share system in Las Vegas—along the way illustrating the bike-friendly realities of Sin City.
Low-Income Communities Left Behind in the Sea-Level Rise Discussion
The recent Florid King Tide provided more evidence that some communities in Miami-Dade County have been prioritized bin the ongoing response to sea-level rise.

Los Angeles Planners Have Had It Up to Here With Parking Podiums
Above-grade parking garages, also called parking podiums, have become a standard typology across Los Angeles. From Koreatown to Downtown, new residential buildings are separated from the street by several floors of space devoted to parking.

The Genesis of a Medium-Sized City's Affordable Housing Strategy
Bradenton, a medium-sized city on the Gulf Coast of Florida, offers a case study in affordable housing policy.