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.
Skyscrapers and Starchitects Coming Soon to Downtown San Francisco
Take a tour of the changes coming the to the Transbay District in San Francisco.
Bikeshare Means Transit to New Yorkers
A case is emerging from data shared by Citibike that the system gets the most use by commuters. Federal legislation is in the works that would make bikeshare-as-transit official.
Population Growth Shifts to Urban Virginia
Newly released data from the Weldon Cooper Center's Demographics Research Group shows a state shifting in population growth northward—toward Washington D.C. and inner ring suburbs.
Los Angeles Transit Ridership on the Decline—Are Rail Investments Working?
Bad news for transit advocates in Los Angeles this week, as the Los Angeles Time reported data that makes the region's transit investments look like something less than money well spent.
Revisiting Plan El Paso With a Critical Eye
The critically lauded Plan El Paso hasn’t yet spurred the kind of urban revitalization it was designed to achieve. Some say its evidence that people still want sprawl, other say changes are still coming.