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.
Calculator Answers the Question: Are You a Gentrifier?
Let the debate ensue about the accuracy (not to mention the appropriateness) of the "Gentrifier Calculator" exercise.
5 Lessons from the Growing Open Streets Movement
As Open Streets events become more popular and spread to cities all over the world, emerging trends show how to make the most of the opportunity to reclaim streets from cars for a few hours.
Utah's Disappearing Salt Flats Cause Controversy
A well-attended racing event was cancelled for the second year in a row on the Bonneville Salt Flats. Organizers are worried the salt flats might never be the same.
Op-Ed: Nashville Should Coordinate Transit, Housing Plans
Urban planning is front in center in Nashville, with a general plan update underway and a mayoral election looming on August 6. One candidate took to the editorial pages of The Tennessean to lay out a housing and transit agenda.
Swords Into Ploughshares: Guns Transformed Into Rebar for Bridges and Freeways
Guns taken off the streets by California police agencies have become a new source of materials for steel reinforcement on bridges and freeways around the Southwest.