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.
Planners Across America: Brad Buchanan Shepherds Denver's Explosive Growth
In this interview for the "Planners Across America" series, Denver Planning Director Brad Buchanan details Denver's efforts to reactivate the urban core with strong planning, transit investments, and new residential and commercial developments.
Planning Efforts Taking Off in Downtown Dallas
The Dallas Arts District will make a selection of a planning firm in the coming weeks to update the seminal 193 Sasaki plan responsible for much of the area's transformation in recent years and decades.
How to Make the Helena, Montana Urban Standards Boundary Work
Recent work by the American Planning Association’s professional institute’s Community Planning Assistance Teams program examined the case study provided by growth management challenges in and around the city of Helena, Montana.
Federal Transit Authority Reports Critical Flaws in D.C. Metro Operations
Described as an unprecedented federal safety inspection of operations at the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority produced 78 safety fixes for the system.
Pope Francis Taps Planners to Help Solve Climate Change
Pope Francis's unprecedented focus on climate change and the environment includes strong messages for planners and designers of the built environment.