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 Game-Changing Bike and Pedestrian Bridge Opens in Portland
A bridge in the works since the 1970s marks significant progress for active transportation in Portland, Oregon.
An Experiment in Civic Activism Aims to Transform Planning
A pioneering architect in Newcastle, U.K. tries to open planning to the people with a new "urban room" for community engagement.
Nantucket Residents Pass on More Stringent Regulation of Short-Term Rentals
A recent Nantucket Town Meeting resolved a long-simmering controversy regarding short-term rentals.
Columnist: New York City Needs Economic Recovery Strategies Other Than Gentrification
It's a tale of two cities as New York starts to emerge from the pandemic.
L.A. Planners Working to Shift Affordable Housing Distribution for More Equitable Results
Almost all the affordable housing development in L.A. in the past decade has occurred in majority-minority neighborhoods. The L.A. Department of City Planning is looking for ways to make sure high-income areas do more of their fair share.