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.
The Facebook for Neighborhoods
Meet Nextdoor, the social network based on proximity, inspired by the conclusion of Robert Putnam’s Bowling Alone that neighborhood social networks make crime go down and test scores go up.
Back to the Drawing Board for Eisenhower Memorial Design
The National Capital Planning Commission voted this week to reject a design by Gehry Partners for a memorial to Dwight D. Eisenhower planned for the National Mall in the nation’s capital.
Seattle Updating Zoning Regulations for Small Single-Family Lots
Planners in Seattle have responded to controversy over the size and scale of development on small lots in many of the city's single-family neighborhoods, with a new set of zoning regulations.
Tracking Chicago’s Potholes
A new animated map presents the reported cases of potholes in Chicago since November—the maps colorful and provides insights into how the city, and our relationship to it, can change with time.
One Possibility for Activating Vacant Storefronts in Small Cities
A post on the blog for Utile, a Boston-based architecture and urban planning firm, recommends the coffee cart as a bit of DIY urbanism for cities like Lawrence, Massachusetts.