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.
Orange County Expanding its Recycled Wastewater Program
Southern California takes a lot of heat for sucking up the water from Northern California and the Colorado River, but the Orange County Water District, at least, is doing its part.
Friday Fun: Build Your Own 'Mini Metro'
It's been available since September 2013, but news of the "Mini Metro' subway layout game recently hit the web. Finally, a test for all those armchair enthusiasts who think they can make the trains run on time.
MAP-21 Putting Pedestrian and Bike Programs on the Chopping Block
It took a few years, but funding changes as a result of MAP-21, the 2012 federal transportation bill, have started to impact funding for Metro “Call for Projects” grants in Los Angeles County.
On the Land Use and Transit Implications of 'Take Me Out to the Ballgame'
The decision of where to locate ballparks, and to what extent the public should subsidize that location, can have ripple effects throughout the land use and transportation systems of a region.
Pennsylvania’s Neighborhood Improvement Zones Paying Dividends
With 600,000 square feet of office and retail under construction in the center of Allentown, Pennsylvania, the state’s Neighborhood Improvement Zone program, launched in 2009, has had a substantial impact.