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.
Philadelphia’s Middle Class—Down But Not Out
A new report by the Pew Charitable Trusts tracks the demographics of Philadelphia between 1970 and 2010. Overall, middle class residents left the city during those decades, but there are reasons for optimism regarding the prosperity of the city.
12 Strategies for Revitalizing Downtowns
Even cities without an official program for revitalizing their downtowns can take steps to transform their urban cores into a collection of vibrant places. The urbanSCALE website has collected a list of such strategies.
Challenging 'Mountain Urbanism, Mountain Modernism'
In a recent editorial, Joe Andrade questions the assumptions underlying the Salt Lake City region's approach to population growth.
Millennials Moving to Cities; Older Generations Staying Put
Millennials are moving to cities around the country in era-defining numbers but so far, Generation X and Baby Boomers are mostly staying put. Is the millennial in-migration to cities a flash in the pan?
Music to the Subway Rider’s Ears
James Murphy has composed a “Subway Symphony”—a unique set of notes for each station in NYC’s Metro system that would sound when users swipe their fare cards. “The busier a station becomes, the richer the harmonies would be.”