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 End of Auto-Dependence
Enough European cities have shown it can be done. It's time for U.S. cities to follow suit.
Tough Times for Low- and Middle Income Renters
The annual report on the rental housing market by the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University shows how far and deep the housing affordability crisis has reached.
Coming to Terms with the Racist Causes of Pollution
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania took the dramatic step of officially declaring racism a public health threat. Public policy has yet to mitigate the city's worsening air quality, however.
Ranking the Plans to Remake Penn Station
There have been many attempts to redesign Penn Station, but not all of them were created equal.
Car-Free Streets Aren't a Silver Bullet
The San Francisco Chronicle's urban design critic tempers expectations for Market Street in San Francisco, where the city this week undertook an ambitious, but perhaps over-sold, redesign of the busy street.