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.
Controversial Development a Big First Step Into Untouched Desert North of Phoenix
The developers of 1,400 homes in the desert north of Phoenix say they understand the responsibility of being the first to develop an area. Opponents would rather there was no development at all.
Flooding Less of a Concern as Hurricane Memories Fade
Residents of Houston are less likely to think of flooding as a concern, or to think development should be prohibited in flood-prone areas, as in the years immediately following Hurricane Harvey.
'Right to Survive' Homeless Initiative Fails With Denver Voters
Denver's "Right to Survive" initiative highlights just how troubling and problematic policy approaches to homelessness can be.
Price for Repairing Boston's Transit System: $10 Billion
A new estimate of how much it will cost to repair all of the infrastructure in the MBTA system places the price tag $3 billion higher than an estimate made only four years ago.
25 Months of Growth for Architecture Firms Ended in March
A key signal of economic strength for the planning and development industries delivered bad news for the first time in a long time.