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.

Baltimore Judge Tosses Regional Transit Voter Question
The Baltimore City Board of Elections and a local circuit court judge have blocked the efforts of transit advocates to seek support from voters for a regional transportation authority.

The Case for Urban Highway Removal
Instead of removing urban freeways, which have proven to be destructive to communities and economies—in some cases deliberately so—many cities are expanding freeways in and around cities.

Measuring the Urban Exodus
New data reveals truths about one of the biggest questions to emerge from the pandemic: Did the public health risks and economic disruptions of 2020 and 2021 spur an urban exodus away from the urban cores of large metropolitan areas?

Skepticism for an Auto-Dependent Future
A new book makes the case that the promises of the transportation technology industry will fall short of the needs of cities and the planet.

A Menu of Proposed Housing Policy Reforms
The Mercatus Center published a list of 16 policy recommendations designed to help states clear local obstacles for housing construction.