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.

Two Signs of Approval Process Failure Finally to Proceed in Los Angeles
Neighborhood groups blocked the construction and completion of a Target-anchored retail complex and a 22-story residential high rise for years. Developers and the city have finally moved forward.

Friday Funny: A Play About Elon Musk's Hubris, in Shakespearean Blank Verse
Looking for a way to forget about the Boring Company for a little while? You've come to the wrong place.

The Best Architecture of 2018 (From the Other Side of the Atlantic)
The Guardian's list of architecture's best in 2018.

Opinion: Good Public Transit Is Crowded
Embrace the crowds.

Sweeping Building Moratorium Issued in Response to Potential Opportunity Zone Investments
From opportunity zone to 'opportunity-free zone.'