Paul Shigley

For the first time since the Carter administration, Washington is in the position of paying for seemingly everything. But how will the federal government's spending affect growth in California? Not in the way you might think, says Bill Fulton.

California is now offering buyers of new housing units a $10,000 tax credit. The tax break was pushed hard by homebuilders, who say the measure should boost housing starts.

Twice in the last month, planning expert Bill Fulton has ridden public transit to and from large public events. In both cases, transit was far more effective than driving.

An investment group that bought the Queen Mary had big plans to redevelop the parking lots and moribund area around the grand ship. The difficult economy, however, appears to be jeopardizing those plans.

The deepening of the housing market crisis is certainly a big deal in California. But the land use story of the year was the Legislature's passage of a measure mandating regional planning.