A program financed by Bloomberg Philanthropies will pay homeowners to build accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and rent them to the recently homeless.

The Los Angeles housing crunch has made affordable housing difficult to find in much of the city, a few programs are trying to address the issue by encouraging home owners to rent accessory dwelling units out of their back yards. "In separate pilot programs, officials are offering subsidies of between $10,000 and $30,000 to homeowners who commit to creating accessory dwelling units — more commonly called “granny flats” — and renting them out to the formerly homeless," Jennifer Medina and Inyoung Kang write for The New York Times.
The programs are in the pilot stages and would begin at a small scale. "It is unclear exactly how many units the city will pay for with this round of money, but much of the experiment will focus on just what it will take to convince homeowners that they should rent out their back houses to the homeless," report Medina and Kang.
FULL STORY: California Today: Los Angeles Tests Housing the Homeless in Its Own Backyard

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails
Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail
The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power
Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.

MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns
MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.

Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant
A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Caltrans
City of Fort Worth
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie