The decision could signal a new reluctance to allow development in wildland areas at high risk for fires.
Despite the destruction caused by increasingly large and long-lasting wildfires in California in recent years, writes Thomas Elias, "development continued virtually unabated" in the state's wildland-urban interface. "Until early this year, when a judge in sparsely populated Lake County said 'No!' to a 16,000-acre luxury mixed-use project on land partly singed by past fires and partly deemed likely to flare up in future ones."
As Elias reports, "The judge ruled in a lawsuit brought by state Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta and several environmental groups claiming the project could prove disastrous to both its own future residents and guests but also to present area residents." Explaining his ruling, Lake County Superior Court Judge J. David Markham said that "the development could close off or overcrowd fire evacuation routes, dooming many to death, as happened during the 2018 Camp Fire in Butte County."
Elias criticizes state legislation that eliminates single-family zoning and permits increased density without requiring developers or property owners to build additional infrastructure to support extra housing units. Elias writes that infill development, and potentially the conversion of office buildings vacated during the pandemic into housing, should take priority over new development that puts communities at risk for natural disasters.
FULL STORY: As California continues to burn, finally a pushback against wildland development
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
A recent ranking of “declining” cities heavily features some of the most expensive cities in the country — including New York City and a half-dozen in the San Francisco Bay Area.
California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Chicago to Turn High-Rise Offices into Housing
Four commercial buildings in the Chicago Loop have been approved for redevelopment into housing in a bid to revitalize the city’s downtown post-pandemic.
Google Maps Introduces New Transit, EV Features
It will now be easier to find electric car charging stations and transit options.
Ohio Lawmakers Propose Incentivizing Housing Production
A proposed bill would take a carrot approach to stimulating housing production through a grant program that would reward cities that implement pro-housing policies.
Chicago Awarded $2M Reconnecting Communities Grant
Community advocates say the city’s plan may not do enough to reverse the negative impacts of a major expressway.
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Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
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HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
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