State officials officially approved the city’s housing plan, which was initially rejected for not doing enough to enhance housing equity.
The California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) has officially approved the revised Los Angeles housing element, known as the Plan to House L.A., which the state rejected in February “after determining the plan did not include sufficient strategies for ‘affirmatively furthering fair housing.’”
As reported by Steven Sharp in Urbanize LA, “The revisions which allowed for L.A.'s plan to achieve state certification supplement updated zoning with new strategies prioritizing projects in high opportunity areas, enabling the redevelopment of public-facility zoned land, expanding community benefits programs, incentivizing the construction of accessory dwelling units, and assistance programs for lower-income homebuyers.” With the plan officially endorsed by the state, “Local planners will now be tasked with implementing zone changes to accommodate the construction of 255,000 new homes citywide in the near-term future.”
As Sharp explains, “HCD's initial rejection of the L.A. housing element carried potentially grave consequences, jeopardizing the city's ability to pursue state grants.” Now, thanks to legislation passed earlier this week, the city has until 2024 to implement the zone changes outlined in their new plan.
FULL STORY: State officials bless L.A.'s updated housing element
The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
New Jersey’s second-largest city bans standalone data centers
Jersey City will continue to allow co-location facilities, such as those meant for research institutions that store their own data.
Amtrak not solely to blame for New Jersey commuter rail's unreliability, report finds
A new study from the Garden State Initiative found that NJ Transit’s budget grew 20% across a 4 year period, but reliability declined significantly over the same period.
EPA erases limits on planet-warming pollution from power plants
Under Monday’s plan, power plants would still have some limits on how much mercury, arsenic and other contaminants they can emit.
Phoenix announces new on-demand transit service, more frequent RAPID buses
Both new services will launch in October, and are part of Phoenix's Project Effective Access Solutions for Easing Congestion.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association