City officials have agreed to soundproof schools and cut pollution as LAX prepares for an $11 billion expansion.
"Now the nearby Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) is poised to begin an $11 billion expansion. Instead of a flood of environmental lawsuits that traditionally halt urban expansion projects, the community took a different tack from the outset. As a result, the city has committed $500 million to soundproof schools, upgrade polluting airport vehicles, and study how the expansion will impact the quality of life.
...Following a trend begun here in 1998 known as community benefit agreements - a way for developers and community organizations to ensure that local residents share in benefits from major developments - modernizing LAX is the first-ever agreed upon project with a public entity, in this case, Los Angeles World Airports."
Thanks to Chris Steins
FULL STORY: In Los Angeles, a unique plan to dull the roar of jets

Florida Considers Legalizing ADUs
Current state law allows — but doesn’t require — cities to permit accessory dwelling units in single-family residential neighborhoods.

Manufactured Crisis: Losing the Nation’s Largest Source of Unsubsidized Affordable Housing
Manufactured housing communities have long been an affordable housing option for millions of people living in the U.S., but that affordability is disappearing rapidly. How did we get here?

HUD Announces Plan to Build Housing on Public Lands
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EPA Terminates $116 Million in Grants for Reducing Emissions from Construction Materials
C-MORE grants were earmarked for industry trade groups and universities.

BART Closes $35 Million Deficit
Cost control and revenue generation measures prevented service cuts.

The New Parisian Hearse is a Bicycle
Sleek, silent, and sustainable, a green trip to the graveyard has hit the streets of the French capital.
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