The Los Angeles Times architecture critic chastises the massive Los Angeles school district for not using its historic building boom to improve the architecture and planning of new schools.
"Within the facilities division of the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), "McConnell and Mehula have created a back-slapping, can-do spirit that views architecture from a cultural remove, if not with active suspicion. The newly hired director of design management, Jeffrey Brickner, is a former construction-industry executive whose office walls are lined not with images of new schools or architectural icons but with pictures of the We-Ko-Pa golf course in Fountain Hills, Ariz., and a framed copy of Sports Illustrated announcing Joe Paterno as the 1986 Sportsman of the Year.
Even some architects who continue to work for the district say they have sensed a growing backlash from facilities officials in the last couple of years against high-profile firms and progressive design.
...os Angeles architects have long been famous for an ability to produce memorable architecture on the cheap. But only a tiny group of firms has so far figured out a way to meet LAUSD's slender budgets while avoiding the strip-mall look."
Read the full story: Lessons unlearned
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
New tax cuts may slash $1.5 billion in funding for Miami transit, public parks
Amendment 3 will save Miami-Dade residents homeowners $2,700 in 2028.
Arizona, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania hope to finally advance climate goals post-midterms
The three states have spent years under Republican or divided control.
Democrats’ victory may threaten act to expedite energy projects
Democrats may decide to vote against the Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act, and negotiate a more favorable bill once the 120th Congress begins.
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.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
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