Created by Nathan Mendelsohn, California City is the state's thrid largest in size but exists mostly in his imagination. Home to 14000 people who inhabit one end of the massive tract, just a corner next to over 185 square miles of empty development.
"The crazy streetscape is alluring. It's a hedge maze made from creosote bush and sagebrush. Deep inside, it's easy to become disoriented. Midweek, you can drive all day and not see another human being. When the air is still, the silence is absolute."
From the air California City is "a ghostly monument to overreach that, from above, looks like a geoglyph left by space aliens." It is evocative in an age of foreclosures and abandoned developments across the country.
"When we think of ruins, we typically think of European castles and churches," Geoff Manaugh, an architectural writer and instructor said. "But the U.S. also has ruins. It's just that they're made of different stuff. In this case, it's the ground itself and what was done to it."
FULL STORY: A Desert City That Didn't Fan Out
Pennsylvania Mall Conversion Bill Passes House
If passed, the bill would promote the adaptive reuse of defunct commercial buildings.
Coming Soon to Ohio: The Largest Agrivoltaic Farm in the US
The ambitious 6,000-acre project will combine an 800-watt solar farm with crop and livestock production.
World's Largest Wildlife Overpass In the Works in Los Angeles County
Caltrans will soon close half of the 101 Freeway in order to continue construction of the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing near Agoura Hills in Los Angeles County.
California Grid Runs on 100% Renewable Energy for Over 9 Hours
The state’s energy grid was entirely powered by clean energy for some portion of the day on 37 out of the last 45 days.
New Forecasting Tool Aims to Reduce Heat-Related Deaths
Two federal agencies launched a new, easy-to-use, color-coded heat warning system that combines meteorological and medical risk factors.
AI Traffic Management Comes to Dallas-Fort Worth
Several Texas cities are using an AI-powered platform called NoTraffic to help manage traffic signals to increase safety and improve traffic flow.
City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Tufts University, Department of Urban and Environmental Policy & Planning
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
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.