Conor Friedersdorf writes that Los Angeles is made up by 88 different municipalities, 10 million residents and a lot of unincorporated territory, making it difficult to decide who controls what.
That lax regard for territorial responsibility has led to corruption, says Friedersdorf:
"In Maywood, years of financial mismanagement forced the city to dismantle its police department and lay off all city workers. The Los Angeles Times just won a Pulitzer for its coverage of corruption in Bell, where city officials paid themselves many millions in excessive salary and benefits. Something similar happened in Lynwood a few years back..."
Worst of all, says Friedersdorf, is Vernon, CA, a town of almost purely industrial uses and only 112 people, which may soon be stripped of its status as a city by the state of California.
Read the full story: Los Angeles Is 88 Cities, Many of Them Corrupt
Op-Ed: It’s Long Past Time for Planning Reform in L.A.
Another corruption scandal involving a Los Angeles city councilmember highlights the urgent need for major planning changes in the city.
Keeping Bees Away from Honey? Corruption Cases Expose Flaws in L.A. City’s Land Entitlement Process
Three former Los Angeles public officials share their collective perspective on how best to reform the city of Los Angeles' corrupted land use approval process.
Has The Moment Arrived To End Political Interference in L.A. City's Land Use Decisions?
Writing under the nom de plume of the ghost of Ed Logue, an L.A.-based land use professional offers this modest proposal for eliminating political interference and campaign cash from L.A. city planning.
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.
Chicago voters approve permanent festival grounds, penalty for vacant property owners
Currently, major summer and fall festivals take over public parks for weeks at a time, drawing criticism from nearby residents
NYC votes to cut outdoor dining red tape, speed up permitting
New York City also voted to allow the Department of Transportation to begin work on urgent projects before notifying elected officials.
California appears to reject Prop. 45
The proposition would have expanded the projects that qualify for a streamlined environmental review, effectively paring down the California Environmental Quality Act.
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.
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