Columnist Ken Garcia writes that San Francisco's neighborhood-driven political system has been a more powerful force in shaping the city's skyline than the planning department has.
Garcia says that politics are the reason that the city "...has so few beautiful new buildings and even fewer signature ones."
He quotes an architect that designed a very significant San Francisco tower, who came to the conclusion that San Francisco is a great city "without any great buildings."
"One of the problems with San Francisco - at least architecturally - is that it's a tremendously democratic city," Marc Goldstein told me. "And one of the reasons there's so much mediocre architecture is that there's so much mediocre opinion."
Read the full story: For San Francisco democracy, the skyline’s the limit
Bay area voters pass ‘crucial lifeline’ for transit
Proposition RTM, which will fund Bay Area transit, has approval from 61% of voters as of 9:45 p.m. on Nov. 3.
California High-Speed Rail Authority picks trainset manufacturer
The California High-Speed Rail Authority aims to start servicing passengers by 2033.
SF weighs putting data center inside abandoned mall
An unnamed technology company may buy the entire building, and convert one-third of it into what development consultants are calling a “regenerative urban energy center.”
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.
Los Angeles just elected an urban planner as its mayor
Transportation analysts are optimistic that Raman will be more aggressive in addressing transit issues than Bass.
Mamdani’s pied-à-terre tax survives legal challenge
A panel of judges found that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate injury as a result of New York City's implementation of the tax.
Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity
Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.
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
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority