The City's top budget official has warned that dismantling the Redevelopment Agency could cost the city more than $109 million in new expenses.
David Zahniser and Jessica Garrison report on the fallout from last month's Supreme Court decision dismantling the state's redevelopment agencies on the City of Los Angeles. Already facing ongoing budget deficits, should the City Council choose to retain all of the current redevelopment agency employees and complete its backlog of projects, the city would incur more than $109 million in new expenses, high-level analysts warned.
As a result, "A committee of the mayor and four council members instructed Santana to begin the process of laying off 192 redevelopment employees....Dozens of projects are now in jeopardy, officials said."
"Everything is in chaos right now," said Councilwoman Jan Perry, who is running for mayor. "We're getting calls from developers every day, saying what's going to happen to my project? We need to answer them and quickly."
Read the full story: L.A. assesses costs of shuttering redevelopment agency
The ‘Necessity of Oil and Gas Drilling’
The California Supreme Court on Aug. 3 unanimously overturned a successful 2016 Monterey County ballot measure that banned new oil and gas drilling. According to plaintiff Chevron USA, the justices recognized the ‘necessity of oil and gas drilling.’
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.
LA residents may be allowed to paint their own crosswalks
Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky put out a motion instructing the Los Angeles Department of Public Transportation to study the feasibility of allowing volunteers to paint crosswalks.
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