California

Not All of San Diego's Inclusionary Zoning Funds Going to Affordable Housing
San Diego finds itself having to explain how its inclusionary zoning program spending diverged from expectations.
Volvo to Sell All-Electric Heavy Trucks in North America in 2020
Volvo gained attention last year by announcing it would stop making new internal combustion engine models. Now it plans to electrify its 2020 truck models as well. A demonstration program will be launched in Southern California next year.

San Jose City Council Supports New Billboards
San Jose, California is suddenly taking a much more permissive approach to large billboards.

Los Angeles Launches Wave of Community Plan Updates
With a promise to update all 35 of its community plans by 2024, Los Angeles took a big step toward that goal this week by launching new planning processes in nine community plan areas.

Two Sides of the California Rent Control Debate, in Silicon Valley and Beyond
In California, rent control continues to be a hotly contested issue at both the local and state levels.

Another Bus Rapid Transit Planned for L.A.—Connecting North Hollywood to Pasadena
More details have emerged for yet another large transit project in Los Angeles County.

U.S. Supreme Court Rejects Case Threatening the California Coastal Act
A conservative and partisan court handed a victory to public access and California's environmental law by refusing to hear an appeal sought by billionaire Vinod Khosla.

Open for a Month, San Francisco's Transit Terminal Shut Down Due to Cracked Beams
The $2.2 billion Salesforce Transit Center, which opened to much celebration on Aug. 11, closed down abruptly Sept. 25 after workers found a cracked steel beam. A second cracked beam was later found. Work began Sunday to shore up the structure.

BART Development Law Signed
Under a law signed today by Governor Jerry Brown, Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) gains the power to rezone its properties. It's a decisive victory for state preemption over local control in the face of California's housing crisis.

Downtown San Jose Could Get Taller
In the Bay Area's biggest city, the debate over density pits two economic drivers against each other.

San Francisco’s Housing Woes: How the Past Informs the Present
A zoning history dating back to the 19th century still has significant impacts on the city’s housing in the present day.

Art to Inspire Climate Action
The Coal+Ice exhibition was on view in San Francisco in September 2018, timed to leverage Governor Jerry Brown’s Global Climate Action Summit.

Creative Placemaking's Role in Enhancing Community Safety
Efforts across the country show that these projects have the added benefit of improving community safety.

Can Bikeshare Work Without Bike Lanes?
One journalist argues that missing ingredient for a flourishing bike culture isn't rental bikes; it's safe places to ride.

California Gas Tax Supporters Get Good News from Latest Voter Survey
In a turnaround from prior voter surveys, a poll released Wednesday on November propositions found a slim majority of voters opposed to repealing the state's first legislative gas tax increase since 1989. Rent control opponents received good news too

Caltrain Ending Weekend Service to San Francisco Until 2019
Caltrain will end service into the city of San Francisco while it converts the route to electric power.

Voters in Four States to Decide on Transportation Sales and Fuel Taxes
Californians will determine whether to repeal recent fuel tax and user fee increases; Missourians to vote on a 10-cent gas tax hike over 4 years; Coloradans whether to hike the sales tax, and the most interesting measure will be decided in Utah.

Shasta Dam Expansion Explorations Underway
Raising the height of the Shasta Dam in Northern California has been on the table since the 1980s. Now it looks like the Department of the Interior's Bureau of Reclamation is going through with it.

San Jose to Vote on $450 Million Affordable Housing Bond
A $450 million bond referendum will come before San Jose voters this November. Mayor Sam Liccardo promises it is "a necessary but not sufficient tool" to provide stable housing at an epicenter of the housing crisis.

The Latest on Los Angeles' Hollywood Park Development
New photos and renderings show the Inglewood Stadium construction and future plans for the 300-acre multi-use project.
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