California

San Diego Rail

San Diego City Council Prohibits Short-Term Rentals in Second Homes and ADUs

In a move to limit the number of properties available for rental, the San Diego City Council members voted 6-3 to limit rentals to primary homes and the licensing process more strict.

July 24, 2018 - San Diego Union Tribune

Brisbane, CA

San Francisco Suburb to Vote on Massive Project to Double Population

Brisbane, a city of about 4,700 on the southern border of San Francisco, will vote on a controversial ballot measure in November to approve or reject a mixed-use development including up to 2,200 residential units on a 660-acre vacant brownfield.

July 24, 2018 - San Mateo Daily Journal

California Water

Los Angeles (and Climate Change) Seriously Threaten Air Quality at Mono Lake

With water levels habitually low, officials from the Eastern Sierra say they are "headed for a showdown” with L.A.

July 23, 2018 - Los Angeles Times

Twin Peaks Drive

Breaking: Trump Administration Will Revoke California's Auto Emissions Authority

Sources leaked news of the Trump Administration's plans to dismantle the Obama-era environmental policies. The Trump Administration also aims to dismantle the Golden State's ability to regulate air pollution from vehicles.

July 23, 2018 - Bloomberg

Santa Monica Bikes

Sometime This Summer, California's Population Tops 40 Million

Rather than projecting when the 50 million milestone will be reached, demographic and political indicators predict the state's population is more likely to decline, according to Joe Mathews of Zócalo Public Square.

July 23, 2018 - Zocalo Public Square

O'Hare Blue Line

High-Speed Transit Tunnels to O'Hare Airport Could Begin Construction Within Months

The 16-mile route itself from downtown Chicago is still being negotiated. Passengers will be transported in what Elon Musk's Boring Company calls an "electric skate" at speeds up to 150 mph for the 12-minute trip.

July 23, 2018 - Engineering News-Record

NFL Stadium People Mover

People Mover to Inglewood's New NFL Stadium Proposed

The forthcoming people move to LAX could have company nearby, with a proposal for a people mover to the new NFL stadium in Inglewood.

July 21, 2018 - Daily Breeze

Echo Park

$300 Million Property Tax to Fund Stormwater Infrastructure on the Ballot in Los Angeles County

The proposed property tax would double the county's stormwater capture capacity.

July 21, 2018 - LAist

San Francisco Skyline

California Achieved its Climate Goal; Now the Hard Part Begins

New York Times climate reporter, Brad Plumer, comments on California's landmark accomplishment in reducing emissions, observing that with the low-hanging electricity generation fruit picked, reducing transportation emissions will prove formidable.

July 20, 2018 - The New York Times

Aqueduct

Voters to Decide on Repair of Vital Aqueduct for San Joaquin Valley

California voters in November will have the opportunity to help repair the Friant-Kern Canal, damaged by subsidence, as well as invest in watershed conservation programs, by passing a citizen-initiated $8.9 billion general obligation bond measure.

July 19, 2018 - The Sacramento Bee

The Penninsula

Bay Area City Could Extend Development Restrictions Beyond Their Expiration Date

A signature-gathering campaign has expressed a desire to extend height and density limits in San Mateo.

July 19, 2018 - The Daily Journal

San Francisco City Hall

San Francisco Voters to Decide on Employer Tax to House the Homeless

It started in Seattle with the Amazon Tax to pay for transportation and housing needs exacerbated by the city's largest employers. Last month, a Google Tax was placed on the November ballot in Silicon Valley. A landlord tax in Oakland could be next.

July 18, 2018 - Bloomberg News

California

How Land Use Policy Helped Turn California Blue

As recently as a half-generation ago, California passed anti-immigrant laws, routinely elected Republican politicians, and wallowed in land use laws—like Prop. 13—enacted by conservatives. Manuel Pastor explains California's change of heart.

July 18, 2018 - California Planning & Development Report

Metro Train Station

L.A.'s Transit-Oriented Communities Program Finds Affordable Housing Success

The Los Angeles Transit-Oriented Communities program, which offers development bonuses in exchange for affordable housing in developments near transit lines, is the city's most successful affordable housing tool.

July 18, 2018 - The Real Deal

Cats and Ducks

Pools Making a Comeback in California

While California's tendency toward drought is on temporary hiatus, homeowners flush with equity again feel enabled to install pools at record levels.

July 17, 2018 - The Orange County Register

Express Lanes

Los Angeles Express Lane Revenue to Fund Electric Double-Decker Buses

Solo drivers who paid a variable toll to use the 10 and 110 freeways in Los Angeles provided $1.4 million to assist in the purchase of the nation's first electric double-decker buses, to be operated by Foothill Transit

July 16, 2018 - CityLab

Bike and Bus Lane

Protected Bike Lane Plan Shelved in San Francisco

Bike advocates say a protected bike lane near the downtown Caltrain station can't wait. The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) says the project will have to wait.

July 13, 2018 - San Francisco Chronicle

Cool, California

California Reaches Greenhouse Gas Emissions Target Four Years Ahead of Schedule

It is possible to achieve state-mandated global warming reduction goals after all. The nation's first such goal, signed into law by Republican governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2006, called for reducing emissions to 1990 levels by 2020.

July 13, 2018 - San Francisco Chronicle

Dublin Skyline

Asia Dominates Metropolitan Growth; California Cities Also in the Top Ten

The Brookings Institution released the Global Metro Monitor 2018 report this week.

July 13, 2018 - Brookings

Bay Bridge

Taxpayer Group's Lawsuit Could Repeal Toll Hike on Bay Area Bridges

A California taxpayers association has challenged the June passage of a regional ballot measure because it didn't receive two-thirds support from voters, although two prior voter-approved bridge toll increases also fell short of a super-majority.

July 12, 2018 - The Mercury News

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