California

Is it a calamity that more Californians are leaving the state than are migrating there from others? USC demographer Dowell Myers takes a closer look at migration data and finds that most native-born Californians remain there.

May 20, 2012 - Zocalo Public Square

As the Golden Gate Bridge approaches its 75th anniversary, John King pens an incisive comparison between the arguments against the bridge's original construction and those that have challenged subsequent high-profile projects.

May 19, 2012 - San Francisco Chronicle

John Metcalfe explores a new kind of hybrid vehicle that could revolutionize trucking and cut down air contaminants in one of the most polluted regions in the country.

May 19, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

California's erstwhile redevelopment agencies are pleading with the state to maintain funding for projects they consider crucial. So far, the Department of Finance has taken a decidedly conservative approach.

May 17, 2012 - California Planning & Development Report

Noting the Bay Area's relatively slow growth rate over the past two decades, Timothy B. Lee argues that the area's "bad housing policies" are harming business growth and investment opportunities in Silicon Valley.

May 16, 2012 - Forbes

Guidelines attached to the federal funds intended to help pay for the first phase of California's bullet train will require the fastest rate of transportation construction known in U.S. history, reports Ralph Vartabedian.

May 15, 2012 - Los Angeles Times

Christopher Hawthorne begins a series exploring the ways in which L.A. is utilizing its boulevards to try on "a post-suburban identity for the first time", with a look at Atlantic Boulevard, a major north-south spine.

May 14, 2012 - Los Angeles Times

With victories in Beverly Hills, and a notable defeat in nearby Palos Verdes Estates, Alexei Barrionuevo tracks historic preservation's shifting place in Los Angeles.

May 13, 2012 - The New York Times

HECA, the Hydrogen Energy California project, will do much more than burn H2 to produce 300 megawatts of emission-free electricity. This U.S. Dept. of Energy-backed project will store (sequester) carbon underground in Kern County's oil fields.

May 13, 2012 - Business Wire

So you think cars are to blame for L.A.'s air pollution problems? That might be bull excrement, literally, reports David Biello.

May 11, 2012 - Scientific American

Once again, Southern California finds itself embroiled in a dispute over public access to, and private usurping of, its most coveted resource -- the beach. This time, tony Orange County is the scene of the battle.

May 8, 2012 - Los Angeles Times

Emily Badger tracks the hacking phenomenon as it migrates from the virtual to the physical world, and the official channels that are embracing and facilitating its emergence.

May 8, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

As a number of luxury high-rise condo buildings struggle to sell their units, Alexei Barrionuevo looks at the difficulty of selling a high-density lifestyle in a city "where the seriously wealthy overwhelmingly prefer living in extravagant estates."

May 7, 2012 - The New York Times

Josh Stephens describes the fierce battle raging between Beverly Hills and Metro, the region's transportation authority, over the proposed route of the long-planned westward subway extension.

May 6, 2012 - Next American City

Vauhini Vara explains what a new upscale eatery could mean for the future character of low-income communities like Bayview and Hunter’s Point and their residents.

May 6, 2012 - The Wall Street Journal

The Wall Street Journal printed a response to the Wendall Cox opinion, “California Declares War on Suburbia” by none other than the author of the bill (SB 375) that Cox holds responsible for the war, Senate President Pro Tempore Darrell Steinberg.

May 4, 2012 - The Wall Street Journal - Letters

Steven Erie, a professor of political science and the Director of the Urban Studies Program at UC San Diego, discusses how the San Diego County Water Authority's finger-pointing obfuscates the region's discourse on what is really driving water rates.

May 4, 2012 - The Planning Report

Included in the 2005 federal transportation bill was $100 million for four regions to invest in bike and pedestrian infrastructure to determine, essentially, if they build it, will they bike and ride more and drive less. The final results are in.

May 3, 2012 - Fast Lane (DOT blog)

Stephanie M. Lee reports on the complicated nature of creating an urban garden in San Francisco, and how the area's Planning and Urban Research Association (SPUR) hopes to streamline the process.

May 3, 2012 - SF Gate

Robert Steuteville looks at a recent report on the Golden State's supply and demand imbalance in the housing market. It's not what the The Wall Street Journal has led you to believe.

May 2, 2012 - Better Cities & Towns