California
Congestion Pricing Debuts in L.A.
AP covers the opening of the first toll lanes in LA county: 110 Freeway Express Lanes that allow solo-drivers to use a carpool lane for a toll that varies with the level of congestion (i.e. congestion pricing). Shoup asks: "Why did it take so long?"
Back To The Future: The 1970 Los Angeles 'Centers' Concept Plan
The 1970 Concept Los Angeles plan is a history lesson for urban planners and a vision of what the city could have looked like.
The 10 Diagrams That Changed Planning
A new exhibit that opened this week at the San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association's gallery explores the 10 diagrams that have had a monumental influence on urban planning, and the possibilities inherent in the medium.
California Voters Like Jobs But Not Housing
In a dozen local land use measures Tuesday in California, voters approved jobs-oriented projects but not housing-oriented projects. Split decision on downtown plans.
After Setback, L.A. Mayor Still Intent on Speeding Transit Projects
In the aftermath of the seemingly narrow defeat of his pet measure to speed up the expansion of L.A.'s transit infrastructure, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa remains unbowed in his attempts to accelerate his key initiative, writes Ari Bloomekatz.
What Was Behind L.A.'s Rejection of its Transportation Ballot Measure?
Was not enough transit spending the culprit for the narrow rejection of Los Angeles County's Measure J initiative, which aimed to speed up construction of a host of the region's transit projects from 30 to 10 years? Damien Newton thinks so.
Free Parking 'Drives' Solo Commuting, Study Says
California Watch, a project of the nonprofit Center for Investigative Reporting, evaluated the 2009-11 American Community Survey and determined that CA's 'drive-alone' rate to work was 73%. Joanna Lin points the finger at free parking as chief cause.
Replacing Billboards with Trees...Sort Of
Artist Stephen Glassman and a team of engineers and planners have developed a plan for transforming L.A.'s ubiquitous billboards into floating, globally connected urban forests. All that's needed for the first prototype are a few generous strangers.
Pedestrians in L.A. Get New Focus, Times Two
Amid all the attention L.A.'s recent transit expansion and car culture receive, you couldn't blame the area's pedestrians for feeling like the odd ones out. But with the city’s first official pedestrian coordinators on the job, that may soon change.
S.F. Giants Celebratory Parade Causes Transit Surge - Records Broken
The Oct. 31 parade to honor the World Series-winning San Francisco Giants resulted in record-breaking numbers of riders taking BART, Caltrain, SF Muni and ferries to attend the parade who were accommodated by increased service. Why not continue it?
Hetch Hetchy Valley Haunts, and Nourishes, San Francisco
Voters in S.F. will be given an opportunity to right a perceived 100 year old environmental wrong next week when they cast ballots on whether to develop a multi-billion dollar plan to drain Hetch Hetchy Valley, the city’s pristine water source.
Critics Outline Grey Areas in L.A.'s "Green" Harbor Rail Yard Project
Critics of the proposed $500-million Southern California International Gateway, which is being touted as “one of the 'greenest' freight yards in the nation," contend it will actually reduce air quality and harm low income, minority residents.
Can Good Design Lead to Good Deeds in Auto Obsessed L.A.?
For 10 years now, Michael Lejeune, Creative Director for the Metropolitan Transit Authority (M.T.A.), has made taking transit in L.A. seem a lot cooler. These re-branding efforts have contributed to a 38 percent increase in ridership since 2005.
Orange County's Unrealized 'Great Park'
Tony Barboza discusses how the disappearance of expected funding has dimmed the City of Irvine's vision for turning the decommissioned Marine Corps Air Station El Toro into "the first great metropolitan park of the 21st century."
Will New Neighbors Overshadow Hollywood Landmark?
The predicted "New Yorkification" of Hollywood appears to have finally found its incarnation in the proposal released last week to build twin 500- and 600-foot towers adjacent to the historic Capitol Records building.
What Can Be Done to Revive L.A.'s Forgotten First Park
Pershing Square occupies a special place in the physical and historical landscape of Los Angeles. But the city's first park has been the victim of poor redesigns and a "massive failure of civic vision." Can anything be done to fix it?
San Francisco Searches for a Suitable Guardian for its Trees
How to care for S.F.'s 110,000 street trees and 130,000 park trees was the subject of a hearing last week called by Supervisor Scott Wiener. The Department of Public Works is engaged in a controversial program to transfer care to property owners.
LA Politicos Make Final Cases For and Against Extending Transportation Sales Tax
In 2008 Los Angeles voters passed a half-cent sales tax to finance construction of a new transit system. In November, Angelenos will decide whether to extend this tax to 2069, allowing Metro to borrow more in the short term and expedite construction.
Parasols, Slides and Succulents for Better Cities? SF says, 'Why Not?'
What do all these seemingly unrelated elements have in common? They were just a few of the creative ideas for improving the urban environment showcased at the recent Urban Prototyping Festival held in San Francisco.
LocalWiki: An Insider's Guide to Cities
If you want to know something about Davis, CA, don’t go to the website of the local paper or the city, go to DavisWiki, a repository of all things Davis, written by the public. Thanks to a recent grant, could something similar be coming to your town?
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
