California

The annual budget for Paso Robles' road maintenance fund went from $400,000 to $38,000 after Gov. Schwarzenegger and the legislature agreed in 2010 to a complicated gas tax maneuver dubbed the "fuel tax swap" to balance the budget.

May 26, 2012 - The (San Luis Obispo) Tribune

On the 75th anniversary of the opening of the Golden Gate Bridge, Richard Gonzales visits with those who made the first crossing on foot.

May 26, 2012 - NPR

Norimitsu Onishi describes a feud ripe for the pages of a Hollywood script, between movie mogul George Lucas and his wealthy neighbors over his plans to build affordable housing in Marin County.

May 25, 2012 - The New York Times

Since declaring bankruptcy in 2008, the climb out of the budgetary depths hasn't been an easy one for the city of Vallejo, California. But, as it springs back to life, could Vallejo become a model for how to run a city in an age of austerity?

May 24, 2012 - The Washington Post

At a packed, May 17 meeting in Oakland, filled with transit advocates, tea-partiers, and builders, leaders of the two regional planning agencies selected "Plan Bay Area" as the blueprint to reduce transportation greenhouse gas emissions 17% by 2035.

May 24, 2012 - San Francisco Chronicle

John Wildermuth discusses San Francisco's bounce back from a tremendous slowdown in new housing construction last year.

May 23, 2012 - City Insider

In The New York Times, Adam Nagourney chronicles the rise of bicycle culture in a city defined for decades by its cars, but with a climate perfectly suited to non-motorized transportation.

May 22, 2012 - The New York Times

With several sporting events of national notice taking place in downtown Los Angeles, last weekend provided a prime platform to showcase the resurgence of the area. However, big-ticket events are just one of the many forces re-energizing downtown.

May 21, 2012 - Los Angeles Times

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