California
Brownfield Revitalization, or Gentrification?
Residents of the Bayview neighborhood of San Francisco fear that redevelopment threatens to gentrify the area in a way that pushes out low- and middle-income black residents.
Is "Nuisance Abatement Team" a Legitimate Use of Police Power?
In Antelope Valley, Calif., questionable code enforcement practices encroach the Fifth Amendment taking clause while the obfuscation of facts by public officials mars the transparent aspect of the planning process.
CA Air Board Sticks With Cap & Trade
The CA Air Board reaffirmed their decision to stick with the cap and trade approach to reducing greenhouse gas emissions rather than an alternative mechanism such as a carbon fee - a decision that did not please the environmental justice litigants.
Lending Program Could Replace National Infrastructure Bank
Obama supports Boxer's 2-year transportation reauthorization bill over Mica's 6-year bill. However, both bills greatly increase funding for the Transportation Infrastructure and Innovative Finance Act.
Yacht Parking for Boat Race Takes Too Much from San Francisco
As San Francisco prepares to host the 2013 America's Cup regatta, plans to use parts of the city's scenic waterfront for spectators' yacht parking edge too far into the public realm, according to this piece from the San Francisco Chronicle.
L.A. River Opens to Paddlers
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers gave approval to kayakers and canoeists to paddle down a 1.5 mile strip of the L.A. River that is deemed by the federal government safe enough for public recreation, reports Michael Martinez for CNN.
TOD Booms in California
Transit oriented development is on the rise in California, with new projects being pushed in conjunction with new rail lines in Southern California and the Bay Area.
$417 Million To Fund Highway Projects
Last week, the Federal Highway Administration awarded discretionary highway grants in what could be among the last expenditures before the Sept. 30 expiration of the gas tax. Included were $8m for Value Pricing Pilot Program projects in 5 states.
Governor Backs Environmental Alternative To 'Big Solar'
Environmental opposition to large solar and wind projects in the desert usually based on their biological impacts has long baffled many renewable power advocates. CA Gov. Jerry Brown expressed support for the alternative, 'distributed generation'.
Complete Streets Arrives In Bay Area
Gary Richards, the Roadshow columnist for the San Jose Mercury News, provides many examples of redesigning streets for bikes, peds, and transit throughout the Bay Area, a direct result of the 2008 California Complete Streets legislation.
Pop-Up Planters Sprout Up Around the Streets of SF
John King of The San Francisco Chronicle examines the installation of mobile planters around the Yerba Buena District in San Francisco; part of a 10-year revitalization initiative to bring new meaning and boundaries surrounding public space.
Vision Lacking in Downtown L.A. Stadium Plan
Plans for a downtown football stadium in Los Angeles are seeming ever more likely to pan out. The project present an opportunity for the city to develop a major center, but shortsightedness could keep it from becoming an exciting part of the city.
Burning Man Does Good At Home
Burning Man -- the annual arts festival and self-reliance experiment -- is more than a party in the desert. Its organizers are starting a new effort to revitalize the neighborhood around their San Francisco office.
Tenderloin National Forest
An unconventional outdoor spaces has helped transform a small part of a problem-riddled San Francisco neighborhood.
Lies and Confusion in Neighborhood Naming
Neighborhood naming is fraught with confusion, misunderstandings and downright deception. Take Los Angeles, for example.
Windfarm Concept Inspired by Schools of Fish
Current wind farm technology requires a lot of space between blades. A new report proposes that "counter-rotating vertical-axis wind turbines" would draw power more efficiently on less land.
Red-Light Running Cyclist Kills Pedestrian
On 7/14, a cyclist riding in the bike lane on The Embarcadero hit a pedestrian crossing with the traffic light. She died a month later. While rare, this fatality shows why all vehicles, motorized or not, need to respect traffic laws.
BMW Unveils Design Alternatives for BART
A follow-up to last month's story, BMW Group DesignworksUSA released three interior concepts - each one more posh and modern than the last - for BART's "Fleet of the Future." No spy shots needed.
A $1.5-Billion Forward Pass by L.A. City Council
Unanimous approval of the five-year outline to build a 72,000-seat football stadium in Downtown L.A. goes to show that the City Council is all game for a politically radioactive project.
Goats Clearing Brush and Luring Crowds in L.A.
Goats being used to clear brush on a hillside in downtown Los Angeles are a cost-effective and environmentally-friendly way to deal with overgrowth -- and they're attracting fans.
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
