California
The Changing Demographics of the Suburbs
Anaheim, home of Disneyland, is the latest suburban enclave in California to become majority Latino. According to one expert, the shift is due to "two things: Latinos moving in and non-Latinos moving out."
BART Planning Huge Investment in New Cars
BART is set to embark on a $3.4 billion project to replace its existing trains with 700 new cars that will carry more people, move passengers through stations faster, and meet the needs of suburban and urban riders.
Bay Area HOT Lanes: Will They Work?
An 800-mile HOT lane 'network' proposed for the Bay Area is now a bill in the state legislature. The MPO estimates it will reduce congestion and emissions while raising funds for transit. U.C. Berkeley's Pravin Varaiya insists it will lose money.
California Population Growth Continues To Slow
California's population growth slowed to 1.1% according to the state Dept. of Finance, down from 1.3% last year. Current population is 38.3 million. The LA Times looks at southern CA growth while the SF Chronicle reports on Bay Area growth.
In A Sign of the Times, Failed Development Demolished
A stalled housing development in a Los Angeles exurb meets the wrecking ball as completing the development became too unaffordable.
Cities Search for Neighborhood Stabilization Tools
Cities struck by the foreclosure crisis are implementing a number of measures to help prevent foreclosures and stabilize neighborhoods already racked by vacancies.
Drive-By Art
Art 'on the scale of architecture' is cropping up in Los Angeles, enticing passing drivers out of their cars and onto the street. Chris Burden's 'Urban Light' installation at LACMA is a notable example.
Cities Get 'F' For Air Quality
The American Lung Association has failed 2/3rds of California's counties in a recent study of levels of smog and soot.
California Cities to Sue Over High Speed Rail Route
A group of cities in the San Francisco Bay Area are going to file a lawsuit next month over the chosen route for California's planned high speed rail route between the Bay Area and Southern California.
The Los Angeles Traffic Problem, From Above
Photos of LA from above showcase the city's traffic patterns.
Building the Smart Grid Smartly
In the sixth of a ten-part series, National Public Radio investigates the sustainability of smart grid technology in the places where its likely to be applied.
San Francisco's Bike Sharing Program Slow to Get Rolling
Environmental review processes and logistical issues are delaying the creation of a bike sharing program in San Francisco, announced in February by Mayor Gavin Newsom. Set to start with 50 bikes, some have criticized the program for aiming too low.
Battle Brews Over "Significant" Hotel's Fate
Now that Los Angeles' Century Plaza Hotel has been listed as one of the nation's most endangered historic places, preservationists argue the irony behind developers' plans to demolish the building to "green" the area.
Salamander Could Stymie Development
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is considering listing the Tehachapi slender salamander as an endangered species, which could cause problems for large developments in California like the massive Tejon Ranch project.
Opportunity Arises to Revise California's Prop 13
Proposition 13 has long been associated with California's budget woes and "fiscalization of land use" policies. Meant to apply primarily to residential property, commercial property owners have benefited more. 'Split role' could correct the problem.
Setting the Record Straight on SF Design
This piece offers seven misconceptions about architecture in San Francisco. The first: "This is a liberal city where anything goes."
From Grimy to Green
Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has unveiled plans to turn an industrial parcel of land near downtown into "the global capital of clean technology."
CA's Low Carbon Fuel Standard Regulation Is Approved
CA's Air Resources Board approved another 'first' - a low carbon fuel standard that will play a key role in meeting the state's aggressive climate action plan by reducing the carbon intensity of transportation fuels. Winners and losers are created.
Bay Area Adopts Regional Transportation Plan
On Earth Day, the Bay Area's MPO- the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, formally adopted their Regional Transportation Plan that includes a controversial 800-mile High Occupancy Toll lane network that is dependent on the passage of legislation.
Pagination
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