California

Black LIves Matter

The Shifting Geography of Protest

Compared to 1992 in Los Angeles, the protest and civil unrest of 2020 have relocated to neighborhoods farther north, and further entrenched by white wealth.

June 5, 2020 - Los Angeles Times

Sea-Level Rise

Can Bay Area Communities Come Together to Plan for Sea Level Rise?

Bay Area municipalities need to work together to enable a comprehensive plan to protect against sea-level rise. Communities may be submerged as early as 2030.

June 4, 2020 - High Country News

Concord BART Station

Entertainment District in East Bay Area City Scrapped Due to Economic Uncertainty

A developer has changed its mind about a plan to bring a soccer stadium and convention center to the city of Concord in the East San Francisco Bay Area.

June 2, 2020 - East Bay Times

Los Angeles

UCLA Report Raises Housing Crisis Alarm to L.A. Officials

A new UCLA report predicts a grim future for renters in Los Angeles. The report, the first issue published in a new journal dedicated to housing and the coronavirus, spells out what government officials must do to offset and prevent further damage.

June 2, 2020 - UCLA Luskin Institute on Inequality and Democracy

Supreme Court

U.S. Supreme Court Rules on State-Imposed Social Distancing Restrictions

In a 5-4 decision, the court voted to uphold the prohibition of religious services that was part of California Gov. Gavin Newsom's stay-at-home order. While the restriction had since been loosened, the plaintiff wanted all restrictions removed.

June 1, 2020 - The Washington Post

Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuge

The '30 by 30' Framework Sets an Ambitious Goal for Nature Conservation

California State Legislature committee approved AB 3030 in May, adopting a plan to save 30% of land and sea from development by the year 2030. The Convention on Biological Diversity is likely to follow in adopting the 30 by 30 framework.

June 1, 2020 - Los Angeles Times

George Floyd Protests

Commandeered Buses, System Shutdowns—Transit on the Frontlines of Protests

The optics of public transit suffered over the weekend, as a few transit agencies have been commandeered by police and even shut down entirely with little or no notice, stranding protesters and essential workers alike.

June 1, 2020 - New York Daily News

Santa Monica Bikes

Reopening California: Respected County Health Official Issues Warning

Dr. Sara Cody, the Santa Clara County health officer widely credited for leading the Bay Area into issuing a 6-county shelter-in-place order on March 16, the nation's first, warns that the pace of reopening is too fast.

May 31, 2020 - Los Angeles Times

Major League Baseball Stadium

Mothballed Rental Car Fleets Fill Stadium Parking Lots

A photo series showcases the disruptive effect the pandemic has had on the U.S. auto industry.

May 29, 2020 - Los Angeles Times

Coronavirus

Renters Living in Small Buildings Face the Steepest Economic Risks in the Pandemic

Renters in smaller multi-family buildings and single-family homes are faced with larger economic challenges during the pandemic, according to new analysis by researchers at the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University.

May 28, 2020 - Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University

Los Angeles

California's Population Might Be Peaking

Heretofore, the question was never if, but when, the nation's most populous state would reach 40 million.

May 26, 2020 - CALmatters

Coronavirus

Religion in the Pandemic: First Amendment vs. Public Health and Safety

Conflicts between church and state are being decided in state and federal courts as governors act to protect their constituents from the coronavirus while religious institutions and their supporters seek exceptions from social gathering restrictions.

May 24, 2020 - The Oregonian

BART Station construction

History in the Making: BART Extension into San Jose Ready for June Opening

Twenty years after voters first approved funding to build a BART extension into the heart of the South Bay Area, the project is finally ready to offer rides to the public.

May 20, 2020 - The Mercury News

110 Freeway

Economic Downturn Could Cost California More Than $10 Billion in Transportation Revenue

The effects of the economic downturn resulting from the public health crisis presented by Covid-19 could have long-term impacts on the ability of California to plan and build new transportation infrastructure.

May 19, 2020 - Mineta Transportation Institute

Emergency Housing

Hotels Could Play a Critical Role in Containing Coronavirus in Crowded Cities

Some cities are leasing entire hotels to provide rooms for people who have tested positive for COVID-19 or been exposed to infected people, to allow for safe and supportive isolation away from family or household members who risk being infected.

May 19, 2020 - Medium – Bloomberg Cities

In Planning, Reality Can Be Worse Than Fiction

The Showtime Series Penny Dreadful portrays a bleak vision of 1940s Los Angeles. But, unencumbered by regulations and zoning laws, it also displays what great urban neighborhoods can look like.

May 18, 2020 - California Planning & Development Report

New York jail

Where's the Housing for Prisoners Released Early?

As the infection rate at jails in places like New York began to climb, officials started looking for criteria to use in determining which inmates could be released. Then they ran into a familiar but now heightened dilemma.

May 18, 2020 - Shelterforce Magazine

Al Fresco Gelato

Berkeley Could Redefine the Al Fresco Streets Movement

The city of Berkeley is pursuing an aggressive plan to open the streets for outdoor dining as an economic development tool for local commercial businesses.

May 17, 2020 - Eater San Francisco

West Hollywood, California

Independent Music Venues Face a Tough Road Ahead

Where have all the venues gone?

May 14, 2020 - Los Angeles Times

Water Storage

Big Reservoir Planned for California Scaled Back Due to Lack of Funds

Missed in the non-stop coronavirus coverage of the past several months: plans to build a massive reservoir in North California have been scaled back dramatically.

May 14, 2020 - The Mercury News

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.

Senior Manager Operations, Urban Planning

New York City School Construction Authority

Building Inspector

Village of Glen Ellyn

Manager of Model Development

Central Transportation Planning Staff/Boston Region MPO

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.