Los Angeles’ shortage of housing and shortage of high-density transit-friendly neighborhoods has run headlong into the obscene, bacchanalian overabundance of automobiles
2017 Year-in-Review
As usual, the bulk of my work appeared in the California Planning & Development Report, where we covered a tremendously interesting year in land use, often focusing on the need for housing and the many forces that frustrate its development. I was delighted to again contribute to Planetizen, Next City, Boom, and — new this year — Common Edge.
Undoing the Legacy of Segregation in California
However integrated the United States may be today, Rothstein pointed out a damning truism: the country cannot de-segregate just because laws have changed.
The Opposite of Gentrification
If these communities are going to, at the same time, decry the invasion of newcomers and oppose most development, then they face but one option: they must promote development elsewhere.
Cannabis, Urbanism and Storefront Ethics
If we’re going to condemn one form of legal commerce on ethical grounds, we might as well take a look at all the others while we’re at it.
OPR Finally Finishes SB 743 Guidelines
The Office of Planning and Research has released long-awaited CEQA guidelines that, by many accounts, promise to revolutionize the way developers and lead agencies measure the transportation impacts of projects under the California Environmental Quality Act.
Creating Complete Streets
There is no such thing as “a” complete street. No single street is “complete.” Complete streets encompasses more of an idea—and an attitude—than a typology.
A Sermon for the Homeless
A recent conference hosted by the American Institute of Architects in Los Angeles shined a light on efforts to reduce homelessness in Los Angeles—and demonstrated just how much work must be done nationwide to solve this humanitarian crisis.
Planetizen’s Top Ten Books of 2017
Planetizen is pleased to release its list of the best books published in 2017 on the subjects of planning, design, and development.
Churches, City Making, and the Sacking of Tbilisi by Global Architecture
I find myself speculating not just on the purpose of Tbilisi’s churches but indeed about the purpose of religion itself. Particularly the triumphalist version of religion that seeks not merely to venerate a deity and instill virtues but that also sees fit to impose itself on God’s creation.
Houston Planning Director Dispels Myths About the Effects of Harvey
An interview with Houston Planning Director Patrick Walsh, conducted after Hurricane Harvey ravaged the city and reduced its planning and infrastructure to a talking point for pundits.
Conquering Fears of Public Space on Halloween
The scariest thing about Halloween is that it illustrates just how un-neighborly many communities are and how averse to pedestrianism they are on the other 364 days of the year.
Searching for Los Angeles in Blade Runner 2049
For all the theorizing about Blade Runner, it’s worth asking not what Scott was saying about the future of Los Angeles (or of cities in general) but rather why he chose Los Angeles in the first place.
Battle Brews over ‘Bodega’ and Bodegas
Residents of California can be forgiven for wondering what a bodega is.
Planning Director Susan Anderson Separates Fact from Fiction in Portland(ia)
Planetizen’s “Planners Across America” series continues in the city that put many contemporary best planning practices on the map: Portland, Oregon.
Google Goes Urban: Campus for 20,000 to Rise in San Jose
Tech giant plans huge campus near Diridon Station in Downtown San Jose.