CP&DR’s retrospective of the triumphs, failures, and tensions that influenced California’s built environment in the 2010s
Bidding Unhappy Trails to the Old Retail Landscape
The “retail apocalypse” has claimed a particularly unfortunate victim: the homegrown outdoor equipment chain Adventure 16. California’s cities and wilderness are both worse off
Inadvertent Praise For California’s Environmental Ethic
This Land skewers the federal land management agencies — and, in the process, indirectly provides a good reason to keep CEQA and California’s other environmental laws
El Cerrito Discovers Key to Infill Planning
While many Bay Area cities resist growth, El Cerrito is booming with transit oriented plan on San Pablo Avenue
Mobility Revolution Arriving Fast … and Slow
Advances in mobility technologies — from electric cars to robotic shopping carts — are dazzling. But planners will be hard-pressed to predict which ones will prevail.
The Coming Uberapocalypse
If the Uberpocalypse (Lyftaclysm?) transpires, cities are going to find themselves time-warped back to 2009
Santa Barbara Celebrates “Authenticity,” Faces Housing Crunch
Santa Barbara will be on full display at next week’s conference of the California Chapter of the American Planning Association. In advance of the conference, CP&DR’s Josh Stephens spoke with Santa Barbara Community Development Director George Buell.
Incoming Berkeley Design Dean Seeks to Unite East and West Coasts in Responsible Urbanism
CP&DR’s Josh Stephens spoke with Vishaan Chakrabarti about his transition to Berkeley and the urban environment he will encounter upon moving west.
State Begins To Push SB 2 Planning Money Out The Door
SB 2 sets aside enough money for literally every jurisdiction in the state to apply for and receive a grant.
Sometimes Civic Ambition Should Aim Lower
The San Jose tower falls into the all-too-common trap of mistaking a skyline for a city.
How an Arizona Outpost Quenches California’s Thirst
Water influences urban planning only in the broadest sense. It doesn’t tell us where to build or in what configuration. But it determines how many of us can live here.
Updated CEQA Guidelines Finally Go Into Effect
While SB 743 belongs to California’s suite of regulations intended to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, many planners hope that the adoption of VMT metrics will produce denser, less auto-dependent, more pleasant communities.
Dollar General: The New Retail Villain
Small communities are fighting the stores, which have gone from zero to over 200 in California in the past eight years, but usually they are allowed by local zoning.
High Speed Rail is Dead, Long Live High Speed Rail
As a piece of urbanism, Newsom’s revised experiment in high speed rail will be fascinating, and perhaps revelatory
Wildfires, Housing Top Gordon’s Priorities for Statewide Planning
Newly appointed Executive Director of the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research Kate Gordon spoke with CP&DR’s Josh Stephens about her transition into the public sector as California’s de facto chief planner.
Sacramento Gets Tough Around Light-Rail Stops
City bans auto-oriented uses such as fast-food and auto repair establishments