Lisa Feldstein
Lisa Feldstein seeks to use land use as a tool for social and economic justice.
Contributed 17 posts
Lisa Feldstein is a Doctoral Candidate at the Department of City and Regional Planning at UC Berkeley. She is a 2012 Robert & Patricia Switzer Foundation Fellow, a 2012 Fellow at the Institute for the Study of Societal Issues, the 2010 recipient of The Robert A. Catlin/David W. Long Memorial Scholarship, and the 2009 recipient of the Friesen Fellowship for Leadership in Undergraduate Education. Lisa is formerly the Senior Policy Director with the Public Health Law Program, in which capacity she directed the organization's Land Use and Health Program. The project engages advocates in the land-use decision-making process throughout California, develops tools for training advocates about the relationship between the built environment and public health, and provides technical assistance for creating and implementing land use policies that support healthier communities. Lisa has worked on affordable housing and land use issues, with a focus on low-income communities, for nearly two decades. She works as an independent consultant providing technical assistance to local governments and nonprofits on a broad range of housing, community development, and land use-related issues. Prior to her work as a consultant, she was a loan officer with the Low-Income Housing Fund (Now the Low-Income Investment Fund). She also spent five years with the San Francisco Mayor's Office of Housing. Ms. Feldstein also served as a San Francisco Planning Commissioner from 2002-2004, where she was a strong advocate for community-based planning that incorporated such beneficial built components as open space and grocery stores. Ms. Feldstein graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Massachusetts at Boston with a B.A. in American Studies (Urban Focus), and earned her J.D. from the Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California at Berkeley. She lives in San Francisco with her husband and their daughter. When not studying, writing, volunteering, or hanging out with her family, she loves to bake and to read fiction. A New York City native, Lisa loves cities.
Why should planners care about the Farm Bill?
<p class="MsoNormal">Every five to seven years, Congress votes to reauthorize one of the largest and most significant legislative measures affecting land use policies in the U.S - the Farm Bill.<span> </span>This year, Congress will debate the omnibus legislation that defines not only America’s agricultural policy, but determines funding priorities for rural development, food and nutrition assistance, energy and environmental issues.<span> </span></p>
Diminutive Offerings from a Grocery Store Giant: Will They Fill the Grocery Store Gap?
<p class="MsoNormal">The impact of the urban grocery store gap, particularly on low-income communities, has been well documented. The presence of full-service grocery store can raise the economic value of surrounding property, serve as an anchor in commercial districts, provide an important source of jobs, and lower the daily cost of living for residents.<span> </span>In an era of skyrocketing obesity rates, public health research shows a strong correlation between the presence of a grocery store and the consumption of fruits and vegetables.<span> </span></p>