Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has announced that within the next five years, $5 billion will go to funding 20,000 new affordable homes near public transportation.
"Funded by a mixture of public sources-including the LA Housing Department, the LA Housing Authority, the LA Community Redevelopment Authority, Affordable Housing Trust Funds, and county, state, and federal funds-as well as private sector loans, the plan consists of broadly drawn proposals for an array of issues, from streamlining the city's entitlement and permitting processes, to providing housing for larger numbers of LA's homeless.
The plan includes a 'Sustainable Communities Initiative,' which will create 20 environmentally friendly neighborhoods near transit nodes. These mixed-use, multi-income developments are intended to link affordable housing for low- and middle-class workers with easier access to centers of employment.
Stuart Magruder, an architect and founder of the LA-based Studio Nova A, points out that the plan, reminiscent of the European model that locates people closer to where they work, shop, and go to school, is reliant on more effective transit systems than currently exists in Los Angeles. 'We've got to decide to go forward on all cylinders on both issues-developing denser communities and building more transit,' he said."
FULL STORY: Game Changer
Can We Resist Displacement From Transit-Oriented Development?
Transit stations increase nearby jobs and populations, but they could also contribute to displacement. What can we do differently?
Massachusetts TOD Law Yielding Results
While some cities are fighting the state’s push to increase density near transit, others are already breaking ground on multifamily projects that will bring hundreds of new housing units online.
Pittsburgh Mayor Proposes Zoning Changes to Curb Housing Shortage
The mayor’s plan includes legalizing ADUs in single-family neighborhoods, eliminating parking requirements, and adding new affordability requirements to buildings with over 20 units.
Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage
Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees
More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?
Ken Jennings Launches Transit Web Series
The Jeopardy champ wants you to ride public transit.
BLM To Rescind Public Lands Rule
The change will downgrade conservation, once again putting federal land at risk for mining and other extractive uses.
Indy Neighborhood Group Builds Temporary Multi-Use Path
Community members, aided in part by funding from the city, repurposed a vehicle lane to create a protected bike and pedestrian path for the summer season.
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.
Clanton & Associates, Inc.
Jessamine County Fiscal Court
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service