Los Angeles County

After Almost Four Months, Monster Methane Leak is Capped

It's a temporary cap, but it means that thousands of Porter Ranch, Los Angeles residents can return home. SoCalGas has begun the process of permanently capping the leak of the huge natural gas storage field first detected on Oct. 23.

February 12, 2016 - KTLA5

Pave Paradise and Put Up a 16-Mile Parking Lot—An Inventory of L.A. County Parking

A new study quantifies the amount of space devoted to parking in Los Angeles County—a figure that just begs to be visualized.

January 7, 2016 - Better Institutions

California's Population Now Tops 39 Million

New figures released by the California Department of Finance show that the state grew by 346,000 (to July 1, 2015). As in past years, the increase comes from natural births and immigration while more left the state than entered.

December 23, 2015 - California Department of Finance Press Release

Huge Southern California Methane Leak Won't Be Plugged for Months

The mother of all natural gas leaks can be found near Porter Ranch in Los Angeles County. The methane, a potent greenhouse gas, is leaking from an underground storage facility known as the Aliso Canyon Gas Storage Field owned by SoCalGas Company.

December 16, 2015 - Marketplace

The 'Energy Atlas' of Los Angeles County Lets Planners and Citizens Track Energy Use

"Not knowing which kinds of buildings consume what is like not being able to gauge differences between a diesel truck and a hybrid car."

October 7, 2015 - CityLab

Los Angeles County Considering World's Largest Recycled Water Program

With an historic drought pressuring agencies to source more water locally, the Metropolitan Water District is looking to expand an idea pioneered by its neighbors in Orange County.

September 25, 2015 - Los Angeles Times

San Fernando Valley Pushes Metro to Address Transit Needs

Built for industry and known for sprawl, the Valley has long preserved its suburban geography. Now that its population is close to 40 percent of the city of Los Angeles, area leaders are speaking up for mass transit.

September 20, 2015 - The Planning Report

Metro Subway Los Angeles

One Fare Card for All 26 Transit Agencies in Los Angeles County

Los Angeles County has dreamed the impossible dream—and will now provide transit access to all of its transit agencies with the use of one fare card.

September 18, 2015 - Curbed LA

Southern California Counties Set National Migration Pace

More residents moved from the counties of Los Angeles and Orange to the nearby counties of San Bernardino and Riverside than anywhere else in the country.

September 1, 2015 - The Sacramento Bee

Wind Turbines Likely Banned From Unincorporated Los Angeles County

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors acted against the recommendations of county planners in moving toward banning utility-scale wind energy production from unincorporated parts of the county.

July 17, 2015 - Los Angeles Daily News

Planning for the Next 20 Years in Unincorporated Los Angeles County

A lot has changed on the ground in Los Angeles County's unincorporated areas since 1980, when the last General Plan directing land use in these communities was written.

May 1, 2015 - The Planning Report

Metro's Latest Light Rail Crash Sparks Rail Safety Debate

The March 28 crash on Metro's extensive light rail system shouldn't have happened. All the safety measures acted as they should have. Could more have been done to prevent the motorist's fateful turn across the tracks as a train approached?

April 2, 2015 - Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles HOT Lanes Have an Oversubscription Problem

The 110 High Occupancy Toll Lanes, conversions of carpool lanes, appear to be a victim of their own success, writes LA Times transportation reporter Laura J. Nelson. An economist would say the solution is to raise the maximum per-mile toll. Or is it?

March 27, 2015 - Los Angeles Times

CicLAvia Rides into South Los Angeles

CicLAvia, the Los Angeles open streets event, heads to South Los Angeles for the first time today. Sahra Sulaiman explains the communities preparedness leading up to this historic event.

December 7, 2014 - Streetsblog LA

Bridging the Gap in the Los Angeles River Greenway

A new trail segment along the Los Angeles River breaks ground in a park-poor neighborhood as part of the countywide Los Angeles River revitalization.

November 23, 2014 - The Planning Report

Homeless

Fighting Homelessness by Closing a Commuter Rail Station

The high desert city of Lancaster in northern Los Angeles County has an innovative plan to reduce its homeless population: Close its Metrolink station, the last stop on the Antelope Valley line, that serves 400 commuters daily.

October 28, 2014 - The California Report

Los Angeles County's Creative Plans to Boost Parks

A recent Los Angeles Times article described the creative ways the city of Los Angeles is trying to meet park needs. Los Angeles County park planner Clement Lau describes the county's side of the story.

September 7, 2014 - UrbDeZine

How Los Angeles' Urban Parks Battle Climate Change

An overview of how Los Angeles County’s Department of Parks and Recreation is creating projects that tackle the effects of climate change, by planner Clement Lau.

August 1, 2014 - UrbDeZine

A Growing Body of Knowledge Examines Unauthorized Housing in Los Angeles

An academic look at unauthorized housing in the Los Angeles area: Interview of Jacob Wegmann by Los Angeles County Planner Jonathan Bell

June 21, 2014 - UrbDeZine

Green Light for Red Light Cameras in California

A decisive California Supreme Court ruling on June 5 made life easier for jurisdictions to enforce red-light laws using traffic camera technology by stating that the photos have the "same presumption of validity as other types of photos and videos."

June 8, 2014 - KTVU.Com

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.

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.