Los Angeles
Los Angeles Passes Sweeping Homeless Plans—Funding Still Needed
The easy part for politicians at both the city and the county of Los Angeles is over. Funding their plans to improve services for the homeless will be the hard part.
Los Angeles' Contentious 'Neighborhood Integrity Initiative' Explained
The soul of planning in Los Angeles will be up for vote in the citywide election that will occur on the same day as the U.S. presidential election.

Los Angeles Transit Ridership on the Decline—Are Rail Investments Working?
Bad news for transit advocates in Los Angeles this week, as the Los Angeles Time reported data that makes the region's transit investments look like something less than money well spent.
Friday Funny: The Infinite New York to Los Angeles Feedback Loop
A satirical New Yorker article nails the perpetual debate between New York and Los Angeles.

The Go LA App Offers a One-Stop Shop for Transportation Choices
A public-private partnership between Xerox and the city of Los Angeles rolls out a new mobile trip-planning app to the public today. Now it's on the city's residents to use this new power wisely.
An Appreciation of the 'Edgy Outskirts'
Long abused by those who favor more urban settings, the suburbs of major metropolitan areas should receive more credit for their cultural capital, according to this article written for Zócalo Public Square.

What Will the 'Third Los Angeles' Look Like?
Architecture critic Christopher Hawthorne describes an L.A. in flux, at once beholden to its postwar image and pushing in a new direction. The city, he says, faces existential questions on a scale unmatched elsewhere in the nation.

Reading List: Walking in the City
Sometimes, city walks can mean more than just getting from place to place. Author and book critic David Ulin discusses his favorite accounts of that rich experience.

NIMBYs at Center of California's Housing Shortage
Sacramento Bee's political columnist, Dan Walters, writes that NIMBYs are among the main reasons for the state's chronic housing crisis, and one of their main tools is the California Environmental Quality Act, which must be reformed by politicians.

Targeting Another Gap in the System, L.A. Metro Looks to Expand Eastward
The potential 2.8 mile expansion of the Metro Green Line would connect light rail to the Norwalk MetroLink Station, opening up new transit options to users throughout the region.
As El Niño Arrives, Los Angeles Needs to Update its Stormwater System
"The hard lesson here is that infrastructure systems built to make cities resilient in one era may not serve them well at all in another era," writes Jon Christensen.
Change of Leadership for Los Angeles' Planning Department
Mayor Eric Garcetti has nominated Vince Bertoni to lead the Los Angeles Department of City Planning. Bertoni is currently the planning director of the city of Pasadena.

3 NFL Teams File Walking Papers
Three teams will attempt to leave town. Resolution of the contentious political situations could be coming very soon.

Clash Over Garden City Apartments in Los Angeles
The Wyvernwood Garden Apartments, a large-scale low-rise development opened in 1939, are at the center of a preservation debate. Lauren Walser gives us the case for keeping them.
Rail Extensions Receive Sizable FTA Grants in Omnibus Spending Bill
Sound Transit, L.A. Metro, and Santa Clara VTA received sizable funding in FTA's New Starts/Small Starts program for their light and heavy rail extensions, thanks to Congressional representatives who included them in the omnibus bill,.
Five Surprising Facts About L.A.'s Homeless and How to End Homelessness
Ever have questions about the homeless? Here's a fact filled outline you can use to dispel some common notions about the country's largest homeless population—and some solutions—by affordable housing adviser Michael P. Russell.

Los Angeles to Redesign Its 'Worst Public Space'
Josh Stephens reports on the Pershing Square Renew Design Challenge, an effort to redo one of the "world's worst squares and plazas." The new Pershing Square may hearken back to the years before its misguided 1992 redesign.

Minor Tweaks and Major Advancements Suggested for L.A.'s Parking System
Responding to aggravated parkers in Los Angeles, a citizen's advisory committee has come up with a raft of recommendations to make parking fines fairer and to add technological innovation for finding a parking space and avoiding tickets.
Shell Companies Rule Los Angeles Luxury Real Estate
For all the intention New York gets for foreign investors buying up rarefied air, Los Angeles has allowed shell companies to completely control the luxury real estate market—and the neighborhoods where it locates.
Beware of Energy Rankings for Cities
In a special "Energy for Tomorrow" report, The New York Times looks at "clean city rankings" of energy efficiency and land use. But ranking cities is no easy task—"winners on one list may appears as sinners on another."
Pagination
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.
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