Los Angeles

Skid Row

Los Angeles Declares Shelter Crisis Ahead of El Niño

Facing winter storms and flooding, the city of Los Angeles is opening public buildings as temporary shelters for the homeless. Mayor Garcetti also has the option of declaring a state of emergency around the 26,000 people without housing.

November 24, 2015 - Los Angeles Times

405 Traffic

The 50 Worst Traffic Bottlenecks in the United States

This list of the worst places for traffic congestion in the country might cause some rubbernecking of its own.

November 24, 2015 - The Washington Post

Los Angeles Streetlights

Los Angeles Changes Color

Adam Rogers chronicles Los Angeles' long and intimate relationship with the electric light. The city's recent choice to adopt LED streetlights has transformed a classic nighttime into something new.

November 24, 2015 - BOOM: A Journal of California

Expo Line

L.A.'s Expo Line Hasn't Reduced Congestion—But it Has Done a Whole Lot More

A lot of promises get made in the hopes of building political support in transit options like light rail. Perhaps, however, officials in Los Angeles should stop promising that transit will alleviate congestion.

November 21, 2015 - Los Angeles Times

Construction Worker

'Neighborhood Integrity Initiative' Would Put Plan Amendments to a Vote in L.A.

A group of activists calling themselves the Coalition to Preserve L.A. has announced initiations to seek a ballot initiative that would enact a moratorium on projects requiring changes to the city's General Plan.

November 19, 2015 - Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles Grand Park

Op-Ed: Over-Regulation Makes Public Spaces Exclusionary

A pointed editorial decries the over-regulation that has followed the renaissance of public spaces in Los Angeles.

November 14, 2015 - Los Angeles Times

Santa Monica Bikes

Santa Monica Debuts GPS-Enabled Bikeshare

Serving beach-side Santa Monica and nearby Venice, Breeze Bikeshare equips its bikes with GPS tracking. The program claims to be more advanced than an L.A. Metro system set to debut in early 2016.

November 14, 2015 - Los Angeles Times

Empty Swings

Five Ways to Measure the Need for City Parks

While standardized metrics for determining the number of and place for city parks cannot replace more fine grain analysis, they can be useful tools. Park planner Clement Lau writes about five park-need metrics, including a couple of the newest.

November 13, 2015 - UrbDeZine

Los Angeles City Council Wants a 'Do-Over' on Mobility Plan 2035

Years of planning and strong political support aren't enough when the city council doesn't follow the letter of the law. Now opponents of L.A.'s Mobility Plan 2035 smell blood in the water.

November 9, 2015 - Los Angeles Times

Vision Zero Hero: L.A. to Hire an Artist for Traffic Safety Work

Applications are due on November 6 for a novel position in the world of traffic safety: artist in residence at the Los Angeles Department of Transportation.

November 1, 2015 - Los Angeles Times

LA Metro, Wilshire and Western

Los Angeles' Metro Launches New Phase in Effort to Curb Sexual Harassment

After first launching its program in the Spring, law enforcement and Metro are reminding riders to report instances of sexual harassment on trains and buses

October 26, 2015 - The Source (Metro's blog)

MacArthur Park

Why Some BIDs Succeed Where Others Fail

An in-depth study of business improvement districts (BIDs) in two Los Angeles neighborhoods examines the factors behind their success or failure.

October 23, 2015 - Next City

A bus next to the re-located light rail station at Denver's Union Station

Questioning the Wisdom of Light Rail in the Sun Belt States

As Houston, Dallas and other sun belt cities build out their light-rail systems, some are asking if the investment is worth it.

October 20, 2015 - New Geography

Venice Canals

Can Los Angeles Regulate Airbnb?

Several Los Angeles neighborhoods, Venice in particular, have become hotbeds of short-term rental activity. Upset by a stream of raucous visitors, residents wonder whether the city can—or will—enforce regulations on platforms like Airbnb.

October 16, 2015 - The Los Angeles Times

L.A. Metro Tackling Transit's Connection With Gentrification

New leadership at Los Angeles County's Metro says its planning efforts should consider much more than transit routes and service—including the potential for gentrification in the neighborhoods where it's investing.

October 14, 2015 - Los Angeles Times

Northridge Earthquake, 1994

Retrofitting Vulnerable Buildings Becomes Mandatory in Earthquake Prone LA..

Decades in the making, the Los Angeles City Council has approved regulations requiring the retrofit of vulnerable wood and concrete buildings.

October 12, 2015 - Los Angeles Times

Prospect Park Bike Lane

More Bicycle Infrastructure Equals More Riders

Analysis of Census data shows that, while still small in number, more Americans are taking to two-wheels as part of their daily commute.

October 11, 2015 - CityLab

Report Grades California's Rail Stations on Neighborhood Service

A report by Next 10 takes the form of a scorecard for six light and heavy rail networks. Rail that serves existing urbanized areas scored the highest.

October 7, 2015 - Los Angeles Times

Will Public Art Revive the 'Champs-Élysées of Los Angeles'?

Once called the "Champs-Élysées of Los Angeles," MacArthur Park later became known for crime and prostitution. While it has yet to experience a revival like other L.A. parks, an unusual public art project has generated renewed interest in the park.

October 1, 2015 - UrbDeZine

Bus Stop

Does Consolidating Bus Stops Speed Up Buses?

The practice of consolidating bus stops—or stop thinning—is a controversial method to speed up buses. Los Angeles Metro is considering consolidation as part of its ongoing Strategic Bus Network Plan.

September 28, 2015 - Streetsblog LA

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.