Los Angeles

Qualcomm Stadium

Five Reasons for Cities to Punt NFL Teams

While citizens of San Diego, Oakland, and St. Louis argue over whether they can afford to keep their NFL teams, overlooked are the benefits of being rid of them, writes land use attorney and San Diego Chargers fan William Adams.

February 15, 2015 - UrbDeZine

Residents Disillusioned with the Planning Process in Los Angeles' Chinatown

Sharon McNary reports on a proposed development in the Chinatown neighborhood of Los Angeles that predates, and could thus avoid, the guidelines put forward by one of the most progressive plans in the city—the Cornfield Arroyo Specific Plan.

February 13, 2015 - KPCC

Residents Sue Over the 'Lawless Skid Row' of Venice Beach

Venice Beach, one of the most popular tourist destinations and recognizable public spaces in Los Angeles, has long been the site of regulation battles. Now a neighborhood group is suing the city over what it perceives as rampant lawlessness.

February 4, 2015 - CBS Los Angeles

Developers are 'Poisonous' to Los Angeles City Council Hopefuls

Developers are persona no grata in a high-profile City Council election in Los Angeles. Is it a case of NIMBYs gone wild or the empowerment of neighborhood interests?

February 2, 2015 - Los Angeles Times

Formalizing Street Vending: A Los Angeles Case Study

The ongoing efforts to reform street vending laws in Los Angeles gained national media attention recently. Can local officials find a way to overcome controversy and complexity to legalize street vending this year?

January 30, 2015 - Salon

Will Plummeting Gas Prices Threaten Recent Transit Ridership Gains?

As gas prices have fallen, driving has increased. October driving mileage figures show an increase of 3 percent from a year earlier. A shift away from public transit may cause transit providers to rethink expansion plans.

January 30, 2015 - The Wall Street Journal

Private Planning Effort Spearheads Los Angeles River Bike Path Proposal

Looking for a way to connect the separate pieces of the bike path along the Los Angeles River, a local developer took planning and designing a new path into his own hands.

January 26, 2015 - The Architect's Newspaper

Chicago, IL

Urban Millennials Stuck in the Three Largest U.S. Metros

For a variety of economic reasons in addition to urban preferences, young people are not leaving the country's three major metropolitan areas: New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago, and that's not good for the nation's economy nor the individuals.

January 23, 2015 - The Wall Street Journal

New 'Infrastructure Financing District' Proposed for Los Angeles River Improvements

Los Angeles officials are hoping to create an "Infrastructure Financing District" (i.e., tax increment financing) to help finance ambitious goals for revitalizing and restoring the Los Angeles River.

January 22, 2015 - Los Angeles Times

New Methane Emission Regulations Aim for 45 Percent Reduction by 2025

President Barack Obama hopes to add to his "climate legacy" by having the EPA adopt the nation's first regulations to reduce methane emissions, the second most prevalent greenhouse gas emission after carbon dioxide, but far more powerful.

January 15, 2015 - Los Angeles Times

Transportation Journalism Suffers Losses in 2015

Transportation readers who prefer reading a less auto-centric perspective of issues will see losses this year, as budgetary constraints at Streetsblog caused the layoff of Tanya Snyder of Streetsblog USA and the temporary loss of Streetsblog Chicago.

January 14, 2015 - StreetsBlog NYC

Los Angeles Lacks Plan to Address Affordable Housing

The Los Angeles media has recently turned their attention to housing, in a city ranked by some measures as the least affordable market in the country.

January 13, 2015 - KPCC

How the Los Angeles Neighborhood Land Trust Gets the Job Done

In a city of increasingly scarce land, the Los Angeles Neighborhood land Trust has a track record of ushering community gardens and other public health resources in low-income communities.

January 2, 2015 - Seedstock

Surveying California's Recent Environmental Accomplishments

Jon Christensen and Mark Gold survey the environmental accomplishments of the Los Angeles region as well as the state of California over the course of the past year.

December 31, 2014 - LA Observed

The Da Vinci vs. Slow-Baked Cities

Josh Stephens writes in CP&DR that the recently burned Da Vinci apartment complex will have successors that also turn their backs on surrounding streets—but cities can and should do the difficult, slow work of fostering more inclusive design.

December 30, 2014 - California Planning & Development Report

San Fernando Valley Playing Catch Up in the Los Angeles Transit Boom

Dakota Smith reports that the Los Angeles transit renaissance is leaving the political leadership in the San Fernando Valley feeling left behind.

December 29, 2014 - Los Angeles Daily News

Los Angeles Lacking Data to Support Bike Infrastructure Investments

Los Angeles has added hundreds of miles of bike routes in recent years, but the local paper of record identifies a lack of data as contributing to ongoing discord from drivers who feel like they're being pinched by bike lanes.

December 24, 2014 - Los Angeles Times

Busy Crossing Street

Big Cities Make Pedestrian Safety a Priority

New data released Dec. 19 by NHTSA shows increased safety for those traveling by car, but pedestrian fatalities are 15% higher than in 2009. Plans by San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago to increase ped safety are described by the WSJ.

December 22, 2014 - The Wall Street Journal

$4 Billion Plan for Intermodal Connections to LAX Moves Forward

Southern California is in the process of undoing the decades of planning that has left LAX isolated and inaccessible except through an ocean of congestion and frustration. Plans to connect the airport to the region recently gained critical approval.

December 22, 2014 - Curbed LA

Study: Passenger Vehicle Fleet is Older and More Polluting

Arguably just as important than the sales of new vehicles, e.g., hybrids and EVs, are the consequences of not buying new cars.

December 14, 2014 - Scientific American

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.

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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.