Los Angeles

Many new light rail lines have been built in western cities in the hopes of attracting new development to greenfields. Los Angeles' Expo Line, however, is threaded through a heavily built-up area, thus complicating dreams of TOD.

July 28, 2012 - California Planning & Development Report

This weekend's opening of the 12-acre park stretching from City Hall to the L.A.'s cultural acropolis marks the maturation of a downtown transformed from office park to vibrant neighborhood, reports Sam Allen.

July 26, 2012 - Los Angeles Times

Jefferson Graham describes how an influx of tech start-ups are turning Los Angeles into "Silicon Beach" - the newest hot spot for entrepreneurs with an entertainment, celebrity or mobile edge.

July 19, 2012 - USA Today

Jessica Garrison and Angel Jennings report on a new lawsuit filed this week by the City of Los Angeles that is part of "an aggressive attempt to deal with the urban decay caused by the housing crash."

July 18, 2012 - Los Angeles Times

John Hoeffel reports on the unwavering efforts of bee enthusiasts to legalize beekeeping in residential areas of Los Angeles.

July 17, 2012 - The Los Angeles Times

Taras Grescoe examines how public transportation in the United States is gaining popularity and riders, but still lags in funding.

July 17, 2012 - The Huffington Post

Christopher Hawthorne completes his second installment in an ongoing series examining the transformation of Los Angeles through the lens of its famous boulevards. This entry focuses on the most famous street in the city - Sunset Boulevard.

July 16, 2012 - Los Angeles Times

Jeremy Rosenberg examines why Thomas Jefferson may have had more of an impact on the development of Los Angeles than you might suspect. The city's street grid can be traced back to this American founding father.

July 13, 2012 - KCET

A recent article by Amanda Hess examines whether cities like Los Angeles should be "funneling serious resources" towards attracting discretionary commuters. The article has spurred significant debate.

July 11, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

How forlorn spaces might be developed as community resources that lend a sense of place, however fleeting, can be a precarious exploit. Convinced the real challenge in planning and design these dog days is placemaking, my convivial colleague Rhett Beavers and I have been exploring the potential of a variety of fringe and derelict sites under the banner of the Landscape Architecture program at UCLA Extension. With big and brutalistic no longer winning the hearts and minds of the discerning public, we are thinking small and green.

July 10, 2012 - Sam Hall Kaplan

Award-wining author Taras Grescoe pens an opinion piece for the Los Angeles Times in which he makes an argument that may surprise many Angelenos - that their city is at the cutting edge of forward-thinking transportation planning in the U.S.

July 9, 2012 - Los Angeles Times

A June panel, ‘Experiencing Healthier Places’, at the AIA Design Conference in LA looked at the roles that professional planners and architects can have in fostering a healthier society through the built environment.

July 6, 2012 - The Planning Report

Richard Close, a member of the Oversight Board supervising the dissolution of the Los Angeles Community Redevelopment Agency, discusses the challenges of defining 'enforceable obligations' and the legal battles he anticipates in the coming year.

July 3, 2012 - The Planning Report

A Los Angeles-based farming company aims to bring fresh, locally grown food to communities all around the city and transform their work into a political statement to shine a spotlight on sustainable practices.

June 27, 2012 - Good

While the east coast suffers through a brutal early summer heat wave, researchers in Los Angeles have announced the findings of the most advanced regional climate modeling ever conducted, which shows that So Cal will feel the heat soon enough.

June 22, 2012 - Streetsblog LA

Hot on the heels of the hard fought passage of a new community plan for Hollywood comes news that the City Council has approved five years of funding for L.A.'s planning department to revise the city's zoning code, for the first time since 1946.

June 21, 2012 - Curbed LA

Recent recipient of the ASLA's Gold Medal, landscape architect Laurie Olin shares some interesting opinions on his distinguished career, landscape urbanism, and the state of public space.

June 21, 2012 - The Architect's Newspaper

Yesterday, the Los Angeles City Council unanimously approved a controversial new Community Plan for Hollywood, the first update since 1988, that allows increased density around transit stations, to the consternation of some neighborhood groups.

June 20, 2012 - Los Angeles Times

With Los Angeles embarking on the "largest transit expansion in the United States," a new report looks at ways the city can preserve critical affordable housing in areas ripe for transit-oriented economic development.

June 13, 2012 - Better! Cities & Towns

With a year-round temperate climate and a history of widespread urban agriculture, it's a shame that Los Angeles now finds itself ranked 43rd amongst America's 50 largest cities for their support of local food. Can L.A. turn back the clock?

June 13, 2012 - Good