Los Angeles

L.A. Metro Receives $1.24 Billion in Federal Funds
L.A.'s transit agency was awarded over a billion dollars in American Rescue Plan funding for maintenance and operations.

Omicron or No—Transit No Longer Free in Los Angeles
Metro Los Angeles is rolling back public health measures on its buses systemwide in the middle of the worst Covid wave of the entire pandemic.

L.A.'s Pandemic Rent Cap to Stay in Place Until 2023
Landlords have been unable to raise rents on rent stabilized apartments in Los Angeles since March 2020. Unlike in other large cities with similar rules, Los Angeles won't be removing the rent cap anytime soon.

Lawsuit Uses Environmental Law to Challenge the Housing Element of L.A.'s General Plan
The city of Los Angeles in November wrapped up an update to a new Housing Element, as required by state law. A lawsuit will use a different state law to challenge the validity of the city's housing goals.

Opinion: Los Angeles Must Prioritize Bikes and Buses
L.A. has a plan for improving mobility. Why are city leaders ignoring it?

Why The Metaverse Will Be Bad For Cities
The renaming of Los Angeles's Staples Center to Crypto.com Arena may seem like an innocuous promotional gambit. But it means that cities are now in competition with a seductive virtual world.

Port Logjam Contributing to Dismal L.A. Air Quality
Emissions from container ships idling outside Southern California's ports are adding to pollution that has blanketed the region in a noxious layer of smog.

On Housing, Cities' Traditional Political Labels No Longer Apply
Historically liberal cities belie their supposed concern for human welfare by rejecting new development. Meanwhile, more conservative cities have seized the moment to become more progressive, innovative, and inclusive.

L.A.'s New Housing Element Calls for 456,000 New Homes
The newly updated Housing Element of the city of Los Angeles General Plan makes an ambitious commitment to housing construction—after decades of slow construction and a population out of scale with the city's housing stock.

Santa Monica Mountains Acquires More Land For Conservation
The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority has acquired the final 150 acres of the 325-acre Triangle Ranch open space in the Santa Monica Mountains.

Study: At Least 1,500 Unhoused Died on the Streets of L.A. During the Pandemic
New research represents the first detailed picture of death among people experiencing homelessness during the pandemic.

L.A. Shifts Homeless Policy to Clear Street Encampments
Advocates say L.A.'s new focus on clearing 'unsightly' homeless encampments is a political band-aid that won't help people find permanent housing.

Businesses Oppose Conversion of Parking Structure Into Affordable Housing
Business owners in downtown Santa Monica have filed a lawsuit opposing the city's planned replacement of a parking structure with housing, despite city studies showing that the city's downtown parking supply far exceeds demand.

Zoning and the Global Supply Shortage
Zoning has been blamed for a lot of things in recent years, but a global supply crunch increasing prices and creating shortages of household goods—and potentially ruining the holidays—is a new one.
Sustainability Leadership and ESG Commitments
Lendlease’s new head of sustainability in the Americas, Sara Neff, describes the advantages of the Australian company’s global integrated business model and leadership in sustainable buildings.

New Bike and Bus Lanes Coming to Culver City, California
The MOVE Culver City project will connect downtown Culver City with the E Line train, giving residents easier access to downtown Los Angeles and beach communities.

Million-Dollar Homes Becoming Standard Fare Across Los Angeles
As households with means seek to escape crowded apartment buildings and take advantage of historically low mortgage rates, average home prices of over $1 million are proliferating across the LA region.

How the Iconic Dingbat Took Over Los Angeles
The low-slung, car-oriented apartment buildings represent a mid-century solution to a housing shortage and offer valuable lessons for new development.

Cities Need More Public Bathrooms–Well Beyond the Pandemic
COVID-19 laid bare the dismal state of public bathrooms in America, and some cities stepped up to add more facilities. But why remove them while the need remains?

A 'Tiny Home Village' Grows in Los Angeles
The complex can house over 200 people and will provide bathrooms and social services for people transitioning out of homelessness.
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.
EMC Planning Group, Inc.
Planetizen
Planetizen
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service