California

Counties Outside of Bay Area Eye Transportation Mega Measure in 2020
Northern San Joaquin Valley transit officials are eying a $100 billion Bay Area transportation measure to potentially fund a $1 billion rail tunnel for two commuter railroads to bring workers to the East Bay and Silicon Valley.

L.A. County's Sustainability Plan Crafted With a Little Help From University Friends
Los Angeles County's new, ambitious sustainability plan was crafted in collaboration with the significant resources available in the region, including one of the nation's finest public universities.

Dodger Stadium as Civic Space with a New Front Door
Janet Marie Smith, famous for helping plan Camden Yards in Baltimore, discusses how Dodger Stadium's 'new front door' will optimize transit and pedestrian access while preserving the field's historic character and sweeping 'postcard views.'

Lack of Traffic Safety Enforcement Blamed for Vision Zero Failures
Education, engineering, and enforcement are the three "e's" of Vision Zero in San Francisco. A lack of on of those "e's"—enforcement—might explain why more people are dying on the city's streets this year that any year since the city adopted Vision Z

Union Opposition Puts Brakes on 'Record-Cheap' Solar Installation
Under a proposed 25-year solar contact, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power would pay record-cheap prices for 400 megawatts of power. But the utility declined to approve the deal after a utility workers' union raised concerns.

L.A. Times Editorial Supports Redevelopment 2.0
California's redevelopment program was killed during the budget fallout of the Great Recession. Now more state politicians see how tax increment devoted to development investments could be one tool int he state's affordable housing crisis.

Where State-Owned Properties Could Make Way for Affordable Housing in California
A recently published mapping project is the first step toward California leveraging some of it surplus land for the purposes of developing affordable housing.

Appetite for ADUs Rises in San Jose
San Jose has issued a steadily-rising number of ADU permits in recent years. Now, Mayor Sam Liccardo has implemented measures to ease the process for homeowners who want to build granny flats.

Governor Calls for 1.3 Million New Homes in Southern California
Local governments in Southern California have chafed at a call from Governor Gavin Newsom for 1.3 million new homes over the next decade. The Southern California Association of Governments has proposed only 430,000.

Bus Ridership Declines Challenge Los Angeles
The Wall Street Journal reports that bus riders on the Los Angeles County Transportation Authority system has declined significantly in recent years.

A Plan to Fix the Leaning Tower of San Francisco
A luxury residential high rise, conspicuously located near the Bay Bridge in a quickly growing section of the city, could finally have a plan to fix its sagging foundation.

California Lawmaker Wants to Triple Electric Vehicle Rebates
Assemblyman Phil Ting seeks to dramatically increase the state electric vehicle sales rebate of $2,500, motivated in part by the phasing-out of the federal EV tax credit of $7,500. The bill rules out significant revenue sources.

Discretionary Approval for McMansions
Redwood City, located on the San Francisco Peninsula, will make it harder to build homes that take up more than 45 percent of a residential lot.

The Colorado River in an 'Era of Limits'
New agreements and the first cutbacks in water usage signal the start of concerted efforts keep the river and reservoirs from dropping to dangerous levels.

Thumbs Down on Decades-Old Southern California Housing Development Proposal
A proposal for a large development in the Coachella Valley, near Joshua Tree National Park, is facing obstacles once again as the planning commission fails to recommend the plan move forward.

Expert Opines on the Fiscal Disincentives Undermining Local Approval of Housing Development
Larry Kosmont identifies the fiscal dysfunction driving city resistance to state-mandated density and offers institutional explanations for California’s current housing crisis.

San Diego Wants a New Pipeline for Colorado River Water
The San Diego County Water Authority hired a contractor to study three potential routes for a water pipeline fromt he Imperial Valley.

Automakers Required to Increase EV Sales in Colorado
Due to the adoption of the Zero-Emission Vehicle standard by the state's air quality commission last week, there will be a much greater selection of electric vehicles available for interested Colorado consumers. Sales should reach 5% by 2023.

Another Automaker Shows Interest in California Deal on Auto Emissions
President Trump is 'enraged' that automakers would agree with California in support of maintaining the Obama-era fuel efficiency standards, reports the Times. Mercedes-Benz is apparently preparing to join Ford, Honda, BMW, and VW in the private deal.

Former L.A. Planning Director Admits to Ethics Violation
A Los Angeles Times investigation reveals that the city of Los Angeles' might not have revealed every layer of ethics violation committed by Michael LoGrande after he left the Department of City Planning in 2016.
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