California

How Widespread Is the Coronavirus in Your Metro Area?
Do you know the COVID risk level where you live, work and play? Many COVID data trackers provide county and state-level data, but metropolitan area data had been more difficult to find until now, thanks to Covid Act Now.

19 of 1,036 Majority-Black ZIP Codes Are 'Prosperous,' Report Says
The Economic Innovation Group has released its 2020 Distressed Communities Index.

Public Gardens as Places of Hope and Healing
Descanso Gardens in Los Angeles County offered the "Wishing Tree" for visitors to share their wishes and hopes for 2021. The public response was overwhelming, with over 10,000 notes hung on the tree in a matter of weeks.

How Working From Home Is Changing Where We Live
Remote workers are flocking to small, amenity-rich towns in the West, changing their social and economic landscape.

Draft Los Angeles River Master Plan Revealed
A new draft Los Angeles Master Plan, created by Frank Gehry's firm, lays out a more active, natural vision for the river, in addition to addressing concerns about displacement in communities along the river corridor.

City of Compton Introduces Two-Year Guaranteed Income Pilot
Proponents of universal basic income and general income programs say direct cash payments to low-income residents would reduce inequality and alleviate poverty.

Pasadena Being Held to its Regional Housing Needs Assessment
The city of Pasadena, known for innovative planning approaches to parking and transit-oriented development, is in a pitched battle with regional authorities over how much housing to build in the coming decade.

Affordable Housing for LGBTQ Seniors
LGBTQ elders are more likely than their age-peers to have experienced discrimination, leaving them more likely to be poor and have chronic health problems. LGBTQ-friendly senior housing aims to provide a safe and supportive place to age.

The Best-Selling Master-Planned Communities of 2020
Two industry consulting firms released new reports on the best-selling master-planned communities in the United States.

Street Made Entirely of Recycled Plastic Asphalt
The material, now being tested on California roads, is made using recycled PET plastic and promises longer-lasting road treatments.

Los Angeles Mayor Blames COVID Outbreak on Density
Appearing on a Sunday news show, Mayor Eric Garcetti noted that the Los Angeles metropolitan region is the nation's densest and one of two primary reasons why "we're seeing a person every six seconds contract COVID-19 here in Los Angeles County."

What Will California's Commutes Look Like After COVID-19?
As the pandemic begins to wind down, Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority's Deborah Dagang speculates on the future of commuting, traffic, and public transit as Californians slowly return to their travel routines.

The Southwest Contends With a Crisis on the Colorado River
With warmer temperatures sapping the flow of water and communities clamoring for higher volumes, the Colorado River needs strict management to continue serving millions of people and farms.

California Hospitals Now Operating Under Contingency Care Guidelines
The three levels of care provided by hospitals: conventional, contingency, and crisis, were outlined in a letter sent to all hospitals. They must notify the state by Wednesday that they have adopted some version of crisis standards to ration care.

Project Homekey Crosses Major Threshold
California's effort to create emergency supportive housing options during the pandemic has completed a large-scale acquisition process.

Cars, Covid, and California
Pultizer-winning science journalist and global health expert Laurie Garrett, an Angeleno, points to the Golden State's auto culture during an interview on MSNBC as one reason why the state is now the epicenter of the pandemic in the U.S.

New South Bay BART Stations See Disappointing Ridership
Introduced during the pandemic in an area where many residents now work remotely, the new stations have failed to attract new commuters.

I-880 Reconfiguration Takes Another Step Forward in Oakland
The Oakland Alameda Access Project, in the works since 1997, is meant to relieve traffic congestion and improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists in Oakland's Chinatown neighborhood.

Coping With Rent Burden
The rent eats first, they say. But how do people survive when the rent also eats almost everything?

California's Hospital Crisis: What Lies Ahead
As COVID infections and hospitalizations mount in California, ICU availability dropped to zero in Southern and Central California. Demand for hospital care is also outstripping supply in New Mexico.
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