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Court Defers To City On Water Study Methodology

Dec 19, 2008

Legal Digest, Paul Shigley, Sonoma County, Vol. 24 No. 01 Jan 2009, Water

Cities, counties and public water agencies have broad discretion over the way they conduct water supply assessments for development projects that rely on groundwater, the First District Court of Appeal has ruled.

Federal Infrastructure Package – A Chance To Get It Right

Dec 16, 2008

"Isolated transit-oriented developments in a sea of automobiles."

That's how Robert Cervero, one the country's foremost authorities on transportation and transit-oriented developments, described this country's approach when I spoke to him recently while working on a story about SB 375, AB 32 and other climate change policies for the February edition of Planning magazine. The chair of the University of California, Berkeley, Department of City and Regional Planning, Cervero says we're getting it wrong.

Greenhouse Gas Plan Defers To SB 375 Process

Dec 12, 2008

An AB 32 Scoping Plan that places a great deal of emphasis on the SB 375 process was approved on December 11 by the California Air Resources Board.

The plan tentatively calls for land use actions that reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 5 million metric tons (MMT) of carbon dioxide equivalent annually. Environmentalists and some smart growth advocates argued for a higher land use target, while building industry representatives and some local government officials said 5 MMT should be the maximum.

Crucial Air Board Decision Anticipated Thursday

Dec 9, 2008

The California Air Resources Board is scheduled to decide this week on a broad plan for implementing the state's greenhouse gas emissions reduction law. The board's decision could have profound implications for both growth patterns and individual development projects.

U.S. Supreme Court Reviews Coastal Power Plant Operations

Dec 8, 2008

California, Clean Water Act, Kenneth Jost, Legal Digest, Vol. 24 No. 01 Jan 2009

WASHINGTON – Industry and environmental groups in California are awaiting a ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court that could determine how far the state's coastal power plants must go to reduce their fish-killing intake of ocean waters used to cool generating facilities.

Lawsuit Challenges Redevelopment Tax Shift

Dec 5, 2008

The California Redevelopment Association has filed its threatened lawsuit over a state budget provision shifting $350 million from redevelopment agencies to schools. The CRA argues that directing tax increment revenue away from the redevelopment agencies violates the state and federal constitution and even amounts to an uncompensated taking of property.

But I have to wonder: Is anyone listening?

UCLA Extension: The Art and Economics of Building Green, Friday, December 12, 9am-4:30pm

Dec 4, 2008

Announcement

Wine Center's Closure May Not Crush Napa

Dec 2, 2008

Copia – the $80 million wine, food and arts center that was supposed to help anchor downtown Napa's revitalization – has closed and filed for bankruptcy.

Could Obama's Urban Policy Embrace Regional, Suburban Issues Too?

Dec 1, 2008

Insight, Vol. 23 No. 12 Dec 2008, William Fulton

No president in more than 40 years has been better positioned to reshape American urban policy than Barack Obama. But the new president faces three challenges in dealing with urban policy.

Ontario's Hockey Lust: Too Much, Too Soon?

Dec 1, 2008

Deals, Morris Newman, San Bernardino County, Stadiums and arenas, Vol. 23 No. 12 Dec 2008

Was Ontario wise to build a hockey arena on its own nickel? Let's ask Miss California Planning ...

SF Redevelopment Plan Prevented From Reaching Ballot

Dec 1, 2008

CP&DR Staff, Initiatives and referendums, Legal Digest, San Francisco, Vol. 23 No. 12 Dec 2008

A referendum on a redevelopment plan for San Francisco's Bayview and Hunters Point districts will not appear on the ballot. The First District Court of Appeal upheld a Superior Court judge's ruling that referendum proponents violated elections law by not including a copy of the redevelopment plan in referendum petitions.

In Brief: SunCal Developments Face Financial Woes

Dec 1, 2008

California, CP&DR Staff, In Brief, Vol. 23 No. 12 Dec 2008

This month's roundup of land use news: SunCal places two more projects under bankruptcy protection; Desert Hot Springs finally gives up on a controversial resort development; Klamath River dams may crumble; Westlands Water District told to solve irrigation drainage problem; Caltrans launches policy plan website.

What Happens When Social Ills Trump Redevelopment Plans?

Nov 26, 2008

The vagrants were getting aggressive while they panhandled in the parking lot between Starbucks and CVS.

"Bitch!" an angry-looking man in his 40s shouted at one woman who denied his plea for spare change.

A different fellow whom I turned down remained menacingly close while I opened my car door and quickly climbed inside. "Let's get the hell out of here," my friend said while jumping into the passenger seat.

Glendale Establishes Urban Design As Top Priority

Nov 26, 2008

Infill development, Josh Stephens & Jillian Goodman, Local Watch, Los Angeles County, Vol. 23 No. 12 Dec 2008

When Pasadena first began to transform its moribund downtown into Southern California's premier urban destination, neighboring Glendale took a more cautious approach to urban renewal, which is to say that it did very little.

But that's changing. Earlier this year, the city's Planning Department established it own Urban Design Studio with the intent of enhance existing urban character.

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