Sometimes one has to leave the conference hall and go and check things out for oneself -- it wouldn’t be a redevelopment conference without a nerdy redevelopment tour.

In planning, as with anything else, the progress does not arrive merely with the flow of time. The enthusiasm and ideas that swept over these pages in the first decade of this century -- smart growth, downtown revitalization, AB 32, SB 375, and all the rest -- are now met with delay, deferral, and, in some cases, bankruptcy.

For many cities, redevelopment relies on public-private partnerships, innovative financing, and design integrated with existing surroundings which, in turn, often support the hot topics of smart growth, transit-oriented development, and climate change adaptation.

Upholding a 27-year-old California Supreme Court determination, the Second District Court of Appeal has ruled that local agencies may impose a fee for the filing of an administrative appeal of a California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) decision.

The old saying in government is that in order to understand what’s going on, you’ve got to follow the money. In local planning throughout California, that’s becoming increasingly easy to do. Local government revenues – property tax, sales tax, development fees, redevelopment funds – are in steep decline.

In yet another California Environmental Quality Act case involving whether an agreement between a tribe and a city constitutes a “project,” the First District Court of Appeal has held that the law did not apply to an agreement requiring a city’s formal support of a proposed casino in exchange for the tribe’s funding of undefined city services and improvements.

CP&DR's regular roundup of legislation pending in Sacramento.

Hey you, Mr./Ms. Conventional Apartment Developer! Yes, you. Don’t attempt to ignore me by rolling up your construction–loan documents and sticking them in your ears.

With yet another $20 billion deficit looming, the State of California government appears to be on the verge of a complete meltdown. Dealing with this situation would be trying under any circumstances, but everything is made more difficult by two things: Proposition 13, and voters’ failure to understand the consequences of Proposition 13.