Vol. 22 No. 03 Mar 2007
Transit-Oriented High-Rise Project Advances In Union City
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 1 June 2007 - 10:57amOne of the most ambitious transit-oriented redevelopment projects in the state is taking shape in an unlikely location. Union City, a mostly working-class suburb just north of Fremont in Alameda County, is converting about 175 acres into a dense urban environment surrounding what city planners hope will become a regional transit hub.
Parking Flexibility, Density Improve Infill Feasibility
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 1 June 2007 - 10:49amThe right combination of zoning changes and decreased parking requirements can make infill projects feasible in some of the state’s most urban settings. That is the conclusion of Solimar Research Group, which continues to investigate land use options for crowded urban areas.
Show Us The Water, Say Cal Supremes
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 1 June 2007 - 10:22amThe water supply analysis for one of the largest housing developments ever approved in the Central Valley has been rejected by the state Supreme Court. The court faulted the water study in the environmental impact report for the 20,000-unit Sunrise-Douglas community plan outside Sacramento because the study did not adequately describe long-term water sources and the impacts of using those sources.
Contract With Bottling Company Ruled Not A 'Project' Requiring Study
Submitted by importer on 1 March 2007 - 1:00amA 100-year contract between a special district and a water bottling company that calls for the district to provide up to 1,600 acre-feet of water per year is not a project requiring environmental review, the Third District Court of Appeal has ruled.
No Post-Hoc Rationalization In Playground EIR, Court Rules
Submitted by importer on 1 March 2007 - 1:00amThe First District Court of Appeal has upheld the City of Eureka’s environmental impact report for a private school playground in a residential neighborhood.
Public Health Concerns Of Infill Development Confront Planners
Submitted by importer on 1 March 2007 - 1:00amCalifornia is full of prime infill development locations, but it’s also full of freeways. And more often than not, the two go together.
Automated Parking Coming To Built-Out City Near You
Submitted by importer on 1 March 2007 - 1:00amParking is the demon of urban design. Like a gargoyle on a tower thumbing its nose at passers-by below, California’s inflexible parking requirements seem to mock developers, housing advocates and city officials alike.
New Authority Plans For Coastal Wetlands Restoration
Submitted by importer on 1 March 2007 - 1:00amA new joint powers authority has acquired 66 acres of coastal wetlands at the mouth of the San Gabriel River in Long Beach and Seal Beach, and may acquire at least 100 more acres in the near future. The Los Cerritos wetlands may provide the scene for the last major coastal wetlands restoration project in Southern California.
State Supreme Court Emerges As CEQA Enforcer
Submitted by admin on 1 March 2007 - 1:00amIn issuing its second California Environmental Quality Act ruling in seven months, the conservative-leaning California Supreme Court is emerging as one of CEQA’s staunchest defenders. The latest decision — the rejection of an environmental impact report’s water analysis for a large Sacramento-area housing project — is the court’s first foray into such water studies, and the court appears to have set a high standard.
Proposed Horse Track Goes Before Dixon Voters
Submitted by admin on 1 March 2007 - 1:00amVoters in the northern Solano County city of Dixon will decide in April on a project that could change the nature of town: A horse racing track and entertainment center capable of handling events for up to 50,000 people, plus more than 1 million square feet of hotel, entertainment, retail and office development.
