Articles

Big bear Lake crushes proposed housing development while Madera County continues to wait for long-delayed development of new town, San Diego salvages its inclusionary housing ordinance, State Controllers Office reports majore violations, EPA presents 20 smart growth case studies, and Butte County bans new private roads.

A statewide initiative that could completely change how government agencies regulate land use, carry out infrastructure projects and redevelop cities has qualified for the November ballot. >>read more

The California Supreme Court in July accepted four cases with direct and indirect land use implications.

A housing development proposed for North San Diego County may give county decision-makers the opportunity to apply some of the "smart growth" principles contained in a proposed general plan update before the plan is even adopted. >>read more

A plan to build housing for faculty and staff members at Sonoma State University appears to have widespread community support except for one detail: The university's chosen location is a greenbelt outside of the City of Rohnert Park's politically popular urban growth boundary. >>read more

Auburn Dam is the public works equivalent of a Hollywood zombie, rivaling any Tinseltown creation in its ability to withstand repeated attempts to kill it. First proposed nearly a half-century ago for a site in the American River canyon near the Gold Rush town of Auburn, the dam has withstood attacks by U.S. presidents, member of Congress, state and federal agencies, environmentalists, tax watchdogs, scientists, engineers and even nature itself.

In a case closely watched by cities and counties, a sharply divided California Supreme Court has ruled that counties have the authority to prohibit logging on private land.

With the August 31 deadline for legislative action looming, state lawmakers face the usual mountain of bills during the session's final weeks. Among the land use bills in that mountain are two major flood control measures, the biggest overhaul of redevelopment law since the early 1990s and a complicated housing bill that cities strongly oppose. >>read more

Maybe it was while I was strolling amidst the mixed-use projects rising in the historic Pearl District. Or maybe it was while I was sipping coffee at a Powell's outlet in the funky Hawthorne District. Or maybe it was while walking down the full sidewalks of Beaumont Village to a brewpub on a Tuesday evening. >>read more

Voters appeared to be in both an anti-tax and an anti-growth mood in June. >>read more

A little more than a year after hurricane Katrina turned New Orleans into a real-life Atlantis and focused scrutiny on flood-imperiled cities nationwide, California voters will be asked this fall to spend billions to prevent a Katrina-size disaster in the heart of their own state. >>read more

The south Orange County city of Lake Forest is poised to approve a plan that would not only permit 5,400 housing units, but would help tie together what are now two distinct parts of town. >>read more

A final rundown of city- and county-level ballot measures from all over the state. >>read more

My first impression of San Pedro occurred 15 years ago during a tour organized by the Los Angeles Conservancy. A middle-aged man, who had been a sailor during World War II, became animated as we stood beside the old city jail in the municipal building. >>read more