Monday, August 24, 2009

National Comm Garden This Week

WASHINGTON, Aug. 6, 2009 - Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today encouraged Americans to connect with the land, the food it grows and their local communities by proclaiming August 23-29, National Community Gardening Week. A community garden is an opportunity to educate everyone about from where food comes, whether that is a Farmers Market or a garden, and is important to increasing generations of healthy eaters. Community gardens can be anywhere whether it is in the country, a city or a suburb. It can be one community plot or can be many individual plots.



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Thursday, August 20, 2009

Re: LA Times Article on OCTA

Click here for article

This piece just lacks any real merit about transportation in Orange County. It basically restates the obvious: the state is in extreme peril fiscally and public transit in OC suffers in a down economy. Why not talk about the hiring of new CEO Will Kempton who leads by example by taking public transit to work. What about OCTA's ARCTIC initiative -- which has the potential to be a the primary nexus in Southern California mass transit and long range traveling with plans to connect to Las Vegas through high speed rail.

Just because LA Metro garners all the glitz and glamour of "subways to the sea" and "Look new turnposts! We're just like New York now right?" does not mean the rest of So. California transportation is going through a downward spiral. Everyone is hurting right now -- bad journalism just falls into the constraints of bad taste. Everyone knows that OC will be automobile-friendly for quite some time -- if better information, however, were passed along then maybe a few more people would realize that strides are being taken to improve major issues.

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Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Research/Perspectives from UCI Planning Policy Design Faculty & Students

Calling Skid Row Home:

UCI's Mike Powe studies ways to make Los Angeles district inclusive, viable community

"Mike is highly committed to conducting research that will guide policy and planning decision-making," wrote Kristen Day, UCI planning, policy & design professor, in a nomination letter for Powe. "He regularly moves beyond concern about issues to take constructive action."

By interviewing loft residents, the homeless, business owners, real estate developers, social service providers, Los Angeles officials and police officers, Powe hopes to identify the diverse demographics of Skid Row. He also is reviewing city policies, loft marketing materials and media reports to understand how the various interests coexist.

One way to improve the quality of life for all Skid Row residents, he says, is through more consistent services dealing with the neighborhood's trash. Often, trash ends up in the streets due to a simple lack of waste bins. And some social service agencies that deliver food to Skid Row leave the cleanup to residents.

"It's not as if the poor want to live with garbage strewn all over the sidewalks," says Powe. "There are simply not that many trash cans and even fewer people paid to empty them."

He wants to shape a future in which longtime Skid Row residents and loft dwellers work together for the common good.

"The area has the potential to develop into a sustainable, viable and diverse community," Powe says. "In such a neighborhood, people can live different lives but, ultimately, look out for each other."


In Los Angeles' Skid Row district, homeless camps, shelters and drug treatment centers share the streets with trendy restaurants and shops. Upscale lofts symbolize the neighborhood transformation underway in an area marked by poverty and blight.

This dynamic fascinates Michael Powe, UC Irvine planning, policy & design doctoral candidate, who heads a project to recommend development and policies to city officials and businesses that would foster economic diversity on Skid Row. This spring he won a $10,000 Public Impact Fellowship from UCI's Graduate Division that supports students whose research could have significant local, national or global benefit.

Research/Perspectives from UCI Planning Policy Design Faculty & Students

For almost 20 years, Marlon Boarnet has studied the links between land use and transportation networks - research generally of interest only to policy wonks.

But the UC Irvine professor of planning, policy & design and economics noticed a change over the past year. "The nation is looking to planners for serious answers," he says. "There's a sense of urgency right now that I haven't felt in my entire career."

Boarnet relishes the current debate over how to use $787 billion in economic stimulus funds to improve U.S. roads and communities. In addition, efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions raise the prospect of rethinking the transportation system, he says.

To articulate some of the planning community's ideas, Boarnet recently co-wrote and edited Transportation Infrastructure: The Challenges of Rebuilding America, published by the American Planning Association.

In the mid-20th century, transportation planning meant building an interstate highway system to move people and goods around the country. Today, environmental and quality-of-life issues dominate the field.

"Given the current economic situation, infrastructure investment is a sensible short-term stimulus tool," says Boarnet, "but we need to be careful that programs are consistent with environmental sustainability."

He believes investing in crowded metropolitan areas should be a priority. "We need to build cities differently so people drive less and walk more," Boarnet says. Local incentives such as fixing sidewalks and offering rebates for electric vehicles can also affect mobility, he says.

Examples of smart land use and transportation planning, Boarnet says, include the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor of subway stations and mixed commercial/residential development in Arlington, Va., and the light-rail system and downtown redevelopment in Portland, Ore. Both projects have led to increases in pedestrian traffic and public transit use.

"The truth is that we don't have a lot of good examples, and each one is context-specific," Boarnet says. "We need to recognize the potential in areas like Irvine's Great Park or the Platinum Triangle in Anaheim for mixed commercial/residential development, and we should encourage cities to experiment with such concepts as neighborhood electric vehicles and car sharing."

Overhauling America's infrastructure will require patience, he cautions: "It takes a minimum of 30 years for transportation and land use planning to have an impact in communities."

But the time to start, Boarnet says, is now: "The current economic and environmental crises have focused people's attention, and hopefully one outcome will be a transportation system that is greener and more efficient and that responds to the needs of the future."

— Laura Rico, University Communications

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Resurrecting the Rustbelt

Last year, Forbes compiled a list of the ten fastest dying cities in the United States. Shockingly, they're sprinkled across the midwest. Seems like the mayors of those cities weren't too thrilled with having their municipalities relegated to intensive care, so they banded together to create Ten Living Cities. Wall Street journal reports on the double-quintet's meeting to save their cities:

Here's an idea for saving Rust Belt cities: Tell bloggers and radio stations to stop calling your town a basket case.

That was one suggestion from representatives of eight of the 10 cities labeled last year as America's fastest dying. They met at the Dayton Convention Center last weekend to swap ideas about how to halt the long skid that's turned cities like Detroit, Cleveland and Buffalo, N.Y., into shorthand for dystopia.


Can't say all of their dialog was terribly productive or revelatory, but it's a start. One sound point they unanimously make: how you pitch a city is just as important as how you plan it.

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

APA LA Green Building Tour

Mark your calendars for a free APA Los Angeles event: a walking tour of Green Buildings and Sustainable Development in Santa Monica on Saturday, September 19th.

Program: APA Green Building Tour
Date: Saturday, September 19, 2009, 10 AM, Starting at Santa Monica Pier

The walking tour will visit several green building sites in downtown Santa Monica. At each tour site, the City's Green Building Program Advisor will review the green features of the site including innovative technologies and design strategies. The City has an internal policy that all City buildings achieve LEED Silver certification. We will visit several LEED certified buildings and the tour will include an overview of LEED and other green building rating systems. The discussion will also include background on the City's green building code requirements, and how they work in concert with other elements of the Santa Monica Sustainable City Plan to promote high performance buildings, sustainable growth, and improved quality of life in Santa Monica.

The event is FREE to APA members and $15 for non-members. We are applying for CM credit for this event. You must RSVP for this event as space is limited. Please RSVP to Gabriela Juarez via email (gabriela.juarez@lacity.org) by Friday, September 11, 5 pm.

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Friday, August 7, 2009

Mayor Newsom in Orange County

Please join OC Dems for a townhall and reception.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Come to the townhall and hear from Mayor Newsom about his plans to put California on a better track!
Orange County Town Hall
Tuesday, August 11
6:00pm
Santa Ana College - Johnson Campus Building
1530 W. 17th Street, Santa Ana, CA 92706
RSVP to rsvp@gavinnewsom.com or (415) 962-4532
For more information, please visit
www.gavinnewsom.com

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“Civil Disobedience Mobilizes People”

Here's a great lecture PhD student Danny Olmos emailed me, Mike Davis. "For months it felt like the people of California held their collective breath, until state lawmakers hammered out a budget package that the Governor signed. Mike Davis held neither his breath nor his tongue. He talks about the economic crisis, Democrat lawmakers, and Left organizing."

Justice is Served!!

Let us celebrate and continue working towards equality


Yesterday Sonia Sotomayor, a qualified Latina was confirmed to serve as Justice on the Supreme Court of the United States. We are witness to history; let us seize this moment of celebration to acknowledge that our work is to ensure all of us are prepared to serve our country. Let us work to ensure all of our youth are educated so that our democracy is protected. And let us rejoice that another glass ceiling has been shattered for Latinas. The confirmation of Sonia Sotomayor should be a call to service and action for all of us to continue our work for justice and equality in the United States.

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Possible Professional Report Topics

We're in the thick of summer break--a great time to peel your body from the couch, turn off Entourage, and think about the Professional Report. You already spent 42 seconds drafting a half-assed proposal to Day, so another five minutes of deliberation while waiting for an oil change couldn't hurt. While you sort out an advisor and client, might I suggest a few notable topics that would be worth spending a few quarters slaving over? Or do you really care about digitizing Irvine's General Plan that much?

Possible Professional Report Topics


"LEED-OG: Greening the 'Hood"

"The Wire(less): Establishing Free Public Wi-Fi for the California
State Prison System"

"Why Can't We Be Friends? An efficient planning model for a single
Mixed-Use Pedestrian-Oriented Development housing the Mexican American
Museum, Museum of Tolerance, Native American Art Museum, Museum of
Modern Art, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Huntington Library, and
California Science Center, in Victorville"

"A Cost Benefit Analysis for Replacing Diamond Signs on Carpool Lanes
with Various Emoticons ;)"

"Applying Chemical Engineering Principles for the Remote Detonation
of the Last Remaining Public Phones in Garden Grove"

"Not Just Another Brick in the Wall: Strategies for Creating a Wall
Dividing North and South Orange County Using Recyclable and
Biodegradable Materials"

"Morality Impact Analysis for Proposed Gentleman's Club in Lake
Forest"

"Where You At? A GIS Training Manual for Southern California Drug
Cartels"

"Relieving Traffic Congestion along the Culver/Newport Coast Drive
Corridor"

"A Framework for Achieving Historic Landmark Designation for Long
Beach*s Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles"

"Three People Like This: Strategies for Suppressing User Comments and
Ratings on Developer-Posted YouTube Videos and Facebook links."
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In another post, I'll lay out some cool clients that wouldn't mind taking on such disparate topics (or at least agreeing to paste your photo on the "Company Outreach" section of their website). In the meantime, you might want to start asking around here, here, and here.