News

November 17, 2025

Attention Should Be Paid to LA’s Fashion District: Anthony Rodriguez Offers a Reality Check

Anthony Rodriguez, President & CEO of the LA Fashion District Business Improvement District (BID), lays out how pandemic losses, slow foot-traffic recovery, and the shock of recent federal enforcement have compounded pressures on the district’s predominantly immigrant-owned small businesses. He argues that rigid DTLA 2040 zoning—particularly in IX2/IX3—undermines reinvestment and adaptation in an area already defined by high vacancies and aging industrial stock.

November 17, 2025

A New City for a New Economy: Gabriel Metcalf on California Forever’s Vision

California Forever’s Head of Planning, Gabriel Metcalf, makes the case for reviving the long-dormant American tradition of building new towns as a meaningful response to California’s housing shortage, infrastructure paralysis, and declining economic competitiveness. He outlines a vision for a walkable, transit-connected grid city anchored by advanced manufacturing through the proposed Solano Foundry and shipyard.

November 17, 2025

Municipal Attorney Michael Colantuono on Local Finance and California’s Broken Fiscal Compact

Veteran municipal attorney Michael Colantuono reflects on California’s enduring state–local fiscal dysfunction and legislature usurpation of local control. From a recent “bullet dodged” by local government to the legacy of Prop 13, Colantuono traces decades of underfunding by the State of local government, legislative overreach, and judicial decisions that have hamstrung localities' ambitions.

November 5, 2025

Less Than 1,000 Days to Go: LA’s Olympic Promise and our Civic Reality

At a sold-out convening hosted by ULI Los Angeles, civic leaders, planners, and designers confronted the question facing Los Angeles as the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games draw near: what kind of legacy can the city still deliver in the final 1,000 days? Moderated by former Pasadena Councilmember and Chief Deputy Controller Rick Cole, the panel—featuring Rodrigo Soares (AECOM), Daniel Bernstein (LA Metro), Michelle Stevenson (HKS Architects), and Mott Smith (Amped Kitchens)—examined whether the so-called “no-build Games” can still produce meaningful, lasting change.

November 4, 2025

Brenda Levin Honored with 2025 Harvard GSD Alumni Award

The Harvard Graduate School of Design Alumni Council has named Los Angeles architect Brenda Levin, FAIA (MArch ’76) as one of three recipients of the 2025 GSD Alumni Award, recognizing her exceptional achievements in architecture and preservation.

November 4, 2025

Earl Blumenauer on Portland’s Rise, Fall, and Recovery: Lessons for West Coast Cities

In a wide-ranging conversation, former Oregon Congressman Earl Blumenauer contends that West Coast downtowns can recover if their leaders focus on delivery over rhetoric, while insisting on accountability from what he calls “productive progressives.” Blumenauer pushes back on polarized portrayals of his city as a “war zone,” emphasizing peaceful mass demonstrations and judicial checks on federal overreach that affirmed civic resilience. Turning to Los Angeles, Blumenauer cautions that governance “reforms” too often breed fragmentation; what matters most, he argues, is performance and outcomes—not structure.

October 17, 2025

City Manager Oliver Chi Takes the Helm in Santa Monica’s Era of Transition

As Oliver Chi steps into his new role as City Manager for Santa Monica, he speaks to a pivotal moment marked by leadership turnover, financial strain, and a lingering sense of disorder. In conversation with TPR, Chi explains why he chose to take the helm now and details his plan for “realignment” through restoring order, reenergizing city staff, and rebuilding confidence among residents and the business community alike.

October 17, 2025

Urban History Association’s Opening Plenary - Brenda Levin's Remarks

At the Urban History Association's Conference in Los Angeles the opening plenary took on a fitting question: What can the rest of urban America learn from the City of Angels? TPR shares David Myers’ introduction of the opening plenary and Brenda Levin’s remarks, tracing how Los Angeles has evolved as both a mirror and a model for confronting inequality, nurturing cultural and immigrant communities, and redefining civic life through its built environment.

October 17, 2025

Outgoing CEO John Boesel on 2.5 Decades of Policy, Innovation, and Global Competition Shaping the EV Future

After 2.5+ decades of leading CALSTART, John Boesel reflects on how a small California initiative grew into a national force driving zero-emission transportation and clean-tech innovation. He shares lessons from California’s policy leadership and warns that maintaining climate progress will require defending incentives and accelerating investment amid rising global competition.

October 17, 2025

Building Resilience: Wildfire, Water, and Extreme Heat

As climate volatility accelerates across the American West, the Los Angeles Business Council's Sustainability Summit (2025) convened civic and utility leaders for a plenary on “Building Resilience: Wildfire, Water, and Extreme Heat.” TPR shares excerpts from the discussion, exploring the intersection of infrastructure, equity, and governance at the heart of California’s climate transition.

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© 2025 The Planning Report | David Abel, Publisher, ABL, Inc.