CP&DR

Bush Administration Wants to Speed Airport Projects

May 1, 2001

Economic Development, Paul Shigley, Vol. 16 No. 05 May 2001

Expanding the capacity of the nation's aviation system has quickly risen toward the top of the Bush administration's transportation priorities. Both Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta and Federal Aviation Administration chief Jane Garvey have spoken about the need to build more runways during the next decade, and they have suggested that speeding federal environmental reviews is one way to hurry along construction.

Judy Corbett

May 1, 2001

Paul Shigley, Q&A, Vol. 16 No. 05 May 2001

Judy Corbett is executive director of the Local Government Commission, a nonprofit organization whose members include elected officials, and city and county staff members. The commission provides forums and technical assistance to assist local agencies in a variety of subject areas. In 1991, the commission, working with architects and planners, produced the Ahwahnee Principles for community and regional planning. The Ahwahnee Principles provide an alternative to what the authors see as decades of

State Revises Conflict-of-Interest Rules: Fair Political Practices Commission Overhaul Comes as Scan

May 1, 2001

Featured Articles, Paul Shigley, Vol. 16 No. 05 May 2001

New conflict-of-interest rules promulgated by the Fair Political Practices Commission went into effect in February, and many changes affect public officials who make land use decisions. The rule changes come at a time when land use scandals appear to be at a new peak, with one staff planner pleading guilty to soliciting bribes and the planning director in another city facing a trial on bribery charges (see sidebar).

Recent Land Use Scandals--Feature Article Sidebar

May 1, 2001

Featured Articles, Paul Shigley, Vol. 16 No. 05 May 2001

List of recent scandals in various California planning departments, commissions, etc.

Alameda Takes Advantage of Prime Navy Parcel

May 1, 2001

Alameda County, Local Watch, Military base reuse, Paul Shigley, Vol. 16 No. 05 May 2001

Redevelopment of closed military bases in the City of Alameda is moving forward thanks to the settlement of a lawsuit filed by affordable housing advocates and environmentalists. The settlement clears the way for a 600-unit housing development and a 1.3-million-square-foot business park at the former U.S. Navy Fleet Industrial Supply Center. Meanwhile, the city is in the process of choosing a master developer for about one-third the 2,600-acre former Alameda Naval Air Station.

Wetlands Issues Force UC to Relocate Merced Campus

Apr 1, 2001

Paul Shigley, Public Development, Vol. 16 No. 04 Apr 2001

Seasonal wetlands and the endangered species who inhabit them have forced planners for the proposed University of California, Merced, campus to choose a new location. Although many details remain undecided, planners have shifted the general site of the future campus — and an adjoining new community — a few miles closer to the Merced city limits.

Housing Bills Flood State Capital: But Electricity Crisis Could Make Money for Other Programs Scarce

Apr 1, 2001

Featured Articles, Paul Shigley, Vol. 16 No. 04 Apr 2001

Electricity has been the dominant topic at the state Capitol for months and threatens to overshadow every other issue facing lawmakers in 2001. Still, legislators introduced hundreds of bills related to land use prior to the late-February deadline, including approximately 150 housing bills.

Sheila Kuehl

Apr 1, 2001

Paul Shigley, Q&A, Vol. 16 No. 04 Apr 2001

After serving six years in the state Assembly, Sen. Sheila Kuehl (D-Santa Monica) was elected last November to the State Senate seat previously held by Tom Haden. Earlier this year, she was named Chairwoman of the Senate Natural Resources and Wildlife Committee. Although much of her work in the Assembly centered on social issues, Kuehl did serve on committees concerned with land use and was a director of the California Coastal Conservancy. Before coming to the Legislature, Kuehl was a law prof

Cal Supemes Ask Many Questions, But Offer Few Hints in Pivotal Case

Mar 1, 2001

Legal Digest, Paul Shigley, Vol. 16 No. 03 Mar 2001

The California Supreme Court in February heard oral arguments in a California Environmental Quality Act case for the first time since 1997. But members of the court gave few indications of how they would rule in the case, which centers on the lack of an environmental review for a city-sponsored ballot measure. Justices peppered attorneys on either side of Friends of Sierra Madre v. City of Sierra Madre, No. S085088, with questions throughout the hour-long proceedings in Sacramento. Afterward,

Power Plant Development Booms: Environmentalis, NIMBY's Present Few Obstacle to Most Projects

Mar 1, 2001

Featured Articles, Paul Shigley, Vol. 16 No. 03 Mar 2001

With electricity in California in short supply during recent months, it is easy to overlook the boom in power plant construction that has already started. Since April 1999, the California Energy Commission has approved nine plants capable of increasing the state's generating capacity by 12%. And, the commission is reviewing 14 more proposals that would add another 12% to the state's generating abilities, bringing the capacity to about 67,000 megawatts.