Los Angeles
New legislative effort underway to develop public access to the L.A. River
Earlier this year, California State Senator Kevin De Leon introduced SB 1201, a bill that could bolster efforts to open up the Los Angeles River for lawful recreational uses such as boating. I have a particular interest in this, since UCLA’s Frank G. Wells Environmental Law Clinic worked with the advocacy group Friends of the Los …
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CONTINUE READINGWill Expanded Federal Transit Financing Result In More Toll Roads?
In a time of infrastructure needs and scaled-back public sector budgets, finding dollars for public transit projects can be a challenge. Transit advocates hit on a great formula, however, starting in Los Angeles with the “30/10” Plan. 30/10 would allow Los Angeles to build 30 years worth of sales tax-funded transit projects in 10 years, …
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CONTINUE READINGCan a Taco Stand Be a Historic Monument?
The owner of Henry’s Tacos, at the corner of Tujunga and Moorpark in the glorious San Fernando Valley, thinks it can: The third-generation owner of Henry’s Tacos has filed an application with the City’s Office of Historic Resources to have the taco stand declared a Historic-Cultural Monument. Janis Hood, granddaughter of founder Henry Comstock, hopes …
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CONTINUE READINGCalifornia Governor Brown Signs CEQA Reform Bills
Today California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law legislation amending the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) to facilitate construction of both a major new sports stadium in downtown Los Angeles and large “environmental leadership development projects” involving financial commitments of at least $10 million and that incorporate substantial urban infill or renewable energy components. This …
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CONTINUE READINGA Setback for Clean Ports
Hot off the presses, the Ninth Circuit has partially reversed Judge Christina Snyder’s order in American Trucking Ass’n v. City of Los Angeles, an important environment-labor-pre-emption case that I blogged about a little more than one year ago. The case concerns the Port of Los Angeles’ “Clean Ports” program, which, among other things mandates a …
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CONTINUE READINGAttention, Norm Entrepreneurs! Time to Get on the Bus
I’ve been pushing this for nearly a decade now, and now it looks like it’s finally happening (no thanks to me): If Dora Chavez knew exactly when her bus would arrive she could hustle to make it on time, stroll easily to the stop, or call work to say she would be late. With a new …
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CONTINUE READINGClean Ports Program Moves Ahead — A Little
A few days ago, District Judge Christina Snyder issued her 57-page ruling in American Trucking Ass’n v. City of Los Angeles, the trade association’s challenge to the city’s clean ports program. The ruling gave the city a crucial victory, and it has more than local significance: if its reasoning is accepted, it could lead to …
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CONTINUE READINGCredit Where It’s Due: Villaraigosa’s 30/10 Plan
I’ve been somewhat critical of LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s environmental policies, which tend to have more style than substance. But I have overlooked his 30/10 plan, which (as the New York Times reported the other day) might revolutionize the way sustainable infrastructure is built in American cities. That’s unfair, because the Mayor has really done …
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CONTINUE READINGA “thank you” to legislators who exempted the proposed L.A. football stadium from California’s environmental review law?
Last fall, I wrote about the California Legislature’s effort to exempt the proposed football stadium in the City of Industry from further environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). I didn’t follow up on that post, but the Legislature ultimately approved the exemption in a special session in the fall. Now, Los Angeles Times …
CONTINUE READINGMayor Villaraigosa Betrays Environmentalism AGAIN
A few days ago, I noted that Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa likes to talk a good game when it comes to Greening the city, but conveniently abandons plans when they become politically difficult or require anything like a normal attention span. I was more right than I thought. I mentioned that the Mayor had …
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