featured Articles

Elderly man places arm on shoulder of younger woman younger woman as he holds framed certificate in other hand so we can see it

Meet a local planner: Dr. Don Bradley

May 2010. Northern Section Director Darcy Kremin, AICP, presents Donald Bradley, AICP, with a surprise Certificate of Excellence for his leadership in conducting Northern Section’s AICP Exam preparation workshops since 1990. His distinguished career spans more than 60 years and has taken him around the world on large-scale and complex planning projects. Interview by Catarina Kidd, AICP.

States buying hotels for short- and long-term housing for wildfire survivors

By Julie Strupp, July 27, 2021. Oregon and California are renting and purchasing hotels to house the homeless — residents…

Why zoning for Middle Housing doesn’t make it so

By David Driskell, with Ian Carlton, Tyler Bump, and Michelle Anderson, August 11, 2021. SB9 and other initiatives propose changes…

“Eliminating” single-family zoning?

By Tom Pace, Community Development Director, Sacramento, July 16, 2021. Sacramento is not eliminating single-family housing; it is increasing housing…

Municipalities pay millions to religious groups wrongly denied zoning approval

By Noel W. Sterett, July 30, 2021. For 20 years, RLUIPA has helped thousands of religious groups overcome zoning barriers….

Northern Section News & Announcements

You are the Ace in the Hole; don’t count on anyone else

Locals win state and national APA Awards

Snapshots of APA ethnicity and gender

Northern Section congratulates our 24 successful May 2021 AICP Examinees

Who’s where

Get on Board!

Northern Section Treasurer Nominations due Sept 30

APA California Conference update

New AICP Credit Maintenance reporting and requirements take effect in January

Housing element information booth, Menlo Park Farmers’ Market

pLANNING nEWS rOUND uP

Wealth, class, and remote work reshape California’s boomtowns

By Sarah Parvini, Los Angeles Times, July 2, 2021. Higher-earning migrants also are creating new jobs for working-class locals.

SF clashes with scooter company over permit violations: City wins

By Carly Graf, San Francisco Examiner, July 7, 2021. Scoot is out. Two scooter companies remain as options to cover…

This is how much single-family zoning is costing San Franciscans

By Susie Neilson, San Francisco Chronicle, July 12, 2021. A pair of University of Pennsylvania researchers quantified increased land costs…

Visual report: How sea level rise threatens the Bay Area’s roads

By John King, San Francisco Chronicle, July 16, 2021. Sonoma County’s Highway 37 provides a dramatic example of flooding vulnerabilities…

Bay Area refineries must dramatically cut pollution, Air District says in historic vote

By Ted Goldberg, KQED, July 21, 2021. Air district staff said the rule change will save lives and millions of…

Alameda may provide tiny cabins, motel rooms, for homeless residents

By Peter Hegarty, East Bay Times, July 21, 2021. Alameda is still exploring how to implement new permanent housing for…

Urban farm housing project moves forward in Santa Clara

Stephanie Lam, San Jose Spotlight, July 22, 2021. The developer estimates that the project will account for roughly 10 percent…

‘Present-day redlining’: Black Bay Area homeowners say their properties are being undervalued

By Lauren Hepler, San Francisco Chronicle, July 23, 2021. The federal government has already vowed to recommend appraisal reforms.

State takes initiative to promote 230-unit Marin housing project

By Richard Halstead, Marin Independent Journal, July 24, 2021. The project is one of ten following an executive order to…

Op-Ed: “It’s hard to have faith in a state that can’t even house its people”

By Ned Resnikoff, New York Times, July 26, 2021. Homelessness is a humanitarian disaster and a threat to democracy. The…

Building trades push for union workforce in affordable housing bills

By Manuela Tobias, East Bay Times, July 27, 2021. The State Building and Construction Trades council claims non-union construction workers…

The solution to Mendocino’s water shortage might involve a very old train

By Kurtis Alexander, San Francisco Chronicle, July 29, 2021. If an emergency fix like the old train is agreed upon,…

Largest solar plant in Bay Area opposed by Livermore farmers and environmentalists

By Mark Chediak, Bloomberg Green, July 29, 2021. To meet its goal of a carbon-neutral grid by 2045, California will…

Blue Ribbon Task Force approves transit action plan reform in the Bay Area

By Curtis Driscoll, San Mateo Daily Journal, July 29, 2021. The plan calls for improving service, evaluating funding, and completing…

California Supreme Court denies review in Berkeley Shellmound case

By Wendel Rosen LLP, August 2, 2021. Justices uphold Court of Appeal’s view that projects qualifying under SB 35 are…

Humboldt County, ‘where climate and Covid migration converge’

By Sarah Holder, Bloomberg CityLab, August 9, 2021. With climate change, Covid, and a housing crunch, Humboldt County has become…

Major changes to minimum parking standards could be ahead in San Jose

By Bryanna Paz, KALW, August 11, 2021. City officials argue this will reduce the number of single-occupant vehicle commuter trips.

An elevated view of downtown Seattle at sunset. Wildfire smoke blocks the view of Mt. Rainier — Looking southeast, the two farthest, tallest buildings are Rainier Square Tower (left, 850 ft.) and Columbia Center (right, 937 ft.). July 2021

A view of one side of a West Nelson Street in downtown Lexington, Virginia, founded in 1778. There is no auto traffic and only a few parked cars can be seen. — Looking southeast, the two farthest, tallest buildings are Rainier Square Tower (left, 850 ft.) and Columbia Center (right, 937 ft.). July 2021

Northern News September 2021