(An image of the water-less Los Angeles River, with the downtown skyline in the background. The city has been trying in vain to revive the riverfront for decades. / photo by Scott Beyer)
1. This week at Market Urbansim:
China’s “Planned Capitalism” Kills Wealth by Sandy Ikeda
China’s central planners haven’t even begun to appreciate, let alone practice, the lessons of the great urbanist Jane Jacobs, who viewed cities and the socioeconomic processes that go on in them as largely the result of spontaneous, unplanned entrepreneurial development.
2. Where’s Scott?
Scott Beyer is in Los Angeles, and this weekend will visit South Central neighborhoods like Compton, Watts and Huntington Park. His Forbes article this week is about how Los Angeles’ Pension Problem Is Sinking The City
It has the nation’s largest homeless population, the worst traffic, and numerous other service failures. Lack of money isn’t the problem, since the city has both high taxes and a wealthy population. It is instead because large sums go to employee pension benefits.
3. At the Market Urbanism Facebook Group:
Roger Valdez wrote Gallup: Zoning Is Reducing American Productivity And Making The Poor Poorer
Tobias Cassandra Holbrook asks about the potential impacts of property transfer tax.
Jon Coppage wrote Whether Thriving or Failing, Cities Need Investment
Nathan J. Yoder asks “What are good sources that compile information and long term comparative studies [about] what works best for housing for urban poor?”
Isaac Mooers asks “imagine what Seattle would be like without FAR near our light rail stops.”
via Krishan Madan, “A profile of the heroic Sonja Trauss and Laura Foote Clarke.“
via Michael Strong, Indy Johar recommends holding architects legally liable for their buildings as an alternative to urban planning
via Will Muessig: Don’t Let Downtown Atlanta Become Privately Owned: Our Public Streets Must Remain Public
via Krishan Madan: Zenefits’ Free Business Model Ruled Illegal In Washington State
via Eric Fontaine: Four Million Commutes Reveal New U.S. ‘Megaregions’
via Kevin Watts, “NYT has an article on unsafe housing in Oakland, and how it led to the tragic warehouse fire“
via Adam Millsap: An Analysis of the Labor Market for Uber’s Driver-Partners in the United States
via Bob Gibbs, “Detroit’s suburbs turning to New Urbanism to be competitive“
via Jeff Andrade-Fong, “Looks like we’ll get another shot at state level reform in California in 2017.“
4. Elsewhere:
CNU: How to get by-right zoning right
Builder Magazine reviews Scott’s article Could The Fair Housing Act Bring Restrictive Zoning To An End?
USC economist Peter Gordon writes for New Geography on Los Angeles’ informal supply chains
…check out Gordon’s blog, which specializes focuses on business agglomeration and other urban issues
5. Stephen Smith‘s tweet of the week:
Heartening to see a pro-housing pol like @Scott_Wiener in state gov’t, which is IMO where California’s housing crisis will have to be solved
— Market Urbanism (@MarketUrbanism) December 4, 2016
