If Los Angeles aims to add more housing, it should look at the neighborhoods lining its long-maligned river to do it. [...]

The city could make a big dent in Mayor Eric Garcetti's goal of adding 100,000 housing units by 2021 if it streamlines permitting and creates incentive zones in places along the river [...].

The report comes in the wake of a billion-dollar plan by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to revamp 11 miles of the L.A. River north of downtown [...]. — latimes.com

This project [titled 'Projection'], announced last October, is probably the first time in a long time that the old inn (aka the Sunset Pacific) has gotten so much attention. The Bates—whose nickname is as much a callback to 'Psycho' as it is to the motel's location near the intersection of Bates and Sunset—has been vacant for decades, except for the squatters and the occasional, totally fun-looking, likely illegal party — la.curbed.com

Wilshire Boulevard Temple, famous for its ornate 1929 synagogue, is trying to create another Los Angeles landmark, negotiating with the Pritzker Prize-winning Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas to design a building next door for special events. It would be open for use by the public as well as by congregants.

“Architecture is a form of prayer,” said Rabbi Steven Z. Leder of the Reform congregation, which is in Koreatown. — nytimes.com

The Carson City Council unanimously approved a privately financed stadium for the San Diego Chargers and Oakland Raiders on Tuesday night, barely two months after the public announcement of the $1.7-billion project.

"There are two things we need in California: rain … and football," Carson Mayor Albert Robles said after the 3-0 vote. "And football is coming to Carson!" — latimes.com

When the Architecture + Design Museum announced their impending move to the Arts District late last year, their short-term (two-year) lease had some wondering what was in the cards for the museum's future. [...]after their lease is up, the A+D Museum is hoping to move again—into a new building that will house it, the American Institute of Architects' Los Angeles chapter (AIA/LA), and the much-anticipated Center for Architecture and Urban Design Los Angeles (CALA), a non-profit "design commons." — la.curbed.com

A rise from the ashes had always been in [developer Geoff] Palmer's mind for this charred housing project; he'd said in a statement back in December that the devastation at the building on the south side of Temple Street was just a 'temporary loss.' Now that all the wreckage from the fire has been cleared off the site, construction can begin. — la.curbed.com

A group of venture capitalists, architects, engineers, and marketing gurus, under the name Los Angeles World's Fair (LAWF), are brewing plans for a two-year fair showing off the technology and culture of the future—including a Hyperloop, “3D-printed gourmet delicacies,” and self-driving cars. Theme: "The Connected City." Right now, they're trying to pull together $100,000 on Indiegogo to support economic and architectural feasibility studies for their plans [...]. — citylab.com

As the museum turns 50 this year and debate continues about LACMA Director Michael Govan's plan to replace the Pereira buildings (and a later addition by Hugh Hardy) with a giant new wing by Swiss architect Peter Zumthor, it's worth remembering how the original LACMA campus was greeted — as well as a few things about the Los Angeles into which it was born. — latimes.com

The Four Level, or Stack as it’s sometimes known, was the first interchange of its kind when it fully opened in 1953. [...]

It may seem a cliche to simply associate LA with its freeways, but the connection between the infrastructure and the city’s image is strong. It’s not just about driving, it’s about a new form of urban living in the postwar era [...]

“LA kind of emerged at the forefront of that development and it became recognised as a freeway metropolis” — theguardian.com

The issue of water supply in the context of climate change was the topic for the recent 5KL: Water symposium, organized by The Architectural League and The Cooper Union Institute for Sustainable Design.

Twelve experts in water resource design and management — from architects to geographers to former government officials — addressed the carbon intensity of providing a clean and adequate water supply and how design and planning can contribute to that goal. — urbanomnibus.net

The phrases "public housing" or "low-income housing" do not generally conjure thoughts of architectural innovation. [...]

But it doesn't have to be that way, as several recent housing developments in Los Angeles prove. Instead, they pose the question: What if low-income housing was perceived as leading the vanguard of innovative, responsive architecture? — kcet.org

Yesterday, the city of Los Angeles installed its first ever parking-protected bike lanes. They’re on Reseda Boulevard in Northridge, part of the mayor’s Great Streets Initiative. As of this morning, the project is roughly one-quarter complete. The new protected lanes, also known as cycletracks, are mostly complete on the west side of Reseda Blvd from Plummer Street to Prairie Street. The full one-mile protected lanes will go from Plummer to Parthenia Street. — LA Streets Blog

In the quest to make parking suck less, there are apps that help you find a space, and meters where you can pay with a swipe of your credit card. But LA has launched a simple, low-tech solution to make parking better: Well-designed signage that offers no ambiguity whatsoever when it comes to where you can park, when you can park there, and how much it will cost. — Gizmodo