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Article Local Works By Ryan Hunt

How a Cathedral City community designed its own park

Esperanza Park isn’t just a story about a long-overdue park. It’s about a city finding a way to reach and hear from the people most likely to use the park: working parents and kids. And that success has changed how the city approaches public engagement. 

Article Features By Dr. Peter Pirnejad, ICMA-CM

What city managers can do when the disruptor gets elected

It’s the morning after an election, and a candidate who campaigned on fixing a broken city hall or exposing mismanagement has won their election. The challenge for city managers is not how to stop the disruption but how to channel that reform-minded energy while protecting staff, role clarity and institutional integrity.  

Article Local Works By Jackie Krentzman

‘What they did was extraordinary.’ How this rural, low-income city sped up housing construction

“For a community of 20,000 to produce so many units of affordable housing over the course of five years is unprecedented in California, much less the nation,” said Ed Mayer, former executive director of the Butte County Housing Authority, of Oroville’s efforts.

Article Legal Notes By Glen C. Hansen

How to create impact fees for classes of development

Over the summer, the U.S. Supreme Court put an end to a decade-long legal saga involving development impact fees — for now. Going forward, cities can expect to see more federal constitutional challenges to fee programs that seek to mitigate the impacts of new development. 

Article Legal Notes By  Katherine Read

Is your agency ready for wearable smart devices?

Some glasses, watches, and rings allow users to record audio or video without the knowledge of co-workers or supervisors. But while prohibiting this technology in the workplace may seem intuitive, the proliferation of wearable technology makes that impractical.

Article Local Works By Caleb Zimmerschied Valadez

Can we eliminate traffic deaths? Petaluma is trying

“We need to make our roads more conducive for safe driving, and that requires engineering,” said Christina Panza, who advocates for safer bicycling infrastructure in the region. “You’ve got to look at the infrastructure because people are human; they’re going to make errors.”

Article Local Works By Jackie Krentzman

Irvine rounds out its master planned villages with a creative public-private partnership

“[Irvine] has this amazing spirit of innovation that allows it to be able to do creative things, and working with them on the Gateway Preserve and the Jeffrey Open Space Trail is a prime example of the city’s views, values, and abilities,” says Mike O’Connell, Irvine Ranch Conservancy president and CEO.