Free Cities
Blog
California needs more oversight, not another homeless agency
California needs more oversight, not another homeless agency By Sarah Downey | March 20, 2026 As California continues to struggle with homelessness, state leaders are rebranding the bureaucracy by rolling out a different agency with many of the same players and goals. This comes after a series of distressing audits ...
Sarah Downey
March 20, 2026
Blog
California cities struggling to implement latest housing law
California cities struggling to implement latest housing law By John Seiler | March 19, 2026 Since 2017, the California Legislature has passed and governors Jerry Brown and Gavin Newsom have signed about 215 housing-related bills. There’s no master list. But the Terner Center at UC Berkeley tallied almost 100 from ...
John Seiler
March 19, 2026
Blog
Let people live as they want, with or without cars
Let people live as they want, with or without cars By Sal Rodriguez | March 13, 2026 Many urbanists were excited by a recent study from Arizona State University researchers reporting that “nearly one fifth of urban and suburban U.S. car owners express a definite interest in living car-free (18%), and an ...
Sal Rodriguez
March 13, 2026
Blog
Rooms for improvement: single-room occupancy in your state
Rooms for improvement: single-room occupancy in your state By D. Dowd Muska | March 12, 2026 “I would never want to live like that, so therefore [insert housing type] should be illegal.” Online chatter generates intense heat, and measly light, but occasionally, a profound truth is posted. The quote above ...
D. Dowd Muska
March 12, 2026
Blog
Failed Los Angeles fire recovery proves need for self-governance
But why? In Los Angeles, and the rest of the state’s major cities, the public sector has become the city’s dominant political force, drowning out the votes and priorities of everyday citizens. With this imbalance making local politics an often-forgone conclusion, it’s time to consider a possible reform that could restore the competitive ...
Kenneth Schrupp
March 6, 2026
Blog
California doubles down on the bullet-train boondoggle
There’s nothing intrinsically wrong — and a lot that’s right — about building a high-speed rail system that speedily transports people across vast tracts of land. Some family members recently returned from a trip to Japan, where they traveled the country on the Shinkansen network of bullet trains. Begun in 1964, the ...
Steven Greenhut
March 5, 2026
Blog
Hailing a flight: Cities drone on about advanced air mobility
Hailing a flight: Cities drone on about advanced air mobility By D. Dowd Muska | February 27, 2026 It’s time to talk about flying taxis. Snicker all you want, but serious people — and deep pockets — are committing considerable resources to making airborne intra-city travel a thing. What the ...
D. Dowd Muska
February 27, 2026
Blog
San Diego shows LA how to address the region’s housing shortage
Last fall, the Los Angeles Times reported that “Almost no one is building new apartments in Los Angeles.” Fewer than 19,000 apartment units were under construction in the third quarter of last year. It was a 30% dip from three years earlier, the Times reported, based on a review from real ...
Kerry Jackson
February 26, 2026
Blog
Arizona cities should be blocked from blocking short-term rentals
Ten years ago, then-Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey signed Senate Bill 1350 into law, preventing local governments from banning short-term rentals in their respective jurisdictions. “For thousands of hardworking citizens, opening up their home to out-of-state guests provides the financial breathing room they need to provide for their family or enjoy ...
Sal Rodriguez
February 21, 2026
AI
Who will win the battle between robots and public-employee unions?
Who will win the battle between robots and public-employee unions? By Rafael Perez | February 20, 2026 For decades, artificial intelligence has been heralded for its potential to revolutionize the labor market and the creation of goods and services. Recent advancements in large language model (LLMs) performance by developers such ...
Rafael Perez
February 20, 2026
California needs more oversight, not another homeless agency
California needs more oversight, not another homeless agency By Sarah Downey | March 20, 2026 As California continues to struggle with homelessness, state leaders are rebranding the bureaucracy by rolling out a different agency with many of the same players and goals. This comes after a series of distressing audits ...
California cities struggling to implement latest housing law
California cities struggling to implement latest housing law By John Seiler | March 19, 2026 Since 2017, the California Legislature has passed and governors Jerry Brown and Gavin Newsom have signed about 215 housing-related bills. There’s no master list. But the Terner Center at UC Berkeley tallied almost 100 from ...
Let people live as they want, with or without cars
Let people live as they want, with or without cars By Sal Rodriguez | March 13, 2026 Many urbanists were excited by a recent study from Arizona State University researchers reporting that “nearly one fifth of urban and suburban U.S. car owners express a definite interest in living car-free (18%), and an ...
Rooms for improvement: single-room occupancy in your state
Rooms for improvement: single-room occupancy in your state By D. Dowd Muska | March 12, 2026 “I would never want to live like that, so therefore [insert housing type] should be illegal.” Online chatter generates intense heat, and measly light, but occasionally, a profound truth is posted. The quote above ...
Failed Los Angeles fire recovery proves need for self-governance
But why? In Los Angeles, and the rest of the state’s major cities, the public sector has become the city’s dominant political force, drowning out the votes and priorities of everyday citizens. With this imbalance making local politics an often-forgone conclusion, it’s time to consider a possible reform that could restore the competitive ...
California doubles down on the bullet-train boondoggle
There’s nothing intrinsically wrong — and a lot that’s right — about building a high-speed rail system that speedily transports people across vast tracts of land. Some family members recently returned from a trip to Japan, where they traveled the country on the Shinkansen network of bullet trains. Begun in 1964, the ...
Hailing a flight: Cities drone on about advanced air mobility
Hailing a flight: Cities drone on about advanced air mobility By D. Dowd Muska | February 27, 2026 It’s time to talk about flying taxis. Snicker all you want, but serious people — and deep pockets — are committing considerable resources to making airborne intra-city travel a thing. What the ...
San Diego shows LA how to address the region’s housing shortage
Last fall, the Los Angeles Times reported that “Almost no one is building new apartments in Los Angeles.” Fewer than 19,000 apartment units were under construction in the third quarter of last year. It was a 30% dip from three years earlier, the Times reported, based on a review from real ...
Arizona cities should be blocked from blocking short-term rentals
Ten years ago, then-Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey signed Senate Bill 1350 into law, preventing local governments from banning short-term rentals in their respective jurisdictions. “For thousands of hardworking citizens, opening up their home to out-of-state guests provides the financial breathing room they need to provide for their family or enjoy ...
Who will win the battle between robots and public-employee unions?
Who will win the battle between robots and public-employee unions? By Rafael Perez | February 20, 2026 For decades, artificial intelligence has been heralded for its potential to revolutionize the labor market and the creation of goods and services. Recent advancements in large language model (LLMs) performance by developers such ...