USC School of Policy, Planning, and Development News

SPPD Grad Wins Award for Best Dissertation

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 14:30:57 -0800

November 2, 2009

USC School of Policy, Planning, and Development alumna Anupama Mann recently received the Gill-Chin Lim Award for the best dissertation on international planning for her thesis, "A Megaproject Matrix: Ideology, Discourse and Regulation in the Delhi Metro Rail." The award is given by the Global Planners Educators Interest Group at the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning.

Center for Economic Development Gets Grant

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 12:30:09 -0800

October 28, 2009

The USC Center for Economic Development was awarded a two-year $750,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration to broaden the scope of the center's applied research and outreach initiatives. The center is housed at the USC School of Policy, Planning, and Development.

Green Discusses Banks' Efforts to Minimize Foreclosures

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 14:24:54 -0800

October 21, 2009

The Los Angeles Times quoted Professor Richard Green on how banks are responding to government pressure to scale back repossessions of troubled properties. "I don't think people are saying it to each other, but they're seeing it's in nobody's interest to have mass foreclosures," said Green, director of the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate.

Ross Comments on Commercial Development Industry

Sat, 17 Oct 2009 14:30:56 -0800

October 17, 2009

The Orange County Register ran a Q&A with Stan Ross of the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate on the commercial development industry, which has suffered from defaults and bankruptcies. "The commercial sector has not yet fully seen the impact of illiquidity in the capital markets. As a result, we haven't seen the full magnitude of defaults or foreclosures yet in the marketplace," Ross said. "Some of these institutions that were holding or buying these securities will run into some serious problems with respect to liquidity and capital requirements. They will either have to be restructured, taken over or look for new equity capital to continue on. The impact on the economy could be a further loss of some institutions and a continued slowdown of new development."

Jeffe Examines Clinton's Involvement in CA Politics

Sat, 17 Oct 2009 14:28:55 -0800

October 17, 2009

The Huffington Post ran an op-ed by SPPD Senior Fellow Sherry Bebitch Jeffe about former President Bill Clinton's endorsement of California gubernatorial candidate Gavin Newsom. "The intervention of a former president in California politics, so visibly and actively, was unprecedented," Jeffe wrote. Clinton may have been motivated by the fact that Newsom's opponent is Attorney General Jerry Brown, she added. "The bad blood between Clinton and Brown goes back to 1992, when Brown kept beating up on Clinton, the last candidate actually standing in the Democratic presidential race, distracting Clinton's political operation from gearing up for the general election," Jeffe wrote. This column originally ran on USC's Politics and Society Web site.

SPPD Student Writes on "Transportation Demand Management" in APA Journal

Sat, 17 Oct 2009 13:30:00 -0800

October 17, 2009

The New Planner, an online publication for and by student members of the American Planning Association, featured an article in its Fall 2009 issue written by Alan Huynh, a senior in the urban planning program at SPPD. His article is titled "The Importance of Transportation Demand Management."

Green Discusses Difficulties for First-Time Homebuyers

Sat, 17 Oct 2009 11:40:00 -0800

October 17, 2009

The Bakersfield Californian quoted Richard Green of the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate in an article about first-time homebuyers. Green said that banks don't have the staffing capacity to move a lot of inventory through the foreclosure process quickly, particularly when properties are owned by investors with competing liens. He added: "Appraisers are scared to death of getting sued if a home turns out to be worth less than they said, so they're being extremely conservative."

Green Discusses Record Number of U.S. Foreclosure Filings

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 14:49:19 -0800

October 15, 2009

The New York Times cited SPPD Professor Richard Green about U.S. foreclosure filings, which climbed to a record high in the third quarter as lenders seized more properties from delinquent borrowers. "The problem is prime loans going into foreclosure and people being underwater and losing their jobs," Green said in a Bloomberg News story. "It's a really bad number." Green is director and chair of the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate.

SPPD's Goldman Named to Institute of Medicine

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 09:46:21 -0800

October 15, 2009

Dana Goldman, a professor with the USC School of Policy, Planning and Development, has been named to the Institute of Medicine -- one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine. Goldman directs the newly-created Leonard D. Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics.

Green: So. Cal Home Prices 'Fundamentally at a Bottom'

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 14:46:14 -0800

October 14, 2009

The Los Angeles Times quoted Professor Richard Green about the Southern California housing market, which last month in some areas showed an increase in median home sale prices for the first time since 2007. "I think prices are fundamentally at a bottom," said Green, who the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate. "There could be some weakness in the next year that brings things back down a little bit. I wouldn't be jumping for joy yet, but these numbers are not bad."

Little Examines Feasibility of 710 Freeway Tunnel

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 10:33:15 -0800

October 14, 2009

KPCC-FM interviewed SPPD Senior Fellow Richard Little in a story on the feasibility of a tunnel for the 710 freeway through Mt. Washington. "The tunnel is feasible from an engineering and financial standpoint, and if by taking the surface route off the table you could make that move forward, it seems to me to be a good thing to do," said Little, who directs the USC Keston Institute for Public Finance and Infrastructure Policy. "I think tunnel-boring has come a long way. This isn't the old excavation method. It's a very elaborate but well established process."

Goldman Interviewed about Health Care Reform

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 10:34:45 -0800

October 12, 2009

American Public Media's "Marketplace" interviewed Professor Dana Goldman about current health care reform efforts. "This is a rather historic effort to provide insurance to most Americans. But this is not an effort to do anything on cost containment," said Goldman, director of the USC Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics. Rather than being paid based on the quantity of services they provide, doctors should be rewarded for using treatments that save money and lives, Goldman added. "If the patient does well, then the hospital gets paid, the doctor gets paid," Goldman said. "And if the patient doesn't do well, then they're going to have to bear the cost. And ultimately, that would've been a really valuable change."

Roski Discusses NFL Stadium Plans at SPPD Event

Fri, 09 Oct 2009 14:10:01 -0800

Ed Roski Jr., chairman and CEO of Majestic Realty Co. and president of the USC Board of Trustees, gave a behind-the-scenes look at the proposed NFL stadium during a special event presented by the SPPD Athenian Society at Pacific Palms Resort in the City of Industry. The Athenian Society is the premiere donor group of the USC School of Policy, Planning, and Development.

Jeffe Weighs in on CA Republican Gubernational Contest

Thu, 08 Oct 2009 10:38:06 -0800

October 8, 2009

The San Jose Mercury-News quoted SPPD Senior Fellow Sherry Bebitch Jeffe about a recent poll showing that California Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Campbell is running neck and neck with billionaire Meg Whitman. "It's really interesting that Campbell is so close with no money and not much name recognition," Jeffe said. "But it's also clear that the campaign really hasn't begun to catch the broad attention of Californians."

Lewis on Sale of Expired Food at LA Grocery Stores

Thu, 08 Oct 2009 10:36:18 -0800

October 8, 2009

The Los Angeles Times cited a study led by SPPD Teaching Associate Professor LaVonna Lewis which found that one in three grocery stores in low-income Los Angeles neighborhoods often sells expired food. "It's a quality question," Lewis said. "Shouldn't people have access to fresh, healthy foods no matter where they live? It's also a resource question. If you have limited resources, aren't those resources used less effectively if the food you purchase in your neighborhood is quickly out of date?" Future studies will try to determine whether expired food products are found more often in low-income areas, Lewis said.