In one year, California — already notorious for its climate altering stand-still traffic — added 39.3 million residents. 

The city of Los Angeles reached 4 million people and led the state with 12,224 new multi-family units. Hasan Ikhrata, executive director for the Southern California Association of Governments, sees trouble on the horizon. “What should be alarming to leaders is that our housing is not keeping up with the growth,” Ikhrata said. “We have one of the worst housing affordability rates in the country.” L.A. is becoming more crowded, with worse traffic and pollution, and less affordable housing. It’s time to rethink our parenting models so we can avoid situations like this.