Metro September 2023 Board Committee Round-Up: C Line, 91 Freeway Widening, and More Transit ridership and freeway funding are up. $14 million for MicroTransit postponed. South Bay C Line extension draws controversy and plenty of support. Law enforcement, Taylor Swift, bus lanes, and more! (Streetsblog LA)
The California conundrum: Fewer people, more homes, but an acute housing shortage "Experts interviewed by The Times said home prices and rents haven’t plunged for several interconnected reasons. But in general, it’s because for decades — even in years of slow population growth — California hasn’t added enough housing to meet demand, creating a backlog so large that it can’t be corrected by a few years of population loss." (LA Times)
Map showing route alternatives for the Crenshaw/LAX Line's northern extensionMetro
WeHo weighs in on Metro K Line route "Three options are being explored for the K Line route, each connecting the Exposition Line and the Hollywood/Highland Red Line station. The San Vicente/Santa Monica route would cut through parts of Beverly Hills and the Rainbow District of West Hollywood. The Wilshire/Fairfax route would largely run along Fairfax Avenue, while the Wilshire/La Brea route would run under La Brea Avenue." (Beverly Press)
How LA Metro Says It Will Improve Olympics Transit After Taylor Swift and Beyoncé Tours (LAist)
Rendering of Gayley Towers redevelopment looking westMithun
How small is too small? UC Regents delay approval of new UCLA dorm, questioning room size "UCLA has been planning the best deal in town for student housing: a new residence hall featuring shared living, study and socializing spaces with most rooms going for just $600 a month — 66% below projected market rates in the pricey Westwood neighborhood where the campus is located...But the eight-story, 545-bed project hit a roadblock Thursday, when the University of California Regents deferred a vote on its budget and design after raising crucial questions about whether the rooms were too small and what potential impact that might have on student mental health. The planned space is 265 square feet for three beds, desks, closets, storage space and a refrigerator." (LA Times)
LA Launches New Rent Relief Program With First Batch Of Measure ULA Money 'The city is putting $18.4 million toward the first batch of funding for the United to House Los Angeles Emergency Rental Assistance Program. The money comes from Measure ULA, the new “mansion tax” on properties selling for $5 million or more that voters approved last November.' (LAist)
San Vicente, Fairfax, and Olympic...a.k.a. "The Asterisk"Google Maps
This may be California's worst intersection. There are no plans to fix it. "The trouble with this intersection is that it isn’t really an intersection. Unlike a typical six-way intersection, where coordinated signals allow drivers on each road to take their turn in an orderly fashion, San Vicente actually first crosses Fairfax and then crosses Olympic a few hundred feet later, meaning that drivers — if they’re lucky — must wait for not just one but two endless light cycles. The limited space to queue between these two crossings creates significant backups. During rush hour, a car may have to sit through an entire green light cycle without moving because there is no space to go. It is urban planning chaos." (SFGate)
The architect of L.A.’s iconic Capitol Records building sets the record straight — again — on that needle "Naidorf notes the building’s porcelain enamel sunshades with carefully spaced gaps to play with light and shadow. These cause spiral lines to appear on the building, drawing the eye into a rhythm rather than straight up and down." (LA Times)
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