Measure ULA fix stalls, Oceanwide Plaza bankruptcy deal, and more

Local officials have announced roughly $100 million for renovations to Exposition Park in advance of the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2028 Summer Olympics. The money comes from the proposed statewide budget for 2026-2027, as well as an additional $1 million in federal funding.

That total doesn't include the more than $350 million previously awarded by the state to underground parking along the southern side of the park to create new green space. Work on that project has been postponed until after the Olympics.

Here's what we're reading this week:

Los Angeles won’t be tweaking its ‘mansion tax.’ Now the debate is likely to go statewide "The decision, made after a heated session brimming with arcane procedural objections and spirited public comment from tenant activists and union members, effectively quashes the hopes of real estate developers, commercial landlords and a growing caucus of housing construction advocates and Democratic state elected officials who see the highest-in-the-state transfer fee as both an investment killer and an urgent political liability — both in Los Angeles and across California." (Calmatters)

City Attorney Seeks Funds to Oppose Venice Dell Project, Developer Says "If approved, the request would bring the city’s total spending on litigation related to the project to roughly $1.3 million. The Venice Dell development, which would include 120 units of housing for low-income and formerly homeless residents, has already been approved by the City Council and awarded $42.5 million in conditional state funding." (Yo Venice)

Metro opposes housing law "L.A. elected leaders are continuing to fight it, arguing the law jeopardizes efforts to expand local transportation infrastructure." (LAist)

Los Angeles is sabotaging itself on housing "The simple truth is that L.A.’s chronic housing shortage is not for lack of technical capacity or earnest speeches. It’s due to our political leaders’ fundamental ambivalence toward the remedy. In spite of all the pain our lack of homes inflicts on ordinary Angelenos, our elected officials still hesitate to declare, unconditionally, that building more housing is good, actually." (LA Times)

‘Finally, a renter’s market’: L.A. rent prices drop to four-year low 'Experts disagree on the extent of the drop; some say it’s a sign of things to come, while others suggest it’s merely a brief price plateau and rents will rise again in 2026. After all, the winter rental market is typically slower than the summer market, and the recent low is just 4.2% less than the all-time high of $2,262 in August 2022." (LA Times)

Lawsuits detail battle over millions of dollars, People Mover builder’s alleged 'improper' conduct "In August 2024, the city of Los Angeles approved an agreement to pay more than a half-billion dollars to resolve a substantial number of schedule and compensation related disputes with the main contractor it hired to design, build and operate the LAX Automated People Mover....A year and a half later, a major subcontractor alleges it still hasn’t received a penny of the tens of millions of dollars it says it’s owed from the settlement, which the city funded using public money it generates from airport-related fees and charges." (LAist)

Bike lanes go green in West Hollywood "The City Council unanimously approved a policy on April 7, 2025, to install green-colored pavement on all class II bike lanes in West Hollywood and authorized city staff to begin painting bike lanes in green. Preliminary layout work is in progress. To avoid impacts on rush-hour traffic, all work is taking place at night. The bike lane repainting is anticipated to be completed by Friday, Feb. 20." (Beverly Press)

LA’s $1.2 Billion Graffiti Towers Reach Bankruptcy Exit Deal "A potential investor is negotiating to buy the property, a deal that hinges on resolving the bankruptcy, according to people with knowledge of the matter." (Bloomberg)

Homicides fall to lowest level since 1966 in city of LA "The number of homicides in the city of Los Angeles fell by 19% last year, the lowest level in decades, according to a police department report that cited several factors for the decline, including violence reduction strategies and partnerships with community organizations." (LAist)

Foreign-born population falls by 1.5 million amid Trump policies. California economy under threat "California’s population growth stalled from mid-2024 to mid-2025, marking the first essentially flat growth after years of pandemic-era slowdown." (LA Times)

Eyes on the Street: 6th Street Viaduct ‘PARC’ Construction "Sixth Street PARC - Park, Arts, River & Connectivity - construction is nearly complete, and expected to finish this year" (Streetsblog LA)

LA County considers plans to remove unhoused people and clear encampments around Olympic venues "County officials issued a strategy report last week advising local governments on how to clear people from encampments near major events and move them into temporary housing. However, the same report notes that there are concerns there won't be enough beds and there's no new funding for such an effort." (LAist)

Why Los Angeles Quietly Stopped Repaving Its Streets "Federal disability rules have turned routine maintenance into a legal liability." (City Journal)

Despite appearances, the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing is on track for fall completion "Torrential rains in 2022 and 2023 delayed progress on the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing, but there haven’t been any significant delays since then, the builders say." (LA Times)

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