In late 2022, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass issued her first executive directive, which aimed to shorten the review times for new affordable and permanent supportive housing developments. Eight months later, a key component of that process will be codified into the Los Angeles Municipal Code through a new ordinance signed by Bass this week.
“Today I am signing an ordinance that takes a major step in codifying Executive Directive 1 by exempting affordable housing and qualifying mixed income projects from the process of Site Plan Review. Like Executive Directive 1, this exemption will save projects six months of processing time – saving time means saving money.” said Bass during a press conference. “I again want to thank Council President Krekorian and Council President Pro Tem and Chair of the Planning, Land Use and Management Committee Harris-Dawson for their leadership on this and for seeing this exemption through.”
The ordinance amends the Site Plan Review process to exempt affordable housing developments. Current policy sets the threshold at 50 units citywide, although recent community plan updates for Hollywood and Downtown have opted for higher thresholds.
Changing the Site Plan Review threshold for affordable units is just one component of the executive directive. The remaining elements are to be adopted into the municipal code through a separate ordinance which the Planning Department is scheduled to release in approximately three months.
Here's what we're reading this week:
Aerial view of the Southwest MuseumThe Autry Museum
Southwest Museum remains in limbo "A few months later, the Autry said three dozen potential suitors had indicated an interest in the landmark, founded by Charles Lummis in 1913, and the Casa de Adobe, a 1917 replica of a rancho near the museum on Figueroa Street. But nothing ever happened. Last year, the Autry announced it had 'recently executed a pre-development agreement' with an entity to revitalize and reuse the two sites. Again, nothing happened." (Eastsider LA)
Over 14,000 Vehicles In LA County Are Used As Homes "[T]ents did not play a significant role in the past year’s 9% rise in homelessness across L.A. County. In fact, the number of tents used as dwellings on L.A. streets fell slightly, from 4,304 in 2022 to 4,293 in 2023...Instead, the increase reported in this year’s homeless count was disproportionately driven by people living in vehicles. The number of cars used as shelters rose 16%, and the number of vans skyrocketed 44%." (LAist)
To pay off a house outside of L.A., this hotel worker sleeps in her car four days a week "Housing concerns have been at the forefront of contract negotiations for hotel workers. Thousands of workers recently went on a three-day strike, demanding higher pay and better benefits. It was the first wave of walkouts anticipated this summer after contracts expired." (LA Times)
California Needs Leadership on Electric Rail "California leaders cannot continue giving equal weight to a proven technology that will improve rail service (catenary electric trains) and a wasteful experimental technology (hydrogen trains) that could lead to worse service and reliability than the status quo." (Streetsblog California)
Rendering of a high-speed trainCalifornia High-Speed Rail Authority
Tax dollars made this enticing native plant habitat. Why can’t we get inside? "The city has done many stormwater capture projects as part of its quest to clean and reclaim water, but few of them include a native plant/habitat component, said Ida Meisami-Fard, senior civil engineer for the L.A. Sanitation and Environment Department....And therein lies the rub: This serene, fragrant site requires regular care to keep weeds from overrunning the native plants, a job managed mainly by the community volunteers who lobbied for its creation, a nonprofit group called Westwood Greenway Inc., said President Annette Mercer." (LA Times)
New El Monte Bike Lanes Connect to Transit Station and More "The lanes were installed on roads already heavily used as alternates to the town’s hectic arteries (Valley Boulevard and Santa Anita Avenue): Tyler as the north-south route, and Ramona, as an east-west proxy for Valley. Of course, the two meet just south of the Valley Mall, providing an opportunity for transit commuters to get off Santa Anita on their way down to Ramona." (Streetsblog LA)
Santa Monica’s New 17th Street Curb-Protected Bike Lanes are Amazing "Nearly completed, Santa Monica's excellent 17th Street bike/ped improvements include Southern California's first European-type curb-protected intersections" (Streetsblog LA)
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