New construction ban pitched for Palos Verdes landslide zone, Trump vs. high-speed rail, and more

Even as overall ridership takes a hit as a result of ICE activity across the region, Metro's K Line has bucked the trend following the completion of the LAX/Metro Transit Center.

Ridership on the K jumped nearly 140 percent on weekdays year-over-year following the opening following the completion the LAX/Metro Transit Center. At the same time, ridership is up nearly 200 percent on Saturdays and nearly 215 percent on Sundays. Metro expects that weekend and holiday travel in and out of LAX has been the primary driver of ridership.

The $900-million LAX/Metro Transit Center marks the completion of the full stretch of the K Line between Expo/Crenshaw Station and the C Line. Trains had been forced to terminate in Westchester during the construction of the transit hub.

Here's what we're reading this week:

Is it finally time to ban new homes in the Rancho Palos Verdes’ landslide zone? "After almost two years of unprecedented landslide movement that has upended life across much of the picturesque Portuguese Bend area of the Palos Verdes Peninsula, officials want to permanently ban new construction in the landslide zone." (LA Times)

L.A. City Approves Measure HLA Ordinance "Both City Council and Mayor approved the city HLA ordinance, which goes into effect on August 18." (Streetsblog LA)

California sues Trump administration over loss of high-speed rail funding "The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California by state Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta, comes one day after the Federal Railroad Administration pulled $4 billion from the project that was intended for construction in the Central Valley. The suit seeks declaratory and injunctive relief and challenges the legality of the decision." (LA Times)

Five charts on homelessness in Los Angeles "Numbers drop for second year in a row, but new housing is slowing" (Crosstown)

Altadena’s rough real estate market: Slower sales, lower prices, lottery winner plucking up properties "It’s impossible to know the long-term prospects of the market, but real estate agents and others say property sales are slowing as inventory grows and owners list their properties at lower prices." (LA Times)

Trump Tariffs Erode Inland Empire’s Industrial Machine Despite Solid Fundamentals "Rents have dropped every quarter for the past two years, though leasing activity and employment are trending in the right direction" (Commercial Observer)

LAHSA moved hundreds out of LA city homeless count without informing elected officials "The changes — which revised the city’s count down by 437 people — were not disclosed to elected officials when LAHSA provided the updated numbers Monday morning ahead of their public release that afternoon." (LAist)

Made in the shade "Dean and de Guzman realized they were in a unique position. In their academic roles — Dean is the climate and sustainability practice director at USC Dornsife Public Exchange, and de Guzman is a water and adaptation policy cooperative extension specialist at UCLA's Luskin Center for Innovation — they were part of a growing field of researchers raising the alarm about extreme heat, but weren't beholden to the agenda of a specific city or county. It gave them a window to turn practice into policy, Dean says." (Torched)

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