UN4LA News - May 2018
A monthly newsletter published by United Neighborhoods for Los Angeles.
UN4LA's mission is to bring communities together to plan for a sustainable future. This city's growth must be shaped by community engagement, not developer dollars.
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SB 827 IS DEAD
By now you've probably heard that SB 827, State Senator Scott Wiener's bill which would have upzoned parcels near transit in cities across the state, is dead. It didn't even muster enough votes to make it out of committee. While Wiener and his allies pushed hard on this one, opponents of the bill won the day. Many thanks to all those who wrote e-mails and made phone calls to defeat this direct assault on local planning control. The defeat of SB 827 shows that we can make a difference when we all work together. Here's an account from the Mercury News.
Major California Housing Bill Dies in First Committee Hearing
CROSSROADS
The Final EIR for the Crossroads Hollywood project has been completed. While this controversial project would preserve the Crossroads of the World mall and the former Hollywood Reporter Building, it would also involve the demolition of all other structures on the site, including 80 rent-stabilized apartments.
The eight acre complex would include several new buildings, including three large towers. The project features residential, hotel, commercial/retail, entertainment and restaurant uses. It would include approximately 1,381,000 square feet of floor area, consisting of 950 residential units (11 percent, or 105 units, for Very Low Income Households), 308 hotel rooms, and approximately 190,000 square feet of commercial space. Incredibly, the developers are also asking for a master liquor permit to allow the sale of alcohol at a total of 22 establishments, in spite of the fact that the project is across the street from Hollywood High School. In addition, they also want a master permit to allow live entertainment at 8 locations within the project.
The Department of City Planning will be considering the project at a hearing on May 15 at 9:00 am. Here's the hearing notice, you're interested in attending.
Crossroads Hearing
WARNER CENTER
Developers have big plans for Warner Center. There are numerous projects in the works which would readically transform the area. But would these projects create the walkable, sustainable communities the City claims they will? Or are they merely designed to fatten the wallets of real estate investors.
The massive Promenade 2035 would be built in multiple phases on the site of Westfield's existing Promenade Shopping Center. The project description says it would include up to 1,400 residential units, about 244,000 square feet of retail/restaurant uses, over 600,000 square feet of office space, over 500 hotel rooms, and a 15,000 seat entertainment and sports center. Structures would range from 3 stories to 28 stories in height. The developer is also requesting a Master Conditional Use Permit to allow the sale of alcohol at multiple sites within the project.
The Draft EIR is available now. You can view it by clicking on the link below.
Promenade 2035 Draft SEIR
To view the document, select a chapter using Draft SEIR Sections and click on 'Go'. Comments are due by Monday, June 11, 2018 at 4:00 pm. Be sure to include "Case No. ENV-2016-3909-EIR" in the subject line. Send your comments to:
Elva Nuño-O'Donnell
elva.nuno-odonnell@lacity.org
If you have problems with this project, you're not alone. Connect with the folks at Rally to Save the Valley to learn more about how you can get involved.
Rally to Save the Valley
HOME SHARING ORDINANCE
It seems like LA is finally getting close to passing the Home Sharing Ordinance (HSO). While the current version is weaker than what many housing activists were fighting for, the ordinance would still go a long way toward protecting our communities. The amendments recommended by the Housing and PLUM Committees include a 120 day cap, and funding for enforcement that would allow the City to crack down on those who don't follow the law. Unfortunately, short-term rental companies like AirBnB are lobbying hard to weaken the ordinance further.
The City Council will vote on the HSO this week, then it will be referred to the City Planning Commission for consideration, and then it will come back to the Council for a final vote. If you want to show up to support the HSO, and insist that it be adopted with no further concessions to AirBnB, here's the info for the meeting.
Wednesday, May 2, 2018, 10:00 am
City Hall, John Ferraro Council Chamber, Room 340
200 N. Spring St.
USE ENTRANCE ON MAIN STREET.
L.A. IS HANDING OUT TOO MANY TAX BREAKS
Offering tax breaks for new development can help make worthwhile projects viable, helping to create jobs and bring needed investment. But tax breaks can also be abused. Lately LA's elected officials have been offering extremely generous incentives on projects that would be profitable even without them. Earlier this month, UN4LA wrote a letter to City Hall to ask why our leaders were giving up so much revenue when they haven't even been able to balance the budget. Click on the link to read the letter.
Too Many Tax Breaks
