UN4LA News - December 2024
A monthly newsletter published by United Neighborhoods for Los Angeles.
UN4LA's mission is to bring communities together to plan for a sustainable future. Growth must be shaped by community engagement, not developer dollars.
KIM LAMORIE
It is with sadness and a deep sense of loss that we report the death of UN4LA Board Member Kim Lamorie. Kim was with us from the beginning, and her experience was invaluable in helping us to understand the many environmental challenges facing the LA area. She also served as President of the Las Virgenes Homeowners Association, and in that role she worked tirelessly to protect the Santa Monica Mountains. Kim had a deep respect for our natural environment, and spent many years fighting to preserve it. We'll miss her very much.
For a detailed account of Kim's many accomplishments, please see this blog post from 2013 by former LA County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, re-posted on the Las Virgenes Homeowners Association web site.
PLANNING & LAND USE MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE APPROVES CITYWIDE HOUSING INCENTIVE PROGRAM
It looks like the battle over the Citywide Housing Incentive Program (CHIP) is drawing to a close. In November, the Planning & Land Use Management Committee unanimously approved Draft 3 of the CHIP, without the options in Exhibit D that would have upzoned single-family neighborhoods. The item will likely be scheduled for the full City Council some time in December. You can get updates on CHIP's progress by subscribing to the council file. Click on the link below to view the council file, and then click on the envelope icon near the top.
Council File: 21-1230-S5, Citywide Housing Incentive Program
VOTERS APPROVE MEASURE A, SALES TAX INCREASE TO FUND HOUSING
By a wide margin, LA County voters chose to approve Measure A, which establishes a half cent sales tax to support various housing programs. Measure A specifies that 60% of the money raised goes to LA County for homeless services. Some of that would be allocated to LA area cities. The remaining 40% would be used to produce new housing. Much of the money raised would go to the Los Angeles County Affordable Housing Solutions Agency (LACAHSA, see below for details), a new entity, which plans to develop affordable housing.
L.A. COUNTY ELECTION RESULTS
You can view complete results for candidates and measures in LA County by clicking on the link below.
L.A.H.S.A. AUDIT FINDS NUMEROUS ISSUES
An audit by the LA County Auditor-Controller has found a number of disturbing problems at the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA). The report, issued in mid-November, found that the agency....
Awarded $50.8 million in multi-year cash advances to various subrecipients without establishing formal agreements to determine how and when the funds would be repaid.
Did not always recover annual cash advances awarded to subrecipients at yearend as required.
Did not always pay subrecipients timely even when the funds were available, and in other instances, inappropriately used funding from other sources to pay subrecipients prior to receiving reimbursement from the actual funder.
Did not always maintain adequate records for working capital advances.
Could not provide an accurate list of all contracts to determine the number that were executed either timely or retroactively in FY 2023-24.
Criticism of LAHSA has become more frequent and intense in recent years, but some commenters have also asked if the agency isn't being used by both the City of LA and the County of LA as a scapegoat to deflect attention from their own failures. The Auditor-Controller's full report is available below.
LAHSA Review of Finance, Contracts, Risk Management and Grants Management
L.A. CITY P.L.U.M. COMMITTEE REJECTS APPEALS OF TELEVISION CITY PROJECT
After starting over an hour late due to lack of quorum, the LA City Planning & Land Use Management (PLUM) Committee managed to hear only three of the 19 items on its December 3 agenda. All three were related to Hackman Capital's TVC 2050 project, which proposes substantial new development surrounding Television City at Beverly and Fairfax. Six groups had filed appeals of the project, including The Grove, the Gilmore Company (owners of Farmers Market), Mayer Beverly Park Limited Partnership, Save Beverly Fairfax, Beverly Wilshire Homes Association and Neighbors for Responsible TVC Development.
The appellants' representatives repeatedly stated that they were not opposed to new development on the site, but objected to the fact that the current approvals being granted did not specifically define what Hackman would actually build. Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky supported the project, claiming that she'd obtained significant concessions from the developer. The other two committee members present, John Lee and Kevin de León, followed Yaroslavsky's lead and voted to deny the appeals. Councilmember de León left the meeting immediately after the vote, which meant the committee no longer had a quorum, and none of the other items on the agenda were heard.
Hackman Capital wants the City of LA to approve the TVC 2050 Specific Plan, which would allow the company several different development options which could be built over the next 20 years. You can read more in the EIR's Project Description, on page 13 under "Description of the Project".
TVC 2050 Project Description from Draft EIR
To learn about some of the opponents' objections, see the following letter submitted by Latham & Watkins on behalf of The Grove.
Letter from Latham & Watkins on Behalf of The Grove
