Greetings Angelenos,
This month, Los Angeles City Planning launched a new brand identity and website that embody our commitment to transparency, efficiency, and clear communication.
Our new website,
Planning4LA.org
, consolidates City Planning's 23 project-focused independent sites in one uniform, centralized clearinghouse for all the City's planning-related information. The new site is intuitively organized and searchable, so visitors can quickly find what they need.
From the homepage, users can look up projects by case number, view zoning for any street address in the City, or check the calendar for upcoming commission meetings, public hearings, and community events. A few clicks away are the latest updates on policies and plans, along with a wealth of information about our local land use regulations.
For our residents and small business owners, we also created a designated section for our development services, displaying information about our public counters and the services they offer.
These are just a few of the features of our new, user-friendly website. The launch marks an important step in our efforts to simplify processes, clarify messaging, and include all Angelenos in planning for the City's future.
Together, we are
Planning for LA.
|
|
Vince Bertoni,
Director of Planning
|
|
|
|
Citywide Design Guidelines
|
In October, City Planning will present a revised draft of the proposed Citywide Design Guidelines to the City Planning Commission. The updated Guidelines elevate the City’s design expectations of new development by utilizing three design approaches that reflect key policy priorities: Pedestrian First Design, 360° Design, and Climate Adapted Design. At this same meeting, the Commission will also consider a draft advisory notice that contains a set of design strategies for projects containing above-grade parking podiums. Together, the Guidelines and Advisory Notice will assist development teams, the public, and City Planning staff during a project’s initial concept and design stage, as well as throughout the City’s formal review.
The public can attend the City Planning Commission meeting to provide feedback for the Commissioners to consider.
|
|
|
|
CRA/LA Transfer of Land Use Authorities
|
On September 20, the City Council adopted an ordinance and corresponding resolution that transferred land use authority from the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA/LA) to City Planning. The action by the City Council facilitated the continuity of land use controls by allowing local jurisdictions — such as the City of Los Angeles — to administer the remaining unexpired redevelopment plans that were previously overseen by the CRA/LA. This action will eliminate the need for projects located within these redevelopment plan areas to acquire multiple sign-offs, establishing a single, streamlined development review process that will provide greater certainty for the development community.
|
|
|
|
On September 17, the Planning and Land Use Management (PLUM) Committee of the City Council adopted a proposed ordinance that will codify the process for appealing California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) clearances in instances when those clearances are made by a decision-making body other than the City Council. Currently, the Los Angeles Municipal Code does not spell out a formal CEQA appeals process, leading to a lack of clarity regarding appeal filing requirements and deadlines. The ordinance establishes formal procedures to clearly identify decision-makers, set clear timelines, and help increase public participation, in addition to aligning local processes with recent State updates to CEQA. This matter will next be considered by the full City Council.
|
|
OUTREACH AND ENGAGEMENT - AUGUST 2019
|
|
Congress of Neighborhoods 2019
|
On September 28, Los Angeles City Planning staff participated in this year’s Congress of Neighborhoods — the neighborhood council system’s largest event, bringing together over 1,000 local leaders each year for a day of workshops and networking with City officials. This year, City Planning facilitated two workshops that focused on how Los Angeles’s new zoning code will be implemented through the Community Plan Update process, and how planning policies are implemented through project review. Staff was present throughout the day at a booth to share educational materials and help answer any planning-related questions.
|
|
A Roundtable Discussion on Transportation with Central
City Association
|
On September 11, City Planner Rubina Ghazarian joined the monthly meeting of Central City Association's Transportation, Infrastructure, and Environment Committee to discuss how the City of Los Angeles is implementing Senate Bill (SB) 743. Adopted in 2013, SB 743 changed the way projects were analyzed under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) to better align transportation impact analysis to encourage infill development.
During her remarks, Rubina outlined the ways the City of Los Angeles has updated its traffic impact measurements in accordance with SB 743. Recently, the city adopted new thresholds for analyzing project-related transportation impacts, switching metrics from Level of Service to Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) to account for project impacts on the environment. The shift to VMT will encourage more infill development in urban, transit-rich communities such as Downtown, where there is infrastructure to support new jobs and housing opportunities.
|
|
City Planning Connects with Local Businesses at Small Business Resource Fair
|
On September 27, Los Angeles City Planning participated in the City’s Accessing LA Small Business Resource Fair, which provides resources for starting, building, and growing a business. The event provides opportunities to engage with Los Angeles’s departments, public agencies, and contractors. Small business owners attend this fair to learn best practices that help them prepare to do business with the City. Tiffany Butler, Jason Valencia, and Devon Zatorski from the Administrative and Management Division attended the event.
Additionally, City Planning staff spoke to attendees about upcoming contract opportunities, ranging from contracting work with the Urban Design Studio to developing community outreach and citywide engagement strategies for the General Plan team. The staff members prepared a special brochure for the event that listed all of the contracting opportunities with City Planning.
For more information, visit the website of the Los Angeles Business Assistance Virtual Network (LABAVN) at
http://labavn.org
, which maintains the list of contract opportunities with the City. Notification of the release of any Requests for Qualifications (RFQs) will be sent to companies that have registered on this site.
|
|
Loyola Marymount University Study / 88 Cities Summit
|
On September 19, City Planning Director Vince Bertoni joined the second annual 88 Cities Summit, hosted by the Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC). The conference brings together public officials, leaders in government, educators, and community-based organizations to identify strategies and solutions for addressing economic development challenges across Los Angeles County's 88 cities and unincorporated areas.
Director Bertoni participated in a panel discussion moderated by Darrell George, City Manager for the City of Duarte. Their conversation focused on the results of a 2019 public opinion survey on housing commissioned by Loyola Marymount University, highlighting trends and opinions on issues related to development in Los Angeles County.
Access the report with the survey's findings
here.
|
|
MONTHLY DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES - AUGUST
|
|
PRIORITIZING THE CREATION OF NEW AFFORDABLE HOUSING
|
|
Providing more affordable housing options is an important citywide priority, which is why City Planning established the Priority Housing Program (PHP) in April 2016. From its inception to June 2019, 117 projects have filed under this program — resulting in upwards of 7,886 new units of housing. Nearly 80% of these units are affordable, with the vast majority being reserved for Very Low and Low Income residents.
To qualify, projects must set aside at least 20% of their rental units or 30% of their for-sale units as affordable, and consist of 10 or more units. Projects that meet these minimum thresholds for affordability are eligible for priority case processing. PHP projects have generally taken between four and eight months to process, depending on whether they require Director or City Planning Commission level approvals. Priority case processing has resulted in a time savings of 20% for approvals at the Director level and and 30% for approvals at the City Planning Commission level.
With this new program, City Planning has been able to advancing and promoting an equitable mix of housing throughout Los Angeles.
|
|
Downtown Community Plan: Preliminary Draft Release
The Downtown Community Plan Update team is conducting outreach to receive feedback on the preliminary drafts of the Draft Land Use Map and Community Plan goals and policies. Both documents lay out the future vision for this community and will inform the new zoning regulations that will be released later this fall. The Downtown Community Plan seeks to accommodate anticipated growth through 2040, creating a livable and healthy set of neighborhoods for residents, workers, and visitors alike.
During the months of August and September, the Downtown Community Plan Update staff met with local stakeholder groups such as the Chinatown Sustainability Dialogue Group, Downtown Los Angeles Neighborhood Council’s Planning and Land Use Committee, Historic Cultural Neighborhood Council, and Central City Association to provide status reports.
For more details, and to read the preliminary drafts of the Land Use Map and goals and polices, click
here
.
|
|
|
|
- Preparing Draft Environmental Impact Report
|
|
|
|
- Scoping Meeting conducted in August
- Preparing Draft Environmental Impact Report
|
|
|
|
- Reviewing comments for the Draft Environmental Impact Report
|
|
|
|
- Preparing Draft Environmental Impact Report
|
|
TECHNOLOGY SPOTLIGHT
City Planning's Geographic Information Systems (GIS) team is focused on developing creative ways to enhance and support planners' work. This month, City Planning launched a new website with interactive story maps, using the latest technology to visually represent layers of data in ways that are easy to understand.
These story maps have helped City staff, as well as local stakeholders, review and analyze project alternatives using three-dimensional spatial modeling. The GIS team's work supports City Planning's goal of making information more accessible — allowing local stakeholders to participate more readily during the decision-making process.
Click
here
to access the story map for the Hollywood Community Plan update, which illustrates proposed land use changes using GIS technology.
|
|
|
|
PROJECT SPOTLIGHT
On September 12, the City Planning Commission approved a 100% affordable housing development located in Canoga Park along Owensmouth Avenue.
The project will provide 80 units of affordable housing in a five-story building and offer supportive services onsite for tenants. The applicant — Meta Housing Corporation — is an affordable housing developer and property manager, as well as a social services provider. The developer anticipates that nearly half of the units will serve a diverse pool of low-income residents, with the remaining units reserved exclusively for permanent supportive housing.
|
|
Every summer, City Planning takes part in the summer camp program administered by the Southern California Chapter of the National Organization of Minority Architects (SoCalNOMa). The program is designed and taught primarily by local architects, engineers, interior designers, and urban planners to advance and support education and career opportunities for minorities in fields where they have been historically underrepresented.
City Planner Hakeem Parke-Davis volunteered this year to discuss community engagement in the planning profession and the opportunities that planners have in facilitating positive changes for their communities. This year, students had an opportunity to meet Councilmember Marqueece Harris-Dawson. As Chair of the Planning and Land Use Management Committee, Councilmember Harris-Dawson has played an instrumental role in
Destination Crenshaw
— a community-driven project celebrating Black Los Angeles that will feature outdoor art and culture along Crenshaw Boulevard between 48th and 60th Streets.
|
|
LOS ANGELES CITY PLANNING
@PLANNING4LA
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
