[Quixote]

The problem is that people pass through so much of the ugly to get to all the destinations, especially via the freeway. From the freeway they see powerlines, old warehouses with vacant adjacent parking lofts, smog, etc. unlike more centralized cities such as NYC and SF were everyone remains in the urban core and never ventures outside it. So they never see any of the ugly unless going to or from the airport. That is why once we establish Downtown Los Angeles as the main center of our city, peoples' impressions of LA will change for the better.