Plans Move Forward To Allow 135K New Housing Units In Downtown LA And Hollywood
David Wagner
LAist
Apr 26, 2023
By some estimates, Los Angeles County has an affordable housing shortage of half a million homes. Part of that shortage has to do with local rules limiting where certain kinds of housing can be built. In parts of L.A., these rules haven’t been updated since the Reagan administration.
Los Angeles city councilmembers just took a major step toward refreshing those rules in two of the city’s vital urban cores, raising hopes and fears about the city’s future development.
The council’s powerful Planning and Land Use Management committee voted Monday to advance long-awaited community plan updates for Downtown L.A. and Hollywood. If approved by the full city council in a final vote expected in coming weeks, these plans would allow for 135,000 units of new housing in those neighborhoods.
Why new community plans are such a big deal
L.A. is suffering from a severe housing crisis, with a third of tenants in the city spending more than half of their income on rent. (The government's affordability standard is no more than 30% of your income.) Under state law, the city is required to plan for 455,000 new housing units by 2029.
“The community plans are one of the most important tools to incentivize and produce new housing,” said Scott Epstein, policy and research director for the housing advocacy organization Abundant Housing L.A.
Community plans outline the land use rules and regulations developers must follow if they want to build new housing in a given area, Epstein said.
“That's everything from how tall buildings can be. What uses are permitted in certain areas — commercial, residential, light industrial. What kind of affordability requirements should be included,” he said.
Elected leaders want to channel much of the city’s new housing development into established urban cores such as Downtown L.A. and Hollywood. They see those neighborhoods as the most viable — most of L.A.’s residential land is zoned for single family homes and elected officials are focused on siting new apartment buildings in existing commercial corridors.
Doubling down on DTLA’s residential transformation
Downtown L.A. represents just 1% of the city’s land, but, if approved by the full city council, its new community plan would accommodate 20% of the city’s projected housing growth over the next two decades. Rezonings outlined in the plan would double the areas where housing can be built, allowing 100,000 new apartments and condos to be built downtown.
For years, downtown was plagued with vacant storefronts and apartments. But it has since undergone a sweeping residential transformation. This updated plan would encourage more conversion of old or underused commercial properties into apartments and allow new housing in manufacturing zones.
“I think we're looking at another transformation of downtown,” said Nella McOsker, president of the downtown business group Central City Association. “[There’s] really exciting potential for a key section of the city to help alleviate this housing crisis we see across the region.”
Epstein said he thinks that by eliminating parking requirements for new housing in Downtown L.A., the community plan will encourage more residents to go car-free.
“You're going to see parking lots turn into housing,” he said. “I think you're going to see a lot more small businesses. With housing growth, you're going to actually see new schools pop up in some of these neighborhoods.”
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