There won't be many places left to sleep for the massive population of homeless living in the city of Los Angeles.
"A plan under consideration at City Hall would ban sleeping on streets and sidewalks within 500 feet of schools, parks, day-care facilities and some popular venues, eliminating at least a quarter of Los Angeles for homeless people trying to bed down at night," according to an L.A. Times feature by Matt Stiles, Ryan Menezes, and Emily Alpert Reyes.
The article includes an interactive map to illustrate the scope of the law, created by analysis performed by the L.A. Times team. In the whole city, there are 836 parks, 1,482 public and private schools, 1,161 day-care centers, nine special venues, and 43 homeless services that would be subject to a 500-foot buffer if the law is approved.
"Taken together, the buffers cover 124 square miles, about a quarter of the city," according to the article. "The estimate almost certainly understates the proposal's full potential."
The map allows analysis in the aggregate as well as at the neighborhood level. The article provides case studies in Venice, Hollywood, Koreatown, Downtown, Skid Row, and more.
If approved, the law would be the latest legal setback for the rights of the homeless to sleep on the streets. Los Angeles recently prohibited sleeping in cars, vans, and RVs, for instance.
FULL STORY: L.A. might ban homeless people from sleeping on many streets. What about your block?
Las Vegas Approves Homeless Camping Ban
The city of Las Vegas has approved a law that prohibits the homeless from camping in large swaths of the city. The measure provoked the opposition on most of the public in attendance at a City Council hearing this week.
Cities Still Sweeping Away Homeless Camps, Despite Legal Challenges
Denver and Los Angeles kicked the new year off by committing to the enforcement of a sleeping ban and sweeping away a large homeless encampment, respectively.
$150 Million for L.A.’s Unhoused People Go Unspent
The city returned nearly $150 million in federal funding directed to providing shelter and supportive services to the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Amtrak Ramping Up Infrastructure Projects
Thanks to federal funding from the 2021 infrastructure act, the agency plans to triple its investment in infrastructure improvements and new routes in the next two years.
Ending Downtown San Francisco’s ‘Doom Loop’
A new public space project offers an ambitious vision—so why is the city implementing it at such a small scale?
Proposal Would Transform L.A.’s ‘Freeway to Nowhere’ Into Park, Housing
A never-completed freeway segment could see new life as a mixed-use development with housing, commercial space, and one of the county’s largest parks.
Report: U.S. Biking Boom Slows
The pandemic bike boom is petering out, but more Americans are biking than ever before, signaling a need for cities to keep improving bike infrastructure and make roads safer for cyclists.
Tempe Historic Preservation Proposal Could Make it Harder to Build New Homes
Proposed changes to the city’s preservation ordinance would make two-thirds of the city’s housing stock eligible for preservation.
How to Measure Transit Equity
A new report highlights the need to go beyond traditional equity metrics to assess how public transit systems are serving the lowest-income and most disadvantaged riders.
Urban3
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Washington University
Mpact: Mobility, Community, Possibility
Lassen County Planning and Building Services
City of San Carlos
National Capital Planning Commission
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
