Now Unoccupied, LA City Hall Lawn to Get Made Over

The now-vacant dirt lot "is a blank canvas for the city's Recreation and Parks Department, which must decide how to landscape a bit more than 1.7 acres of now-barren soil," writes author Dalina Castellanos.

The Department of Recreation and Parks has narrowed the choices to three: "The first 'low-fanfare' option would be to plant grass, he said. The second would be to incorporate more drought-tolerant and California native plants while maintaining a sizable lawn for public events. The third - and biggest departure - would be to incorporate native plants throughout and keep the grassy area to a minimum."