White House Makes $500 Million Promise to Lift L.A. Out of Poverty

One of the Obama administration's most promising anti-poverty initiatives will marshal federal grants and expertise from numerous agencies to improve infrastructure, services and opportunities across a wide swath of Los Angeles.

1 minute read

January 9, 2014, 9:00 AM PST

By Jonathan Nettler @nettsj


Los Angeles will join San Antonio, Philadelphia, southeastern Kentucky and the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma as test cases for President Obama's "Promise Zone" initiative. "L.A.'s Promise Zone stretches through Pico-Union, Westlake, Koreatown, East Hollywood and Hollywood, what Mayor Eric Garcetti called some of the 'toughest, challenged areas' in the city," reports Soumya Karlamangla.

"The White House said Los Angeles' funding would go toward increasing affordable housing, investing in public transit lines and bike lanes, and giving people more access to career and technical training opportunities through a partnership with the Los Angeles Community College District," she adds. "Money also would go to the L.A. Unified School District and the nonprofit Youth Policy Institute to increase the number of support services at schools."


Tuesday, January 7, 2014 in Los Angeles Times

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I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

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