Years of planning and strong political support aren't enough when the city council doesn't follow the letter of the law. Now opponents of L.A.'s Mobility Plan 2035 smell blood in the water.
"Faced with a lawsuit from a Westside nonprofit, several council members have concluded that they need to rescind the plan that was passed in August, make some quick changes and approve a slightly different version of the same document," reports David Zahniser.
The plan in question is called Mobility Plan 2035, and it was approved in August 2015. At the time, Zahniser called the plan a "new and controversial exercise in behavior modification." Since then a group of local neighborhood activists called Fix the City sued the city over the project, leading to this week's bureaucratic maneuverings.
The article offers another chance for politicians and activists to bring out their best soundbites—with the exception of Los Angeles Council President Herb Wesson, who declined to comment on the "do-over," according to Zahniser, "saying the issue is the subject of litigation."
Zahniser specifically describes how the Los Angeles political process fumbled the plan in its final stages of approval:
"At issue are three changes backed by the council in the run-up to its Aug. 11 mobility plan vote. Councilman Jose Huizar's planning committee added an amendment to ensure that the council, and not just the mayor's office, would be in charge of carrying out the plan, according to Fix the City's lawsuit. It also added language saying 'equity' should be a factor when deciding which transportation project is approved. Meanwhile, Councilman David Ryu won passage of a third amendment that said that public safety should be evaluated before approving changes to public streets."
According to Fix the City, those amendments necessitated review by the city's Planning Commission.
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