Downtown L.A.'s Arts District transformed from an industrial sector to a vibrant, mixed-use neighborhood. Now, the community's attempts to protect their vision from haphazard development illuminate Los Angeles's broken planning process.
In a thoughtful interview with developer Yuval Bar-Zemer, The Planning Report reviews the conditions that made it possible for L.A.'s unique Arts District to flourish, and the community's struggle with the city to keep those conditions intact.
Bar-Zemer has lived in the district since the early 2000s, and pioneered a live/work development model to promote the environment he wanted for his family. It helped that industrial zoning protected the area's attractive older buildings from being replaced by new construction, and a city ordinance allowed artists to take over formerly industrial buildings.
When the artsy neighborhood's success began to attract outside investors seeking to relax development restrictions, the Planning Department approached the community to create an ordinance that would meet the area's needs.
But the result was a draft that failed to address the community's most important concerns about new development. And when residents pushed back, the Planning Department appeared to suddenly scrap the entire plan in favor of a citywide rezoning process. Bar-Zemer notes:
"Making the plan citywide actually shrunk the voice of the community within the overall context. A citywide ordinance does not need to listen to a community of 2,500 people in the same way that an ordinance precisely for those 2,500 people would need to."
Though the outreach process had felt inclusive, in reality, "[it] hadn't been transparent," Bar-Zemer says.
"It wasn't a lot of opinions sitting around one table and deliberating. Each group gave an opinion separately, and the Planning Department picked up the various opinions, mixed them up, and came up with a product." (New planning director Vince Bertoni made a similar diagnosis.)
As competing ballot initiatives and the mayor all vie to write the future of planning in LA, Bar-Zemer reflects on how political the process has become, and the damage that has already been done:
"We have a missed opportunity… to invent a new model for an urban place where people can live and work in the same place and use a bicycle to get around. How many places do we have like that in LA?"
FULL STORY: Yuval Bar-Zemer: Reimagining LA’s Arts District & The Proper Role of Community Plans
Los Angeles Searches for Improvements to the Much-Maligned Pershing Square
A series of public outreach events are being held in Pershing Square to determine how to make the park more engaging. Live music and fewer physical barriers to entry are among the ideas suggested.
Reacting, Not Planning, in L.A.
Recently released plans for a possible new football stadium in downtown L.A. show how the city tends to react to developers rather than guide them, according to this criticism.
New Park Breaks Ground Under L.A.’s Sixth Street Viaduct
The park will connect to the Los Angeles River bike path and transit projects coming to the area.
Seattle Legalizes Co-Living
A new state law requires all Washington cities to allow co-living facilities in areas zoned for multifamily housing.
NYC Officials Announce Broadway Pedestrianization Project
Two blocks of the marquee street will become mostly car-free public spaces.
Denver's New High-Rise Integrates Vertical Canyon in Architectural Design
Unlike other new builds in Denver, Colorado, a new high-rise reveals a unique “sculptural canyon” running vertically through the facade to foster a sense of community and connection to nature.
Federal Resilience Program a Lifeline for Affordable Housing Providers
The little-known Green and Resilient Retrofit Program funds upgrades and repairs that improve efficiency and comfort in existing housing stock.
Fort Worth To Relaunch Bike Share System in January
Trinity Metro shuttered its current system at the end of November and plans to relaunch with a mostly-electric system.
A Brief History of Kansas City’s Microtransit
The city’s costly experiment with on-demand transit is yielding to more strategic investment.
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.
Village of Glen Ellyn
American Planning Association, Sustainable Communities Division
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Cambridge, Maryland
Newport County Development Council: Connect Greater Newport
Rockdale County Board of Commissioners