intersections: Affordable Housing Victory in Los Angeles

May 06, 2008

Affordable Housing Victory in Los Angeles

Today I had the privilege of participating in something truly historic in our city. The Los Angeles City Council today enacted two ordinances aimed at curtailing gentrification in the city. These are complicated issues, but I feel that my role is to stand with the poor and the disenfranchised whenever I get the chance.

The main issue before City Council today was an ordinance that essentially protects "residential hotels" from being demolished or converted into luxury condos or other market rate housing. The folks at LA CAN (Los Angeles Community Action Network) have been leading the charge on this issue for something like 6 years. I spoke for a grand total of 1 minute before the City Council members who were mostly chatting with either other and their staff. Nevertheless, good organizing finally won the day and we have successfully protected over 18,700 affordable units from being lost forever.

Residential hotels in the City of Los Angeles are basically "housing of last resort." If these units are converted to market rate housing the people who currently live there will be homeless. They have nowhere else to go. By preserving these units we essentially prevent thousands of people from becoming homeless and insist that the working poor have a place in our city.

Read the Los Angeles Times report of this ordinance and the other ordinance referred to as an anti-mansionization ordinance. I'll let you figure out what that means.

10:46 PM in Los Angeles, PICO, Social Justice, Urban Issues | Permalink

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Congratulations! You did good!!! It is lots of little battles like this one that make real change at the level where people actually live. There are no big solutions short of the New Earth.

Posted by: Monte | May 07, 2008 at 03:13 PM

Congratulations! It is always encouraging to see that things can get done. I just linked this article to my blog - I came across a video of a church that is raffling off gas cards for a revival and it got me up on my soapbox. Check it out. Peace.

Posted by: David Oceguera | May 08, 2008 at 10:51 AM

Hi Ryan,

Keep up the great work! I expect that if Jesus were here today He would be doing the same.

God Bless!

Dan
Calgary Alberta Canada

Posted by: Dan Clarke | May 08, 2008 at 11:10 AM

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