LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--In a poll released today by the Coalition to Preserve LA, a group of concerned citizens and voters, 72% of Los Angeles residents surveyed expressed support for a ballot measure requiring developers and elected officials to adhere to the city’s General Plan—which provides an overview of land use and traffic policies—to determine city approval of proposed real estate development projects. Based on an online survey conducted December 3-7th, the final poll of 557 registered City of Los Angeles voters found that 2 out of 3 City residents support the Neighborhood Integrity Initiative, a ballot measure sponsored by the Coalition to Preserve LA that would:
- Halt individual parcel-by-parcel or ‘spot zone’ amendments and/or building exemptions;
- Enact a temporary, two-year moratorium on building or demolition permits for projects that do not adhere to existing City planning regulations and/or for which the City granted a General Plan amendment, or zone or height change;
- Take the preparation of a project’s required Environmental Impact Report (EIR) out of the hands of developers; and
- Limit a developer’s ability to reduce required parking for building developments.
Of polled voters who expressed support for the measure, 79% responded they would either “definitely vote Yes” or “probably vote Yes” on the Neighborhood Integrity Initiative. The sample was split evenly between male (49%) and female (51%) registered voters. 62% of survey respondents were aged 50 years and older.
“This poll shows that we are not alone in our desire to see city officials do the jobs they were elected to do and that 72% of LA voters want the city to go by the city’s General Plan—and not the developers’ insatiable thirst for more high-rent residential buildings—to approve new real estate development projects,” said Michael Weinstein, president of AIDS Healthcare Foundation and one of the ballot measure proponents. “With rents in Los Angeles climbing just as high as the towering, “mega” structures developers want to throw up across the city, almost 60% LA renters are now spending more than the recommended 30% of their income just to keep a roof over their heads. The time is now for the City of Los Angeles Planning Department and City Hall to stop being pawns of greedy developers and to start acting strategically on behalf of the Los Angeles residents who voted them into office and want real solutions to the housing crunch.”
While the Neighborhood Integrity Initiative is intended to, and will, offer protections and oversight citywide, the Hollywood neighborhood serves a microcosm of the urgent need for a building moratorium. On Friday, November 13, the City released a Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) for another new development in Hollywood (1311 Cahuenga). This report now lists 69 cumulative impact projects pending in Hollywood area. Note: The cumulative impact project list does Not include many other huge projects, or any projects filed in the last few months. Link to 69 PROJECTS IN HOLLYWOOD-Cumulative Impact Project List and Project Map.
Endorsements for the The Neighborhood Integrity Initiative
- Don Andres, Franklin/Hollywood West Residents Association
- Doug Haines, La Mirada Avenue Neighborhood Association
- Grace Yoo, Environmental Justice Collaborative – Koreatown
- Adara Salim, Save Sunset
- George Abrahams, Stop Millennium
- Fran Reichenbach, Stop Millennium