Things to read from the past week:
- Another coronavirus inequity: Those who can afford to stay in place and those who must move: "Poor households — often facing eviction, food shortage and more unmet needs — don’t have the flexibility to choose safety over money, so they have to go out and face exposure, Cabildo said." (LA Times)
- How Decades of Racist Housing Policy Left Neighborhoods Sweltering: " Nationwide, the pattern is consistent: Neighborhoods that were once redlined see more extreme heat in the summer than those that weren’t." (New York Times)
- A Bridge To Where? Few Exit LA's 'Temporary' Homeless Shelters For Permanent Housing: "When 'A Bridge Home' first launched, the initial goal was that residents would remain at those interim sites for about three months before moving into permanent housing....But results from the first four sites that have been open for more than a year show residents are not departing for permanent housing in the volume politicians had hoped they would." (LAist)
- Lobbyist Agrees to Plead Guilty in Federal Corruption Probe Into LA City Hall: The sixth person to plead guilty as a result of the investigation (Spectrum News 1)
- Why Grand Avenue and Frank Gehry are L.A.’s path out of the pandemic: A look at what's to come on Bunker Hill, as well as hints of some behind-the-scenes drama (LA Times)
- The Broken Algorithm That Poisoned American Transportation: "TDMs, its critics say, are emblematic of an antiquated planning process that optimizes for traffic flow and promotes highway construction. It’s well past time, they argue, to think differently about what we’re building for." (Vice)
- Black Homeowners Face Discrimination in Appraisals: A mixed-race family's home was appraised for $330,000 - nearly 36 percent below average for their neighborhood. After removing all family photos and suggestions of African-American heritage, a subsequent appraisal valued the home at $465,000. (New York Times)
- LA Could Make Outdoor Dining a Permanent Fixture of the Restaurant Landscape: "Councilmember David Ryu has filed a motion to make it easier for restaurants to create new outdoor dining spaces" (Eater LA)
- Coronavirus has turned once-bustling downtown L.A. into a ghost town. Can it recover?: "Four months into the pandemic, never has the city seemed so upside down. Parking attendants wave flags to the empty streets. Storefronts, boarded-up from break-ins, merge with stalled construction sites. Homeless camps double as sidewalk bazaars." (LA Times)
- Sears and Kmart stores are up for grabs across California. But who wants all that space?: "Even before COVID-19 hit, retail real estate owners were struggling to find tenants interested in taking over the massive husks left behind by failing department stores and big box retailers. Malls were trying to cope by capitalizing on customers’ interest in experiences and socialization, rather than just shopping for apparel — large storefronts were seen as prime opportunities for new entrants, such as restaurants or gyms." (LA Times)