Things to read from the past week:
- ‘Tsunami’ of hotel closures is coming, experts warn: "The Luxe Rodeo Drive is the first high-end hotel in the Los Angeles area to go out of business because of the pandemic, and industry experts point to an unusually high loan delinquency rate among hotel borrowers as a sign that more closures are likely to follow." (LA Times)
- Why You Should Vote Yes on Prop 15: An explainer on split roll from the "Yes" perspective (Better Institutions)
- California Aims To Add Housing Away From Wildland Urban Interface: "NPR's David Greene talks to Wade Crowfoot, California's secretary of Natural Resources, about this year's wildfire season, and what can be done to prevent or control them." (NPR)
- No place to study, hunger, inadequate computers hurting Eastside and South L.A. students: "Los Angeles families with school-age children in Boyle Heights, South Los Angeles and Watts struggled with access to computers and adequate internet throughout the spring semester while facing job losses and food insecurity, issues that hampered online learning amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a survey has found." (LA Times)
- Eyes on the Street: Elysian Valley River Bridge Making Visible Progress: "The bridge is one of four new walk/bike bridges over the L.A. River’s central, relatively natural Glendale Narrows stretch. New North Atwater and Atwater Village bridges are already open. A fourth bridge from Glendale to Griffith Park is planned." (Streetsblog LA)
- A bike tour reveals hidden Latino history in downtown Los Angeles: "Reckonings with our complicated past have swept across the country this year, and not just among the progressive set. Gilchrist, whose group focuses mostly on lighthearted bike rides that deal with Hollywood, Route 66, and L.A. noir, reached out to López this spring to suggest the two create a downtown jaunt that was more than 'the whitewashing that usually happens on these things.'" (LA Times)
- Netflix Takes 171K SF in Burbank, Largest New LA County Office Lease in 2020: "The streaming giant signed a 171,000-square-foot office lease in Burbank near major competitors like Warner Brothers and Walt Disney Co. Netflix’s new space is at the Burbank Empire Center, located at 2300 West Empire Avenue near the 5 Freeway." (Commercial Observer)
- There’s a pandemic, but Southern California home prices are at record levels: "Compared with low-wage workers, people who tend to have the financial ability to buy homes have been less likely to lose their jobs, and in some ways, their ability to purchase a house has only expanded." (LA Times)
- Newsom orders 2035 phaseout of gas-powered vehicles, calls for fracking ban: "Under Newsom’s order, the California Air Resources Board would implement the phase-out of new gas-powered cars and light trucks and also require medium and heavy-duty trucks to be zero-emission by 2045 where possible. California would be the first state in the nation to mandate 100% zero-emission vehicles, though 15 countries already have committed to phasing out gas-powered cars." (LA Times)
- Gun Visible Sliding Along Ground Before 2nd Deputy Opens Fire on Dijon Kizzee, Contradicting New Sheriff Account (Streetsblog LA)
- LA Metro To Replace Smart Bikes With Classic Bikes In Westside Area Due To Lack Of Popularity: "Metro said it will temporarily suspend the Westside Bike Share System and close the 58 stations in the area starting Monday. The classic bikes are expected to return to service by December or January." (CBS)
- L.A. Metro cuts budget by $1.2 billion, locking in steep reductions to bus, rail service: "Metro’s directors voted 12 to 1 to approve a $6-billion budget for the 2021 fiscal year, a $1.2-billion reduction from 2020. The plan extends previously temporary cuts to bus and rail service, and trims the budgets for dozens of other Metro initiatives, including new rail lines and behind-the-scenes planning work." (LA Times)
- Federal Judge Rules Against City of L.A. Over ‘Bulky Item’ Notices: "On April 13, Fischer granted a preliminary injunction preventing the city from enforcing a portion of Los Angeles Municipal Code Section 56.11 that prohibited people from storing items that don’t fit inside one of the city’s 60-gallon trash containers in public areas." (Los Angeleno)
- Apartment Landlord Group Looks to Halt Los Angeles Ban on Evictions: "The Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles filed a legal injunction to invalidate the ban while a federal lawsuit proceeds in an attempt to rescind the city’s eviction moratorium issued this year. The moratorium prevents landlords from evicting tenants for failing to pay rent, and it gives those who face pandemic-induced financial hardship up to 12 months after the end of California’s state of emergency to repay owed rent." (CoStar)