City Planning Has Lost Its Mind. Is LAX Watching?
This post originally appeared on ConcernedForWestchesterPlaya.com
Westchester is currently undergoing a Community Plan Update ("CPU") and Los Angeles is using CPUs as a big hammer in it current push to add massive density in housing units. In its blind haste to blight our communities with market rate boxes, the city recently designated a new Transit Oriented Community ("TOC") designation at Manchester/Sepulveda.*
With TOCs come eye popping builder incentives to build mostly market rate housing. One problem. This intersection is a primary ingress and egress route for LAX.
The latest residential map proposed by the city for Westchester's CPU
In apparent support for this newly designated TOC, the city planners in charge of our CPU recently dropped a new map showing massive upzoning and high-rises for the four corners of the Manchester/Sepulveda intersection.
They didn't tell us about the map. They quietly released it to their handpicked Advisory Group, leaving the rest of us to accidentally discover it on our own.
Don't even get me started on the commercial/residential development the city is proposing for the rest of Sepulveda on a separate map (map here - scroll down to pg. 12).
Why are the maps so secret? And why are there so many?
I calculated the potential density for WPDR 3 (southeast Kentwood) above and after rezoning, that quadrant could be converted from 385 single family homes to 2310 units.**
Assume all four quadrants represent 1200 lots (I haven't verified but visually looks close). If all the lots are 6,000', the potential density surrounding the intersection is 7200 units!
Please understand that builders developing on single family lots do not have to make infrastructure contributions and due to the proximity of the TOC, do not have to provide parking.
And please don't forget that only a fraction of this density craziness will provide any affordable housing, and many residents in existing affordable housing will be displaced.
We will be blighted with high-rise market rate boxes that forecasted declines in our Westchester population simply do not support.
Has anybody at city planning discussed this with LAX?
Surely LAX has some opinions about whether its guests can actually get to or leave the airport.
And what about us?
Our plan area is landlocked on the west by the ocean and on the south by the airport. Can you say GRIDLOCK?
I say DUMBEST TOC EVER.
We have to make some noise and wake up these inexperienced planners drafting our plan.
So far they have declined all invitations to tour our community and they only meet with constituents in digital meetings.
This is unacceptable. If this makes you mad, please sign our petition to help wake up the decisionmakers to the stupid decisions being "planned" for our community.
Where is the real imagination for the future of our community? It certainly isn't residing at City Planning, and it certainly is not being brought to the table by their Advisory Group.
Memo to city planning! Many of us have lived in this community for decades. Ask us what the challenges and opportunities are. I personally think about the opportunities all the time, and have since the last CPU.
* As of 08 20 23, the TOC was removed from ZIMAS, but repeated requests to Planning to explain why it appeared in the first place were not adequately answered, and I don't see any reason to think this designation might not reappear at any time without notice.
** Kentwood is a deed-restricted HOA. When the planners were asked last week how they expect to rezone the parcels, they claimed it's a question they will seek legal advice on, meaning they definitely have not investigated already. They in fact feigned ignorance of the HOA in that same meeting, until I pointed out one of the planners on the call appeared in April 2021 at a Board meeting for the HOA.