The DRRA's Land Use Committee recently sent the following letter to the LA City Planning Department:
The City of Los Angeles and the California Legislature must stop approving “all
affordable” projects that do not comply with the provisions of the Palms Mar Vista Del
Rey Community Plan and the Planning Department’s March 2024 development
standards.
Upzoning property to allow more units to be built does not make housing more
affordable. See “Vancouver study shows how the Yimby narrative has failed, in real
time,” by Tim Redmond in 48hills.org, September 15, 2024, and “Why Homeless
Programs, Like LA County’s Measure A, Fail” by Dick Platkin in CityWatch, September
26, 2024: “…When cities or counties increase the density of housing units permitted on
existing parcels, they increase their market value…This, in turn, raises apartment rents
and the price of houses, creating more homelessness.”
Since our August 6, 2024 letter on this subject, we have learned of two more “all
affordable” projects in Del Rey:
38 units on a 5000 square foot lot at 4360 South McLaughlin Avenue with
no parking, reduced setbacks on all four sides (Case No. ADM-2024-
1627-DB-VHCA-ED1)
60 units at 12461-12473 West Louise Avenue, formerly used for a single-
family home and some bungalows, again with no parking to be provided.
Post Office Box 661450 – Los Angeles, CA 90066
www.delreyresidentsassn.orgDocusign Envelope ID: A2B57148-2E7D-463F-8A9C-94954956F331
Fairness and equity are principles that City and State want to promote, but how will the
City and State ensure that one landowner is not given more benefits than the
neighboring landowners?
We do need more affordable housing, but such projects should be PLANNED so that
there will be adequate public services for these new residents. For example, about 60
percent of tenants have pets. Where are those pets going to relieve themselves if no
true open space is provided?
Very truly yours,
Elizabeth Campos Layne
CC:
State Senator Lola Smallwood-Cuevas (Senator.Smallwood-Cuevas@senate.ca.gov)
State Assemblymember Isaac Bryan (Assemblymember.Bryan@assembly.ca.gov)
Marian Ensley, West Area Representative for Mayor Karen Bass,
Jeff Khau, Planning Deputy, City Councilmember Traci Park, jeff.khau@lacity.org
Matthew Halden, Del Rey Deputy, City Councilmember Traci Park,
Blair Smith (re Citywide Housing incentive Program), blair.smith@lacity.org
Kiran Rishi (re Community Plan Update), kiran.rishi@lacity.org
Matthew Glesne, Sr. City Planner, Housing Policy, matthew.glesne@lacity.org
Del Rey Neighborhood Council, board@delreync.org
Land Use and Planning Committee, Del Rey Neighborhood Council,
Maryam Zar, Westside Regional Alliance of Councils Land Use & Planning Committee
mpkalban@gmail.com, United Neighbors