Planning Dept Newsletter

8/6/2019 Planning Dept Newsletter

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INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Message fromthe Director

Page 2

ZIMAS CreatesPowerful Search Tool

New version o ZIMASgives homeowners, businesses,

potential homebuyers, andproperty owners a powerul tool.

Page 2

Bike PlanGoals and highlights

o the 2010 Bicycle Plan.

Page 3

Staff HighlightSurveyLA Technology

Award recipient

Page 3

History ofthe Department

A timeline rom 1849-1996.

Page 4Metro Public Counter201 N. Figueroa St., 4th FloorLos Angeles, CA 90012

(213) 482-7077

Valley Public Counter6262 Van Nuys Blvd., 2nd FloorVan Nuys, CA 91401

(818) 374-5050

The Department o City Planning has released the DrHollywood Community Plan and Drat EnvironmenImpact Report (DEIR) the frst o seven new CommunPlans to be released by the Department or public review withthe next year. Responding to requests rom the communi

the comment period was extended through June 1, 20During the extended comment period sta in the PolPlanning Division are making the rounds o Hollywoods neighborhood councils, reviewing highlights o the Drat Pand introducing the DEIR.

The Drat Hollywood Community Plan promotes compatransit-oriented development ocused around the Red LMetroRail stations and major bus lines. Opening in 1993, Red Line represents one o the largest public inrastructure

vestments in Hollywood since 1988, the adoption date o the current Hollywood CommunPlan. The Drat Plan supports this investment with proposals to raise Floor Area Ratios in Regional Commercial Center and along commercial corridors along the Red Line outside

the Regional Commercial Center. Removing Development Limitations to restore the citywstandard Floor Area Ratio or commercial areas outside o the Regional Commercial Centeranother initiative.

The protection o neighborhoods, historic resources, and alleys is also emphasized by the DrPlan. Projects located in Floor Area Incentive Areas which involve buildings identiied as apearing to be eligible or listing in the National Register o Historic Resources, (continued on pg

April

2011

www.planning.lacity.org

pLAnningA quarterly newsletter providing news and informationregarding the City of Los Angeles Planning Department

Issue 1 Volume 1

Hollywood/Highland Red Line Station

DEVELOPMENT SERVICE CENTERS:

A Big Step Forward for the Hollywood Community Planby Mary Richardson - City Planning Associate

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa


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City On-Line System Creates Powerful Search Tool

For Homeowners, Businesses And Developersby Ken Bernstein - Principal City Planner

In the Summer o 2010, the Los Angeles Department o City Planningunveiled an entirely new version o ZIMAS the Citys Zone Inormation andMap Access System to give homeowners, businesses, potential homebuyers,and property owners a powerul way to ind detailed inormation about theirown property, or any property in the City.

ZIMAS gives every Los Angeles resident or business the opportunity toind detailed inormation about governmental activity that may aect theirneighborhood or their own property. In addition, all potential homebuyers

or purchasers o commercial or industrial property should become aware ohow much they can learn through a quick on-line ZIMAS search, whichshould be part o anyones due diligence activities beore making an oeror real estate.

Just a few of the valuable features ZIMAS now offers includesthe following:

Beore making an oer to purchase a property, search or whether theproperty is in a lood zone, ire hazard zone, coastal zone, high windvelocity area, methane zone, or liqueaction zone.

Find your City Council representative, local Certiied NeighborhoodCouncil, Community Plan, LAPD bureau, and other governmental

inormation. Click on the link to the Department o Building and Saetys Property

Activity Report to access a summary o all recent building permits issuedor requested, as well as all code enorcement actions, or any propertycitywide.

Click on the links to all prior Planning cases to track the history oplanning approvals or any site and (or cases decided since 2001) to pullup the scanned documents associated with these past planning approvals.

Find out whether a property includes a designated historic structure,or is located within one o the Citys 27 Historic Preservation OverlayZones (HPOZs).

Find out about census tract inormation, County Assessors data, andeconomic development programs such as State Enterprise Zones, orBusiness Improvement Districts.

Measure distances between parcels using the ZIMAS maps measure toolor use the maps radius tool to see what properties or sensitive land usesare within a 500 radius, 1,000 radius, or any selected distance rom agiven parcel.

In addition, the new version o ZIMAS signiicantly reduces wait time orrendering maps, allows users three dierent options to customize their reportson a parcel, and provides links to Google Maps and Microsot Bing maps. Youmay access ZIMAS on the website by typing the ollowing address in your webbrowser: http://zimas.lacity.org/.C

A MessageFrom the Director

Welcome to our frst quarterlynewsletter, created to providetimely inormation to you, a Citystakeholder. Each newsletter willhighlight a community plan area,citywide programs being worked

on or implemented, and otherpertinent updates.

On February 22, 2011, the newReorganization Plan, highlightedin Blueprint 2010-2011, tookeect within the Department.Some units were consolidated

while others were newly created,and ten Geographic CoordinationTeams were ormed to better uti-lize the current level o resourcesthat we have.

In addition to operating underthe new Reorganization Plan,the Department has also been

working diligently with KH Con-sulting Group and Woolpert, theconsulting team helping the Cityimplement a more streamlined,common sense way to reviewdevelopment applications.

The past ew months have beena time o signifcant change orthe Department. While we acethe challenge o doing more withless, we are always striving to im-prove the way we work. We lookorward to continuing to partner

with the community to ulfll ourmission o creating healthy andsustainable neighborhoods allacross Los Angeles.

Michael J. LoGrandeDirector of Planning

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Los Angeles Welcomes a Bicycle Plan

by Jordann Turner - City Planning Associate

The 2010 Bicycle Plan, prepared by the Department of City Planning, was approved by City Council onMarch 1, 2011 and is a comprehensive update of the Citys existing Bicycle Plan, originally approved by theCity Council in 1996 and last re-adopted in 2007. The Plan serves as the Citys blueprint for meeting theneeds of all bicyclists and improving bicycling conditions in the City. The Plan establishes three main goals: Increase the number and type of bicyclists who bicycle in the City Make every street a safe place to ride a bicycle

Make the City of Los Angeles a bicycle-friendly community

Highlights of the 2010 Bicycle Plan include the:

Designation of over 1,600 miles of bicycle facilities (bicycle paths, bicycle lanes, and bicycle routes/bcycle friendly streets) connecting all parts of the City (an increase of approximately 900 miles from th1996 Bicycle Plan);

Creation of three new bikeway Networks (Backbone, Neighborhood, Green) that will focus futurebikeway improvements and other associated education, enforcement, encouragement, and equityprograms;

Introduction of bicycle-friendly streets as the backbone to the Neighborhood Network geared towabicyclists who are more comfortable on streets with less traffic volumes;

Introduction of an on-going Five-Year Implementation Strategy to design and construct 200 miles of

bikeways every five years; Adoption of a comprehensive Technical Design Handbook to guide the design of bicycle facilities; and

Updated goals, objectives, policies, and programs to support the implementation of the Plan.

The Bicycle Plan was heralded at a March 2nd press conference hosted by Mayor Villaraigosa and willbe awarded the 2011 "Hard Won Victory Award" by the American Planning Association's Los AngelesChapter at a ceremony in June.C

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SurveyLATechnology Awardto Fae Tsukamoto

Fae Tsukamoto, GIS DatabaseMaintenance Supervisor for theDepartment of City Planning'sSystems and GIS Division,received an Outstanding IT

Manager Award from the LosAngeles Technology Forumand Government TechnologyMagazine. The award waspresented in recognition ofher central role in supervisingthe pioneering informationmanagement program forSurveyLA, the Los AngelesHistoric Resources Survey.

Congratulations, Fae!

Bicyclists at Grifth Park

A glimpse of Hollywood

Hollywood Plan(continued from pg. 1)

must be approved by the Office ofHistoric Resources. To provide transi-tion in scale between the commercialdistrict in downtown Hollywood andthe lower scale residential neighbor-hoods surrounding it, planning staffhas endorsed guidelines and standardsfor the Regional Commercial Center. Since most of the Draft Plans proposed in-creases in density and intensity are located in the Regional Center, it is importantthat development in this area be well-designed.

Keeping existing alleys open, well-maintained and accessible for public use is a goal of

the Draft Plan. Alleys improve circulation by providing thoroughfares for pedestriansand bicyclists. Open space is an added bonus. Maintaining Hollywoods alleys also helpsdeter the creation of pedestrian-unfriendly superblocks. The Draft Plan proposes an

Alley Improvement Plan which ties alley improvements to new development.

Adjustments to Street Standards are recommended. Modified Street Standards willalign existing Street Standards with the true function of Hollywoods streets. AdjustingStreet Standards improves the walkability of streets by preserving existing parkwaysand wide sidewalks which exceed standard dimensions. The Draft Plan identifies streetsegments where new parkways and wider sidewalks are appropriate and feasible.

A public hearing on the Draft Hollywood Community Plan will be held in

the summer 2011.C


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our MISSIONTo create and implement plans, policies

and programs that realize a vision of

Los Angeles as a collection of healthy

and sustainable neighborhoods,each with a distinct sense of place,

based on a foundation of mobility,

economic vitality and improved quality

of life for all residents.

A History of Planning in Los Angeles (1849-1996)by Alan Bell, AICP - Deputy Director of Planning

On September 4, 1781, the Spanish governor Felipe de Neve ounded el Pueblo de Nuestra Seorala Reina de Los Angeles(the City o Our Lady Queen o the Angels) along the Porciuncula (laterLos Angeles River). A plan was laid out like a subdivision map identiying sites or a public plaza,church, homes, and arms as well as an irrigation system and a road connecting the pueblo to theMission at San Gabriel. Eleven amilies constituted the rst settlers.

1849

1892

1900

1908

1910

1913

1915

1917

1920

1925

1930

1946

1974

1996

United States Army Engineer Lieutenant E.O.C. Ord completed the citys rst o-cial survey and mapping under American rule, Los Angeles was a western rontier

town o less than 2,000 inhabitants.

William Doheny discovered oil at what is now the intersection o Second Streetand Glendale Boulevard.

Los Angeles was the oil center o the west with a population o over 100,000.

The city adopted an ordinance which established the nations rst land use designations.

The City Council established a 15-member Planning Committee to develop acomprehensive plan whereby Los Angeles may develop her material improve-ment along artistic as well as practical lines.

William Mulholland, the City Engineer and Superintendent o the Water Department,

designed an ambitious system or transporting water rom the Owens Valley located at theoot o the Sierra Nevada Mountains. A 250 mile long aqueduct was completed in 1913.

The San Fernando Valley was annexed, nearly doubling the size o the city.

The rst power plant, the San Francisquito Power Plant No. 1, became operational. E.F.Scattergood, the citys rst Chie Electrical Engineer, developed a hydroelectric system toharness the energy generated by the rapidly fowing waters o the Owens River aqueduct.

The Planning Committee was replaced by a 52-member City Planning Commis-sion comprised o representatives o the largest civic groups in Los Angeles.Gordon Whitnall was appointed the Commissions rst secretary and also servedas its rst proessional planner. Under Whitnalls guidance the Commissioncompleted the citys rst comprehensive Street Plan and Zoning Ordinance.Close to 600,000 people lived in a city o 364 square miles.

A major revision to the City Charter reduced the size o the Planning Commissionto ve members and created a proessional planning department. Whitnall was ap-pointed to head the new department.

Beore Whitnall resigned, he revised the zoning ordinance. Height, area, density andparking regulations were prepared and standard zone categories were developed. The1930 ordinance did not undergo any major changes until 1946 when, with Whitnallas a consultant, the entire city was remapped.

The 1946 ordinance has been the most infuential in shaping the citys presentconguration o land uses and density patterns.

City Council adopted the Centers Concept, which envisioned the city as anetwork o urban centers connected by a rail transit system. Centers would besel-contained communities where many types o services, jobs, and housing

would be available and accessible. To avoid encroachment o unwantedcommercial developments or higher densities, the Centers Concept called orconcentrating growth in these urban centers while preserving the cityspredominant single-amily pattern o residential development.

The City Council adopted a new guiding document or long-range planning in LosAngeles called the General Plan Framework. Much more detailed than the CentersConcept, the Framework includes a comprehensive strategy or directing the Citysuture growth in population, jobs and housing into neighborhood districts, commu-nity centers, regional centers, the downtown center, and industrial districts. A keyeature o the Framework is its emphasis on mixed use boulevards as the best wayto promote compact, transit oriented development where residents can live, workand play. The Framework guides the departments preparation o the General Plan,

which consists o 35 community plans and a variety o citywide elements. C

Edited by: Claudia Rodriguez Prepared by Los Angeles Department of City Planning Graphic Services Section, April 2011 014

Documents

Planning Dept Newsletter