Posted on 02/05/2024
ONE BIG THING: A SAFER HOLLYWOOD BLVD
What’s Happening?
This week we joined the Department of Transportation and Councilmember Nithya Raman for a Virtual Town Hall about improving one of LA’s most dangerous corridors – Hollywood Boulevard.
It was our most attended virtual event since we’ve taken office, and the turnout is a testament to the amazing outreach work that LADOT has been doing throughout the project, including:
- Sending out over 20,000 informational mailers to nearby residents.
- Collecting over 2,000 survey responses from neighbors.
- Contacting over 200 businesses.
- Bringing together the community for bike and walk audits of Hollywood Blvd.
- Conducting outreach in 4 different languages.
It was especially exciting because of the overwhelmingly positive response to the concept that the LADOT Vision Zero team presented. Government meetings are notorious for the nay-sayers who perennially show up to resist all forms of change. But during public comment, over 80% of speakers expressed some level of support for the project.
If you missed the Town Hall or have feedback for LADOT, please send an email to visionzero@lacity.org to make your voice heard!
What's The Plan?
The Department of Transportation will be posting project updates on the website ladot.lacity.gov/hollywood, including a recording of this week’s Town Hall. There are a few tweaks that will be made to the final design, but here are some highlights:
- Over 2 miles of parking protected bike lanes between Gower and Fountain
- New speed humps, left turn calming, and upgraded pedestrian crossings
- At least 3 new pedestrian crosswalk signals
- Minimal travel delays and loss of parking
Why it Matters
More Angelenos died from traffic violence last year than from homicides. Our district is especially hostile to multimodal transit since we currently have 0 feet of protected bike lane alongside our streets.
In addition to the countless safety benefits of this work, we know that this could transform the area for community members and visitors alike. Recently, Hollywood Blvd was once again voted as the “World’s Worst Tourist Attraction,” but it doesn't have to be that way. We know that when people are walking, biking, and using transit, public space is much more welcoming than car-centric corridors. By investing in accessibility and safety, we can finally change the perception and reality around Hollywood Blvd.
What’s Next?
Over the coming weeks, LADOT will continue refining the project based on community feedback, and we hope to finalize designs and begin construction in a few months!
In the next few weeks, we’ll also have more details to share about safety improvements coming to Hollywood Blvd between Gower and La Brea, so folks can safely get around ALL of Hollywood.
Stay tuned for updates!
Three More Quick Hits
1. Bienvenidos a Hugo Por Distrito 13!
We’re thrilled to announce the launch of our Spanish-language channels on @hugopordistrito13 on Instagram and Facebook! More than half of our district speaks Spanish, and they are far too often overlooked when it comes to providing accessible and accurate information in the city.
These channels will be a home for resources, district news, information for upcoming community events, and profiles on leaders, organizations, and community members that are working to uplift and engage the Latino community in Los Angeles.
Follow us on Instagram at @hugopordistrito13 and on Facebook at facebook.com/hugoporcd13. Make sure to share with your friends and family who speak Spanish too!
2. Empowering LA to Regulate Robotaxis
Yesterday, we introduced a resolution in support of Senate Bill 915, which would give local communities the power to regulate this new technology. Right now, that can only be done at the state level.
These robotaxis are not ready for the busy streets of Los Angeles. They’ve crashed and blocked busy intersections, they’ve prohibited first responders from getting to medical emergencies, and they even run the risk of stopping whenever they disconnect from the internet.
Our city should not be a test subject for the tech industry. We’re proud to join with firefighters, Teamsters, State Senator Dave Cortese, Councilmembers Nithya Raman, Eunisses Hernandez, Tim McOsker, Monica Rodriguez, Heather Hutt, and Paul Krekorian to push this effort forward and help keep our roads safe.
3. Preventing Evictions for Tenants Awaiting Rental Assistance
Last week, we mentioned that the City of LA still hasn’t distributed over 75% of the $30 million in Emergency Rental Assistance for vulnerable LA renters. This led to a situation where over 3,300 families were facing eviction even though they had already been approved for rental assistance.
Last week, we tapped in with our colleague Eunisses Hernandez to prevent families from being evicted when we know help is on the way, and we’re happy to report that this legislation was officially passed by City Council yesterday.
We know we need to do so much more work to stop this pipeline of low-wage workers becoming homelessness, but it’s worth celebrating this effort that will hopefully keep thousands of families in their homes.