tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8826939.post7323187984482577811..comments2024-01-13T00:27:20.813-08:00Comments on Mayor Sam's Sister City - Home of Los Angeles Politics: LA Out of TownMayor Samhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16280670018437708708noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8826939.post-90722381882742193362008-03-01T14:00:00.000-08:002008-03-01T14:00:00.000-08:003:11, you even need a permit to redo your driveway...3:11, you even need a permit to redo your driveway, dum-dum. <BR/><BR/>must live in one of those high- rise "affordable housing" slums in the making, with no parking, so of course they don't have driveways or decks.<BR/><BR/>just wait, 50 people in a small apt., and in a couple of years, the building will look like the slums they came from.<BR/><BR/>Like those charming buildings in Glassell Park, maybe Drew Street, where Maria Leon raised her 13 gangbanger kids in cinderblock housing put up in the 60's -- to serve as "affordable housing" for these poor, needy gangbangers.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8826939.post-51823673415788956902008-02-29T12:59:00.000-08:002008-02-29T12:59:00.000-08:003:11: You're not much of a spokesman for Building...3:11: You're not much of a spokesman for Building and Safety, so don't try. For that matter, not for the Spay and Neuter, either. Or for...<BR/><BR/>I'm talking about a deck on a hillside, dummy. You can't put in a deck without very deep pylongs down to bedrock, not even a pre-fab spa... You know-it-all tone from an obvious know- nothing keeps popping up here and doesn't reflect well on whatever hack you're working for.<BR/><BR/>Unless of course you're putting in a huge new house, then you can play all kinds of games, since you're offering the desperate city new revenue.<BR/><BR/>As for "tent cities being a recipe for homelessness" that's not true, either. There was a tent city for the homeless until recently, and if it could be duplicated out of town, it would be better than nothing. These people developed a sense of community, looked out for each other, had an address, shared bathrooms. and kitchen. The tents had a door and a window, and residents claimed there was little robbery or crime. <BR/><BR/>The building codes are one reason groups like Habitat built more in Mexico and Central America: you can slap up a mud-brick house for a few thousand dollars in a week. They're just as earthquake prone as we are, and that form of house is actually safe in an earthquake and provides natural insulation. Joe is right about thinking outside the box, but unless you're a developer, the boxes are very tight indeed.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8826939.post-80682412134435276202008-02-29T00:58:00.000-08:002008-02-29T00:58:00.000-08:00What?? I've certainly never thought one would nee...What?? I've certainly never thought one would need a permit for a deck, but I most definitely have my indoor kittens spayed.<BR/><BR/>What is the analogy here? I don't get it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8826939.post-66463682918014386092008-02-28T15:11:00.000-08:002008-02-28T15:11:00.000-08:00Joe did offer a solution to housing: a yurt city. ...<I>Joe did offer a solution to housing: a yurt city. Only problem is, that in a city where you need permits to add a deck to your own house, that's not terribly likely to happen.</I><BR/><BR/>That's not a solution to housing, that's a solution to homelessness, nowhere near the same thing.<BR/><BR/>And if you think you need a permit for a deck, you probably have already spayed and neutered your indoor kitties too.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8826939.post-7796876518570692922008-02-28T14:10:00.000-08:002008-02-28T14:10:00.000-08:00I suggest every citizen in the city of Los Angeles...I suggest every citizen in the city of Los Angeles take these EXCELLENT suggestions and just keep sending them to the department, the commissioners, the mayor, his staff, etc.<BR/><BR/>Those who care should memorize Joe's suggestions. <BR/>Try selling these ideas to the ludicrous group of losers who are working on the planning MOU with the biggest offenders of all - the Lamishaw's!<BR/><BR/>My favorite? The council staff shouldn't be HELPING developers. I agree, but how would they get their payback for the campaign contributions.<BR/><BR/><BR/>***JM's recommendations<BR/><BR/>I make recommendations all the time. One is that we punish flippers with a heavy tax on re-selling a property you've owned for under two years. Another is to cut the CRA in half so that the Mayor and Council can't just use it as their personal slush fund. Another is to do every Master Plan at once, not just twelve at a time. Another is to prevent the Council field offices from helping developers and owners with zoning changes---that's like giving a dog a boost onto a sofa you don't want him to sit on. Another is to designate a single region---say, NoHo--for growth, rather than let it fester all over the City. Another is to make Alvarado the N/S Wilshire.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8826939.post-10180246335418826512008-02-28T11:37:00.000-08:002008-02-28T11:37:00.000-08:00Joe did offer a solution to housing: a yurt city....Joe did offer a solution to housing: a yurt city. Only problem is, that in a city where you need permits to add a deck to your own house, that's not terribly likely to happen.<BR/><BR/>Zev did give the green light to the Westside Pavilion, and if it's true that caused him to pull out in favor of Bradley, we see how that turned out in hingsight: masses of cheap buildings shoved up by Bradley's administration all over, looking like Communist Russia.<BR/><BR/>Kind of what the black and Hispanic Councilmembers want now: pushing high-density "affordable housing" with no parking into "nice" areas of town. Finally, some attention to this from the L A Weekly, but most people have no idea what's in store for them if these are built.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8826939.post-7441769997382732412008-02-28T11:07:00.000-08:002008-02-28T11:07:00.000-08:00WALTER MOORE said:Failed projects like HPOZs"? Huh...WALTER MOORE said:<BR/><BR/><I>Failed projects like HPOZs"? <BR/>Huh?<BR/>HPOZ's -- Historic Preservation Overlay Zones -- are a terrific way to fight increases in density and preserve the City's historic, low-rise architecture, with a park-like strip of front lawns connecting homes.</I><BR/><BR/>Walter, I sort of agree, but we'll just disagree on the big picture. To me, HPOZs are small cordoned off neighborhoods. Much of the City should be cordoned off from new residential development, not just the parts 50 years old or older. HPOZs are mere pinpricks on the City map; they are just a way to ensure that the entire City at large remains vulnerable to bulldozing.<BR/><BR/>A PLANNER said: <BR/><I>Why don't you acknowledge that Goldberg has, in fact, gone against "the system" and the City Council in particular? Witness the debate over industrial land use in Downtown, she is advocating a position completely contrary to the political estbalishment.<BR/><BR/>Joe, what's missing from all your posts are recommendations. Criticism is easy.</I><BR/><BR/>I make recommendations all the time. One is that we punish flippers with a heavy tax on re-selling a property you've owned for under two years. Another is to cut the CRA in half so that the Mayor and Council can't just use it as their personal slush fund. Another is to do every Master Plan at once, not just twelve at a time. Another is to prevent the Council field offices from <I>helping</I> developers and owners with zoning changes---that's like giving a dog a boost onto a sofa you don't want him to sit on. Another is to designate a single region---say, NoHo--for growth, rather than let it fester all over the City. Another is to make Alvarado the N/S Wilshire. Another is...<BR/><BR/><I>Joe, your beef with planning is understandable but your constant attacks on Goldberg seem quixotic because she's only been around for 2 years and much of what is going on today predates her reign. Last year you were on a public TV program with Con Howe, who bears far more responsibility. For all your tough talk on this blog, you really gave him a free pass on that program, coming off as excessively soft-spoken and non-confrontational.</I><BR/><BR/>I may have in your opinion, but the best thing that's happened to this City in the past decade has been the Adaptive Re-Use Housing Ordinance downtown. And Gail Goldberg will never in this lifetime put the kind of deal together that Catellus/Union Station warranted. Con Howe also quietly pocketed some of the loonier ideas coming out of Rebuild LA in the early '90s, and blocked a couple of other things that would have been really nasty. I like Con Howe as a planning chief way better than Gail Goldberg.Joseph Mailanderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07753082460547996624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8826939.post-30666477424286349752008-02-28T09:16:00.000-08:002008-02-28T09:16:00.000-08:00Also, Joe, don't know if you've ever read "The Rel...Also, Joe, don't know if you've ever read "The Reluctant Metropolis," but Bill Fulton believes Zev's support of the Westside Pavilion is what dashed his Mayoral hopes in the late '80's. He pulled out after Tom Bradley held a press conference to announce he was vetoing the expansion on the basis of Zev's own Prop U.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8826939.post-50565679664001845622008-02-28T09:13:00.000-08:002008-02-28T09:13:00.000-08:00Planning is not a science like medicine or enginee...Planning is not a science like medicine or engineering or anything of the sort. Planning is, at best, a social science with a record of mixed outcomes and unintended consequences. When it comes to getting things built, the political process and the free market will always be more important.<BR/><BR/>Joe, your beef with planning is understandable but your constant attacks on Goldberg seem quixotic because she's only been around for 2 years and much of what is going on today predates her reign. Last year you were on a public TV program with Con Howe, who bears far more responsibility. For all your tough talk on this blog, you really gave him a free pass on that program, coming off as excessively soft-spoken and non-confrontational.<BR/><BR/>Why don't you acknowledge that Goldberg has, in fact, gone against "the system" and the City Council in particular? Witness the debate over industrial land use in Downtown, she is advocating a position completely contrary to the political estbalishment.<BR/><BR/>Joe, what's missing from all your posts are recommendations. Criticism is easy. At that same public TV program last year, you acknowledged that the cost of land was the main factor preventing the "missing rungs" in the homeownership ladder, and we all know what has happened to construction material costs. How exactly do you propose that planning and zoning overcome these market obstacles? As a planner, I would like to know.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8826939.post-15019703585913625882008-02-28T09:04:00.001-08:002008-02-28T09:04:00.001-08:00>>does not address growth and density, it creates ...>>does not address growth and density, it creates them<BR/><BR/>It sure does. Westchesterparents.org has a long list of downtown growth and density projects at <A HREF="http://westchesterparents.org/?p=406" REL="nofollow">www.westchesterparents.org/?p=406</A>westchesterparents.orghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14042259028505837032noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8826939.post-56979511530665459192008-02-28T09:04:00.000-08:002008-02-28T09:04:00.000-08:00Damn Archie Bunker really does live!Damn Archie Bunker really does live!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8826939.post-86989723448151189832008-02-28T07:43:00.000-08:002008-02-28T07:43:00.000-08:00Get over it - Zev's not running.He loves to pick f...Get over it - Zev's not running.<BR/><BR/>He loves to pick fights and Antonio loves to rise to the bait, but in the end, he will, like all other politicians, endorse Antonio because despite what these pages may say, Antonio remains popular with the voting public and his endorsement is meaningful to their own elections.<BR/><BR/>The last thing that Zev wants to do is run and lose and have Antonio endorse someone to beat Zev for reelection. Zev's at the tail end of his career; he could have been Mayor if he had stayed in against Bradley, he could have been Congressman if he wanted to risk it.<BR/><BR/>But now, he can still be one of the five Kings (or Queens) and end his career with a couple of more terms unchallenged, unless, of course, he overcomes his "risk averse" history and risks all to run.<BR/><BR/>He won't.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8826939.post-55682610094683566682008-02-28T06:43:00.000-08:002008-02-28T06:43:00.000-08:00"Failed projects like HPOZs"? Huh?HPOZ's -- Histo..."Failed projects like HPOZs"? <BR/>Huh?<BR/>HPOZ's -- Historic Preservation Overlay Zones -- are a terrific way to fight increases in density and preserve the City's historic, low-rise architecture, with a park-like strip of front lawns connecting homes.<BR/><BR/>HPOZ's are one of the City's few successes when it comes to urban planning.Walter Moorehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09885641116259381431noreply@blogger.com