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VOL. 11,
NO. 134
LA City Council agrees to halt Benedict Canyon hotel project By Jose Herrera, City News Service
A
divided Los Angeles City Council voted Wednesday to halt a much-debated hotel project in Benedict Canyon that has drawn the ire of some neighbors who expressed concerns about the impact the project would have on the environment and public safety. The council voted 8-6 to support a motion introduced by Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky, who represents the area as part of her 5th District. The motion directs the city planning director to reconsider the initiation of a General Plan amendment — which the Planning Department and Planning Commission previously approved — that gave a specific zoning designation for the proposed Bulgari Hotel to be built in a residential area. "This motion is about
An artist's depiction of the proposed Bulgari Resort Los Angeles in Benedict Canyon. | Photo courtesy of Bulgari
taking a stand together as a council and saying that we don't believe it's in the city's best interest for a planning department to spend hours of staff resources, hundreds of hours of staff resources and
millions of taxpayer dollars on a project that goes against everything we're doing from a land use perspective, a climate perspective and a public safety perspective," Yaroslavsky said, addressing
her colleagues and urging a "yes" vote. "Especially when the project is located in such a special place. We all have them — they're the gems that make Los Angeles unique,
and I know everyone around this (City Council chamber) horseshoe would fight like hell to protect those places in our own districts were they threatened," she added. The councilwoman had
previously offered four reasons that her colleagues should support her motion, including a possible ethics violation by her predecessor's planning and land use deputy. Ethics Commission records indicate that Stacey Brenner received more than $174,000 for lobbying efforts to obtain the General Plan amendment — while her husband, Shawn Bayliss, was working as the planning and land use deputy for then-Councilman Paul Koretz. "There is absolutely no evidence that the City Ethics Office or the City Attorney's Office were ever consulted about this clear conflict of interest that this presented and whether or how they could mitigate that conflict," See Benedict Canyon 28
DWP codifies Project PowerHouse to expedite affordable housing By City News Service
T
he Los Angeles Department of Water and Power Tuesday codified Project Powerhouse, an initiative aimed at supporting affordable housing developments, as well as a proposal to "fairly share" the cost of new power infrastructure in the public right-of-way for construction projects. In a unanimous vote, the Board of Water and Power Commissioners agreed to permanently cover the substantial cost of underground line extensions for 100% affordable and permanent supportive housing developments in the city, a
hallmark of Project PowerHouse, which the department launched in March. To support Mayor Karen Bass' executive directive to dramatically accelerate and lower the cost of affordable housing projects in the city, Project PowerHouse aimed to substantially alleviate the cost of public right-of-way power infrastructure upgrades for 100% affordable housing, and to implement plans for faster power design services for builders. Since its launch, the utility has received more than 200 projects — all 100% affordable housing — with 58 currently
in active construction. "(This is) a very different way of engaging on the part of the department — where the department has been unleashed and is being permitted, our employees across various areas, to be very proactive and to think about themselves as part of a continuum — providing service not just water and power, but providing housing and looking at our role in responding to the social justice and human rights issue of our time in the city," said Cynthia McClain-Hill, president of the DWP Board of Commissioners.
In addition, the commissioners approved a policy change to its rules governing water and electric service. Previously, the cost of electrical infrastructure upgrades, or underground line extensions, is assessed to the first customer — typically a developer — rather than apportioning the upgrade costs to all expected power users who will use the line extension. Charging the full line extension to the first customer has been a "significant financial burden" for many development projects in the city, according to
| Photos courtesy of LADWP
LADWP officials. The new policy will implement a system to spread out the cost among all benefiting customers. The LADWP will encourage and support the development of new housing and electrifica-
tion infrastructure, including additional solar and electric vehicle chargers. The new policy aligns with power infrastructure cost recovery policies of other electric utilities throughout California, officials said.