L.A.’s Bold Plan To Pack Its Backyards With More Housing
“The population of Los Angeles, the second-largest city in the U.S., cracked 4 million in 2017, up from 3.7 million in 2000. The metropolitan area is now home to nearly 20 million people, up 2.2 million in less than a decade. The improved postrecession economy has lured companies–and therefore jobs–to L.A., aggravating the city’s notorious traffic problems and driving up housing prices. Since 2011, the cost of an average one-bedroom apartment in L.A. has increased 63%, and nearly a third of Angelenos now spend more than half their income on rent. The vacancy rate for rentals is just 4%, and the city’s office of housing policy estimates that more than 400,000 low-income families are experiencing severe overcrowding. All of this contributes to a rising homeless population that exceeds 58,000 people in the county. It also makes it increasingly difficult for the city to attract the new businesses necessary to drive the region’s economic growth. These problems are not unique to L.A., of course. Seattle is experiencing similar challenges. But what is particular to Los Angeles is its dynamic mayor, Eric Garcetti, and he has made solving the housing situation his number-one priority.”