PLANNING WATCH / PLAN-IT LOS ANGELES

Good Density or Bad Density, That is the Question Dick Platkin, 20   Nov   2012, CityWatchLA, WILSHIRE CORRIDOR, HOLLYWOOD UPDATE - The Update of the Hollywood Community Plan has been challenged by three lawsuits.  As this litigation slowly works its way through the court system, the debate about increasing planned and zoned density has not quieted down.  Let us therefore revisit that debate as it applies to two Los Angeles neighborhoods with mass transit, Hollywood and the Wilshire Boulevard Corridor. Density, in the form of larger buildings and more people, is welcome in Hollywood, Wilshire Boulevard, and elsewhere, but only when it is properly planned.  In fact, when it is done right -- instead of being added on the cheap as an after thought to spark real estate speculation – increased density can be extremely beneficial for health, social, and environmental reasons.  Hollywood:   In the case of the Hollywood Community Plan Update, however, there is only

The Scam That Keeps On Giving 10.08.2012 DICK PLATKIN, Citywatch* DEBUNKING LA’S GREEN MCMANSION MYTHS -  In a previous  CityWatch column  debunking the myth of LA’s “green” McMansions I explained that the widespread mansionization of many Los Angeles neighborhoods is a deliberate rather than accidental failure of the planning process. I further explained how this scam has been perpetrated by officials who portrayed McMansions as “sustainable” development, even though mansionization is one of the least ecological schemes ever spawned by the real estate industry. It is even more disturbing to learn that this deception is not an anomaly.  It has been reinforced by previous and subsequent ruses intended to quietly promote mansionization throughout Los Angeles.  This is why these overstuffed houses are popping up at an accelerating rate throughout much of the city. Yes, it is true that the city’s legally adopted city plans, such as the General Plan Framework Element and

Debunking LA’s Urban Legend: “Green” McMansions CityWarch, 10.01.2012 by Dick Platkin* WHERE WE LIVE - New York might have alligators roaming its sewer system, but LA can now boast of its own urban legend: “green” McMansions.  Yes, that’s right; in Los Angeles, McMansions, those boxy, oversized, energy-demanding suburban houses plopped into the middle of older neighborhoods are officially considered to be sustainable development. How could this be?  After all, McMansions require huge amounts of energy to assemble their building materials and move them to job site.  Furthermore, the houses themselves are massive, which means enormous heating and air conditioning bills, even if their windows are double-paned, their walls padded with extra insulation, and their restaurant-sized refrigerators and stoves Energy Star rated. Then we need to consider their multiple bathrooms and heated outdoor pools and spas, the most energy intensive features of modern houses. Other McMansion fe

Corrupted Planning Rules and the Downward Spiral of  Los   Angeles :  A Strategy to Turn L.A. Around Posted on   June 30, 2012   by   Ron http://ronkayela.com/2012/06/corrupted-planning-rules-and-the-downward-spiral-of-los-angeles-a-strategy-to-turn-l-a-around.html EDITOR’S NOTE:  Retired LA City Planner Dick Platkin, now consulting to community groups and teaching about sustainable city planning, wrote a version of this article for the Summer 2012 issue of  Progressive Planning  magazine (  www.plannersnetwork.org  ). The article provides a valuable analysis of what has gone wrong in L.A. and what it takes to fix the city. Platkin can be reached at  rhplatkin@yahoo.com “If you cannot predict, how can you plan?  The answer is clear; you cannot; you proceed blindly.” - - Gabriel  Kolko , “ Why America is Doomed to One Disaster After Another,”  CounterPunch ,  May 14, 2012. How the Planning Process Contributes to LA’s Malaise By Dick Platkin There is a widespread

 HOLLYWOOD COMMUNITY PLAN UPDATE – ALTERNATIVE VISION June 19, 2012 Case Number:  CPC-2005-6082-CPU CPC-19967-43-CPU ENV-2005-2158-EIR Submitted by : East Hollywood Neighborhood Council Planning Entitlement Review Committee Doug Haines, Chair David Bell Edward Hunt Armen Makasjian Richard Platkin TABLE OF CONTENTS                                                                                            Page Glossary Note - 2                                                                                                          Introduction the Alternerative Vision  - 2                                                                            Principles of the Alternative Vision - 4                                                                     Implementation of the Alternative Vision - 9                                                                       Credentials - 10