PLANNING WATCH / PLAN-IT LOS ANGELES

This extraordinary story in the LA Weekly demonstrates the poor state of urban infrastructure and services in Los Angeles. Not only does the city only devote four percent of it surface area to parks, but most of this parkland is undeveloped: Griffith Park. Furthermore, most existing parks are in affluent neighborhoods in which residents have access to private park and recreation facitilies. After all, they have back yards and some also have access to private clubs. Los Angeles Weekly, Wed., July 16, 2008 Parks and Wreck: L.A. 's Fight for Public Green Space In search of the Emerald City There’s a foul smell in Pershing Square . Well, several foul smells, really. Most prominently, there’s the smell of urine. It wafts in all directions, emanating from a dozen dark, hidden recesses spread throughout the square. There’s the smell of the fountain, a giant purple modernist abomination that every so often belches a tiny stream of liquid into a stagnant brown pool below. There...

Occasionally staff who work for the City of Los Angeles or the public who deal with city government get a peak behind those closed doors. It is not pretty, and in a rare glimpse this report in the LA Times describes three types of favors which the elected officials dish out to business insiders. The first is direct investment through the employee pension funds, courtesy of board members appointed by elected officials, such as the Mayor. The second is relief from ordinances and other forms of regulation. The third is breaks on fees and taxes, sometimes totaling hundreds of millions of dollars. Those who stick to their guns about the importance of picking the lesser of two evils in elections, should realize that differences on wedge issues, such as women's rights, have no bearing on this type of skull-duggery in which party labels mean zip. http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-bond20-2008jul20,0,7501030,full.story Firm boasts about 'mining' tax dollars ...