This doesn't change a thing in terms of the density or height allowed under law anywhere in Los Angeles right not. All it does is ensure that state money for affordable housing (most of the great new projects around town that are 100% affordable, from the model new permanent housing on Skid Row, to some of the beautiful new housing that you probably don't even know is affordable in Silver Lake, Mid-City, and the Valley, is more than 30 units) doesn't go to other cities in California.

It doesn't change a single law about density, and Los Angeles has never built high rise affordable housing like Chicago and New York (besides, those were built and owned by city government in those places. In LA, these are built by community groups and the private sector).

Learn your facts, Jill. Love you (you are one of the only truth tellers left in this city), but don't be spun without reading the facts. You are off this time.

Uh, no, Jim, actually in NYC quite a bit of high-rise affordable housing was built by developers in concert with insurance companies like Metropolitan Life, e.g. Parkchester, Stuyvesant Town, etc. etc. Check YOUR facts.

Measure B would allow church groups and community organizations like Habitat for Humanity to build homes affordable to working families under the same rules that apply to other developers building luxury housing. It does not change the community plans or zoning anywhere in the City of Los Angeles.

What it does change is an old and outmoded set of ballot measures adopted because Angelenos were frightened into restricting development of homes that would be affordable by retail clerks and hospital attendants, preschool teachers and lab technicians. The voters who approved those old measures were told that restricting development of homes affordable to lower income persons would discourage "those people" from living nearby.

Every family deserves to be able to live near their jobs, every child deserves to be able to live near a good school and every Angeleno deserves a safe, secure and stable home to live in that they can afford on their income. Since our housing market is broken and private developers are only able to build new homes that cost more than most Angelenos can afford to pay, the City, State and Federal governments need to help community and faith organizations fill the gap between stagnant incomes and skyrocketing home costs.

While home costs have slowed their meteoric rise, they still have not dropped enough to be within reach of most Angelenos, and rents are actually going up faster because all of the residents who have lost their homes through foreclosure and the renters who have been forced out of their homes because their landlords didn't pay the mortgage are out looking for an place to rent.

All Measure B does is level the playing field between developers who build for the rich, the poor and the middle class. The protections against overbuilding contained in community plans and zoning restrictions will all remain the same.
If rich people can live in high-rise towers along Wilshire, there is no reason that poor people and middle class people cannot live in that same kind of housing development.

The real concern of this article seems to be that more than 52,500 low-cost homes could be built to house Angelenos. But according to the Employment Development Dept. there are over 1 million workers in Los Angeles who earn less than $11 per hour, and half of all the workers take home less than $17 an hour. After taking out taxes, food and other necessities, that leaves about $550 a month for a million Angelenos to pay rent and about $875 a month for rent for half of all workers. Anyone who is paying rent knows that there are not enough apartments and homes in LA at these prices.

Without more affordable homes for these workers to live in, our economy will eventually collapse because employers will not be able to find enough people to fill the jobs and they will move to places where they can fill those jobs, whether it is India, China or Nevada.

That may make some people who already have a home happy, but when the find their neighborhood stores closing, hospitals understaffed and no one left to take away their trash, they will discover that we are all in this thing together.

Our broken housing market needs to be fixed, and we need to give everyone willing to help a fair chance, not disable those who are wiling to invest their efforts in helping to repair some of the damage.

Measure B just removes the penalties that have been unfairly placed on our churches and community based nonprofit builders who are doing their best to help those who cannot help themselves. A level playing field is all that is being asked for.

Jim... I wonder what you think "affordable" is because you don't specify.

My mom's rent ($1000 for 1 bedroom...tried to find a new place as manager is an ass and now the cheapest we can find is $1500) is like 40% of her income.

I say great as my mom is one of those hella poor people. She's lived in Torrance forever and only lately has rent skyrocketed. (As rich assholes move into town.)... her essential expenditure EXCEEDS her income (part of this though is due to medical bills (the big ole C, cancer!)... but amusingly enough, her health insurance went up because again more rich foolios keep moving in "Oh! It's an expensive zipcode, let's RAISE your health insurance!")

I'm so sick of all these hoighty toity middle-classers.

I'm a college student now I have to help my mom and I am at school and work 12 hours a day. Seriously. I'm one ANGSTROM away from snapping and going on a rampage.

"If rich people can live in high-rise towers along Wilshire, there is no reason that poor people and middle class people cannot live in that same kind of housing development."

cool. million dollar condos on wilshire for low income renters. where do i sign up?

I for one do not particularly want to stay in a building with 300 other people. I think that the money they are spending to build all of these properties can be put into the section 8 program where people can get housing assistance and choose where they stay. Most of the buidings have been built in areas where there is high gang activity, poverty and where hispanics are the majority in receiving these places.

I am disabled, raising two nieces on SSI and Foster care and have applied to several of these new apartments with about 25-30 apartments and have not received any help. My rent is $750 not including utilities, medicines that medical does not pay for, food which I cannot receive food stamps so I need the assistance in housing cost. I believe that most of these apartments are being built to accomodate the high population of latinos in recent years. There has always been a need for assistance but now the Mayor wants to push this measure for his people. They have so many rules and regulations and limitations on gaining assistance in being given one of these places that I believe it is a lost cause. I say put the money into the section 8 program and let us choose where we want to live instead of packing us into one buiding with 200 people and a bunch of problems.

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