Living in cars, vans and RVs is once again illegal in residential areas of Los Angeles.

The Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to reinstate a law that prohibits sleeping overnight in a vehicle in residential areas and near schools and parks. The council decided to extend the law, which expired earlier this month, after hearing testimony from dozens of activists that the law unduly punishes people who have no choice but to live in their vehicles.

Read More: https://www.smdp.com/los-angeles-city-council-votes-to-extend-vehicle-dwelling-law/178067

A group of Venice residents filed an opening brief last Friday in a lawsuit to stop the construction of a temporary facility that would house 154 people experiencing homelessness.

The Venice Stakeholders Association’s lawsuit asks Judge Mitchell L. Beckloff to declare the city’s of Los Angeles approval of the project invalid and halt construction on the site. Beckloff denied a similar request in May, saying the facility is necessary to provide adequate shelter for Venice’s homeless residents. More than 1,100 people experiencing homelessness live in the neighborhood, according to the 2019 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count, a 33% increase over last year.

Read More: https://www.smdp.com/venice-homeless-housing-project-draws-lawsuit/178045

Westside communities saw a 20 percent rise in homelessness in 2019, with Venice's homeless population surpassing 1,000, according to census figures released by the Los Angeles County Homeless Service Authority (LAHSA).

Venice with 1,128 homeless persons counted in January -- up from 847 last year -- topped the list of 16 Westside cities and communities analyzed by the Lookout, accounting for 37 percent of the area's total homeless population.

Read More: http://surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2019/July-2019/07_30_2019_Westside_Homeless_Population_Sees_Dramatic_Jump.html

A historic, five-bedroom house on the north edge of Santa Monica has been converted into an Airbnb housing up to 36 people.

The 1924 Pueblo Revival home at 710 Adelaide Place has been listed on Airbnb since March, when it was sold for about $2.9 million, according to the Multiple Listing Service. Neighbors say the home, a local landmark known as the Zuni House, is being operated as a de facto hostel and disturbing nearby residents.

Read More: https://www.smdp.com/landmarked-home-listed-online-for-up-to-36-guests/177996

Santa Monica's Urban Forest Task Force will be expanded and its role made more significant as the City prepares to craft a citywide tree ordinance.

Last Tuesday the City Council unanimously voted to add two seats to the seven-member panel and authorized it to act as an "advisory body" for an ordinance that will help determine which trees on private property are protected.

Read More: http://surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2019/July-2019/07_29_2019_Santa_Monicas_Tree_Task_Force_Branches_Out.html

A revised plan to open a Target store in Downtown will have a new hearing before the Architectural Review aboard in August.

At the August 19 meeting, Commissioners will see a revised plan from the company after its initial plans were for using cheap looking materials and including too much store branding. 

As originally proposed, the project will occupy the former Fred Segal building at the corner of 5th and Broadway with a goal of opening in 2020.

Read More: https://www.smdp.com/downtown-target-plans-return-to-arb-in-august/177929

Total taxable sales on the Third Street Promenade rose 4.2% last year while the city’s other shopping districts, Main Street and Montana Avenue, both saw a roughly 3% drop in sales.

The Promenade’s sales increased every year between 2010 and 2015 as the retail market recovered from the recession, but the growth of online shopping precipitated 5.5% and 2.9% drops in 2016 and 2017. Sales last year were the highest they’ve been since 2015, indicating that the district is adapting to consumers turning away from traditional retail.

Read More: https://www.smdp.com/ups-and-downs-for-retail-sales/177950

SANTA MONICA’S ENFORCEMENT OF SECTION 8 HOUSING PROTECTION LAW

The Santa Monica City Attorney’s Office (CAO) has just resolved its eleventh complaint of housing discrimination using a new city law that protects Section 8 housing voucher holders. In each of the eleven cases, local landlords had told an applicant or existing tenant that they would NOT accept Section 8 tenants or vouchers.

Read More: https://www.santamonica.gov/blog/latest-updates-on-affordability-in-santa-monica

This is a follow up to our recent articles which discussed the effects of design on our environment, our culture, heritage and economy.  Santa Monica’s temperate beachfront environment attracts corporate and off-shore investment dollars that will continue to influence and dictate our future with the premium returns financing political campaigns! Why should we allow these external forces to shape our town and lifestyle? The resulting “mansionization” under current zoning is irrevocably changing the character of our neighborhoods and the soul of our city.

Our planning commission will be addressing some of these issues in the weeks immediately ahead and our small band of architects (SMa.r.t.) strongly encourages the following adoption of single family code requirements which we feel will allow more inspiring and diverse design while preserving our neighborhood character.

Read More: https://smmirror.com/2019/07/design-standards-an-urban-dance-and-who-chooses/

A cluster of 14 homes and apartments in Ocean Park dating back to the early 20th century will become Santa Monica’s fifth historic district.

The city council voted unanimously Tuesday to landmark the district at Ocean Park Boulevard and 4th Street, overturning last month’s tied Landmarks Commission vote that effectively denied the Santa Monica Conservancy’s application. The Conservancy, a historic preservation nonprofit, applied to designate the predominantly Craftsman and Mediterranean Revival buildings as a historic district after learning that the company XYZ, the owner of more than half the buildings, was using the Ellis Act to evict tenants.

Read More: https://www.smdp.com/council-approves-citys-fifth-historic-district/177873