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Council affirms Central City West 15% inclusionary housing requirement, denies developer exception
Summary
The council adopted the Planning and Land Use Management Committee recommendation to deny a developer exception to the Central City West Specific Plan's 15% low-income housing set-aside for a downtown mixed-use project.
The Los Angeles City Council on June 20 upheld a Planning and Land Use Management (PLUM) Committee decision to deny a developer’s request for a specific-plan exception that would have avoided a 15% low-income housing requirement in the Central City West Specific Plan.
Councilmember addressing the matter said the council was being asked to support the PLUM recommendation that the developer’s appeal be denied and that the inclusionary-housing obligation in section 11(c) of the specific plan remain in force. The council recorded the vote as “10 ayes.”
Why it matters: The decision requires large redevelopments in the Central City West area to continue to provide an affordability set-aside intended to keep lower-income households within reach of downtown jobs and services. Supporters said the requirement is a central tool for addressing local affordable housing needs in rapidly redeveloping neighborhoods.
Project and dispute
GH Palmer Associates sought an exception for the Visconti project, a proposed mixed-use development described at the hearing as including roughly 300 market-rate housing units, ground-floor retail and open space on a currently vacant warehouse site. The developer argued the specific plan provision did not legally apply and asked the council to grant a specific-plan exception so the project could proceed without the 15% set-aside.
John Bowman, attorney for GH Palmer Associates, told the council the project would add housing stock in an area with a jobs-housing imbalance and that, in his view, the planning director could not make the required state-law findings to apply the inclusionary requirement. Bowman said the developer sought more time to work with staff and asked the council to refer the matter back to committee.
Community and council response
Residents and advocacy groups urged the council to sustain the inclusionary requirement. Maria Rodriguez of ACORN said, “there is a great need in my area of affordable housing. And we are here to ask you to please help us.” Councilman Hernandez, representing the Central City West area, supported the PLUM recommendation and said the specific plan was crafted to address mixed-economy housing needs near downtown employment.
Council members including Garcetti and Pacheco emphasized that inclusionary measures are part of a broader policy to keep downtown growth from displacing lower-income residents and to create predictable, equitable development standards. Pacheco said the measure should be enforced and indicated the council might explore stronger compliance tools — for example, conditions on certificates of occupancy when projects make off-site affordability commitments.
Next steps and vote
The council adopted the PLUM committee report denying the developer's appeal and maintaining the 15% inclusionary requirement in the Central City West Specific Plan; the roll-call was recorded as 10 ayes. The decision preserves the specific-plan standard for future projects in the area.
