Low-income housing advocates filed a lawsuit against the City of Los Angeles this week, accusing City Council Member Tracy Park, City Attorney Heidi Feldstein Soto and other city officials of violating the Fair Housing Act by blocking a proposed affordable housing development in Venice.
The project, known as the Venice Dell, will include 140 units of housing for low-income and formerly homeless residents on what is now a city-owned parking lot along the neighborhood’s famous canal. Planning for the housing project began in 2016, and the city approved an agreement with nonprofit developers Venice Community Housing and Hollywood Community Housing Co. to move forward in the summer of 2022.
But nearby community groups have sued, and according to the newly filed lawsuit, development has stalled due to efforts by Park and Feldstein Soto, who represent the area and both city officials opposed the Venice Dell when they ran for office.
“Councillor Tracy Park and City Attorney Heidi Feldstein Soto engaged in a number of underhanded tactics to block and sabotage Venice Dell out of hostility toward the project and the chronically homeless, disabled, and Black and Brown Angelenos who will live there,” the lawsuit states.
Among the actions cited in the lawsuit are city officials cutting off regular meetings with the developer, demanding that all communications go through the city attorney’s office and failing to approve necessary approvals before Venice Dell could break ground.
The lawsuit also accuses Mayor Karen Bass of failing to follow instructions from City Council members and instruct city officials to move forward with the project.
The plaintiffs — a nonprofit progressive group called the LA Forward Institute, a 60-year-old homeless person living in a camper in Venice, a Venice homeowner and a Venice-born Loyola Law School professor — are seeking a court order directing the city to move forward with the Venice Dell.
The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court, argues that by not allowing the Venice Dell to be built, the city is preventing the construction of low-income housing in a neighborhood that is wealthier and whiter than other parts of the city, violating the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Protection Act.
“We could build a lot more affordable housing as a city if we weren’t stonewalled everywhere by people who don’t think their neighborhoods should have a fair share,” David Levitas, executive director of the Los Angeles Forward Institute, said at a news conference here Thursday.
Venice residents, along with lawyers from the Los Angeles Forward Institute and the Western Law and Poverty Center, appeared at a press conference Thursday to discuss a lawsuit they filed against the city of Los Angeles for trying to block the construction of 140 new affordable housing units in Venice. In the foreground is an artist’s imagination of what the properties would look like.
(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
Feldstein, Soto & Park did not respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit or the project. Clara Karger, a spokeswoman for Mayor Bass, said the mayor is reviewing the lawsuit and is working to expedite permitting for affordable housing.
“Mayor Bass continues to support affordable housing throughout the city,” Karger said.
In a July 1 response to a letter sent by the plaintiffs’ attorneys, the city’s chief assistant attorney, John Heath, said there are a number of matters the developer and the city must resolve before the Venice Dell can move forward, including parking agreements and appraisals.
“The city is continually [the developers] “to identify a viable path forward for the project,” Heath wrote, adding that the plaintiffs’ allegations “are not helpful to this collaboration.”
The 2.7-acre Venice Dell site is bisected by a canal, and both sides of the project will be flanked by three-story apartment buildings and a multi-story parking structure. Of the 140 units, roughly half will be set aside as supportive housing for formerly homeless residents, while the other half will be low-income housing and some will be set aside for artists. The project will also include retail, restaurants, community space and additional parking.
Separately, a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge dismissed two lawsuits brought by Venice neighborhood groups seeking to overturn the city’s approval of the project. One lawsuit alleged a flawed environmental study and another alleges an improper agreement between the city and the developer. The environmental lawsuits are on appeal.
Becky Denison, co-executive director of Venice Community Housing, said she had hoped the court’s decision would allow the project to move forward. But instead, during a meeting with city officials last week, she was told by city transportation executive Ken Hastings that the city was recommending a redesign of the Venice Dell and a change to the layout of the parking lot. When asked why, Hastings said, “There’s been a change in administration since the project was approved.”
Neither Mr Hastings, who is on leave, nor a Department of Transport spokesman responded to requests for comment.
Denison said granting the request would stall the project for at least two years, reduce the number of units and revoke existing city approvals.
“It’s like an invitation to start over,” Denison said.
As things stand, Denison said the lack of action is delaying financing for the project, costing the city $100,000 in interest payments on a pre-development loan and preventing the construction of permanent homeless housing in an area with few housing units.
“The people sitting in the streets are the biggest frustrations,” Dennison said. “Yes, this is a huge investment and a huge risk, but a promise was made to the people of this community.”
Michael Alazar, 24, was called by police to remove a tent he was camping out at Venice Corner Ballpark in Venice on Thursday, a few blocks from the proposed site of the Venice Dell project, which provides affordable housing.
(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
The city still needs to get approval for the land lease and other applications, but Denison said the biggest remaining hurdle is approval from the California Coastal Commission, which is needed because the site is in a coastal area. Denison said the city is also behind on answering the commission’s questions about the Venice Dell.
Commission spokesman Joshua Smith said the commission continues to work with the city on the plans.
“The prospect of a 100 percent affordable housing project at this location is a rare opportunity and we want to bring it to a final vote as soon as possible,” Smith said.
The project has caught the attention of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration. In February, the Department of Housing and Community Development wrote the city asking for details about why the project isn’t moving forward. A spokesperson told The Times that the department continues to monitor the situation.
Charles Rosin, a Venice resident and former television producer who led the district’s lawsuit against the project, said the lawsuit filed this week by backers is an attempt to cover up the developer’s own problems, including financing. Rosin said the district selected Park in part because he opposed the Venice Dell and because his predecessor, Mike Bonin, supported the project.
“Voters wanted a policy change,” Rosin said.
Denison said he expects the Venice Dell to break ground in 2026 and open in 2028.