An interim ordinance passed Friday by the Los Angeles City Council appears to have temporarily halted a mixed-use housing development on the Brooklyn Avenue historic corridor that has raised the ire of local community activists.
The measure, known as an Interim Control Ordinance (ICO), was proposed by Councilmember Kevin de León. An ICO prevents the issuance of demolition permits for replacing older and historic buildings with rent-controlled units.
“Today I stand before you this council to emphasize the urgency of our collective responsibility to protect working residents from the immediate effects of gentrification,” de León said during the meeting.
According to de León, the ICO is a contingency measure to prevent displacement until the forthcoming council approves the Updated Boyle Heights Community Plan. It will include, among other things, new zoning rules that would provide protections for buildings with rent-controlled units.
“Before that plan is approved, there are some folks who will no doubt have the opportunity to exploit and circumvent the spirit of this impending community plan,” de León said before the vote on Friday.
A group that opposes a six-story apartment building on the 2100 block of César Chávez claimed victory following Friday’s unanimous city council vote. El Apetito-Finessa Collective, a group of housing tenants and small business owners renting at the current building on César Chavéz Ave, have rallied to stop owner Tiao Properties from demolishing the current structure.
According to the plot plan submitted to the City, Tiao Properties intends to construct a complex with five stories of apartment units, a ground floor for commercial use, and an underground parking garage. Five of the 50 planned apartments will be deemed “affordable” and offered to low-income tenants, while the remaining units will be leased at market rate.
Currently, the Tiao property on César Chávez includes three apartment units under rent control.
Viva Padilla, a founding member of the collective, celebrated Friday’s council’s decision via a story she posted on her Instagram page.
“This is what is going to protect our building from demolition,” Padilla wrote. “It cannot be touched until the Boyle Heights community plan update gets legalized. After that, any developer trying to come in has to comply with the community plan.”
“Projects like the one Tiao wanted and the one Toledo wants on Cesar Chavez do not comply with the plan so this is a win for us,” she added, alluding to another development on the historic corridor.
In a press release following the city council vote, de León called it a “key victory for Boyle Heights tenants” but did not expressly mention the Tiao Properties development.
Councilmember de Leon’s office did not respond to Boyle Heights Beat’s multiple requests to verify whether this ordinance prevents Tiao Properties from demolishing their property on Cesar Chavez Avenue. Boyle Heights Beat also reached out to Tiao Properties for a reaction, without response.
Last September, Viva Padilla filed an appeal against the Los Angeles-based company’s application. Earlier this month, de León said he opposed the Tiao Development.
Last Wednesday, the East LA Area Planning Commission was scheduled to vote on approving the development project. The collective and a handful of other organizing groups disrupted the meeting over concerns about the lack of a Spanish interpreter. Commissioners decided to postpone the meeting until January 10.
