HCNC to Hollywood: Grow smart

The Central Hollywood Neighborhood Council has come forward with its development recommendations for the Hollywood Community Plan, and I want to recognize the thought and effort with which they went about crafting their input. While many observers of city government fear that neighborhood councils are reactionary and thoughtlessly anti-development, the CHNC's proposals prove what I have been consistently arguing about the councils: that the more they are brought into the process and given real authority, the more they will move beyond reflexive "no" positions and into an understanding of the necessities of managing a growing city. The CHNC's recommendations endorse zone changes that encourage mixed-use development at a 3:1 Floor Area Ratio and with a 75-foot height limit—a reasonable guideline that acknowledges that urban growth must take place with reasonable constraints to meet the needs of Los Angeles in the 21st century.