Denser, taller and less-pricey neighborhoods are ahead for Hollywood under a revitalization plan approved Thursday by the Los Angeles Community Redevelopment Agency.
Agency commissioners voted unanimously to help finance a series of residential and commercial projects that backers say will add much-needed low-income housing and "first-class" office space to the area by 2013.
The five-year development plan will add 404 low- and moderate-income apartments for families that otherwise would be priced out of the housing market. It also provides space for programs that cater to the homeless and to young runaways who often flock to Hollywood Boulevard.
The approval came as some Hollywood residents complained of a looming lack of adequate parking for newcomers and others decried the growing nightclub scene, which has become an important element of the emerging "new" Hollywood.
But the clubs also are helping turn the area into what was described to commissioners as "Alcohollywood" and a growing site of mysterious arson fires.
There was largely praise for the five-year plan, however. During a two-hour public hearing held at one of Hollywood's clubs, the Music Box, a parade of supporters thanked the agency for its role over the last two decades in aiding the community's resurgence from half a century of decline.
City Council President Eric Garcetti, who represents a portion of Hollywood, said $2 billion in private investment already has been poured into the area, turning blighted parts of town into showcases.
He cited a $14-million mixed-use development at Hollywood Boulevard and Western Avenue as one of the successes. The CRA contributed $3.7 million to the project, which consists of 60 affordable rental units -- most of which are occupied by what the agency calls "very low-income households."
The Hollywood and Western corner "has taken away the stigma of affordable housing," turning what once was an eyesore into one of the city's "most dynamic" intersections, Garcetti told commissioners.
Low-income projects planned over the next five years include the $7-million Villas at Gower, which will offer 70 "very low-income housing units" along with supportive services for homeless families and what the CRA calls "transitional youths."
Part of the W hotel complex under construction at Hollywood and Vine Street will by 2010 include 375 rental units, including 74 classified as "affordable to low-income."
