Los Angeles City Planning Department

201 N Figueroa St Ste 4

Los Angeles, CA 90012

RE: DTLA 2040 Community Plan Update

December 3, 2020

Dear Downtown Community Planning Team:

In 2012 several residents, including myself, came together to address the severe lack of tree canopy in the
industrial neighborhoods of Downtown Los Angeles. We founded Industrial District Green with the mission:
to improve the livability of the DTLA Industrial District through the implementation and maintenance
of community-based greening and open space projects while engaging under-served members of the
community via education and outreach programs.
Since our founding, Downtown has seen an explosion of development. With the vast amount of money
flowing into our area for high end housing we would have expected to see a commensurate number of trees
and parks to offset the influx of people. Unfortunately, this was not the case. Despite the years of advocacy
aimed at City Planning personnel we were never able to stop tree variances from being issued which caused
Downtown to lose out on hundreds of thousands of dollars “worth” of tree canopy. Once a tree variance is
issued, and they are granted all the time for Downtown projects, we never end up seeing those trees – the
fees end up going into a black hole and no one is quite sure who decides how they can be used – including City
Planning personnel. We are the only tree-planting organization native to Downtown Los Angeles, so if we do
not know how these funds get accessed locally, then it is safe to say it cannot be known. Further, the fact that
trees “in containers” can count as trees planted for a project, ignores larger stormwater management
concerns for the LA River Watershed upon which Downtown sits. All trees required to be planted should be
mandated to be planted in the ground.
Mayor Garcetti announced a new partnership with Google called “The Tree Canopy Lab”. A cursory look at
Downtown with this tool shows that our industrial neighborhoods average around 3 ½% canopy coverage. A
healthy % would be closer to 15% (Why We No Longer Recommend a 40 Percent Urban Tree Canopy Goal -
American Forests). Compounding these already unhealthy conditions are the large amounts of emissions
pumped into the area from semi-trucks that travel through this zone, which exacerbate an already vulnerable
population. Additionally, large warehouses amplify the urban heat island effect, making hot days even more
unbearable. The negative effects of not having tree-lined streets are immediate and unavoidable, especially
for the homeless who struggle to find relief from the sun’s rays during LA’s sweltering summers. Residents of
the neighborhood - both homeless and housed, have been almost completely disconnected from nature.
Since the last decade of intense development Downtown has led to an uneven distribution of public benefits,
with over half of Downtown seeing no new park space added, there is nothing that tells me that the next
decade will be any different, despite anything included in the DTLA 2040 Community Plan Update. There are
no mandates for park space/per new unit built. No mandates for WHERE any new parks would be built, and no
guarantee tree variances would not continue to be issued. It is not like Downtown does not desperately need
the trees. Where does City Planning think the funding for an urban forest is supposed to come from if tree
variances keep getting passed out like candy?
Our ask is that you mandate trees as well as park and greenspace square footage/per new unit built from
development projects and that you bake in accessibility for all corners of Downtown. Someone that lives near
the intersection of the LA River and 10 freeway should not have to travel two miles away to access a park.
Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Co-founder of Industrial District Green

cc: Craig Weber, craig.weber@lacity.org

Brittany Arceneaux, brittany.arceneaux@lacity.org
Jordan Hallman, Jordan.hallman@lacity.org
Valerie Watson, valerie.watson@lacity.org
Veena Snehansh, veena.snehansh@lacity.org

Industrial District Green Tel: (213) 293-1425 Email: info@industrialdistrictgreen.org Web: www.industrialdistrictgreen.org