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CCA's President & CEO Carol Schatz participates in AEG's groundbreaking ceremony for the Ritz-Carlton Residences and the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott Hotel at L.A. Live with City and State officials, including Governor Schwarzenegger, Assembly Speaker Nunez, Mayor Villaraigosa, and Councilwoman Jan Perry. (Photo courtesy of Wachovia.)
CCA Welcomes Hotel and Residences to L.A. Live
CCA's President & CEO Carol Schatz participated in a panel discussion and groundbreaking ceremony to mark the future addition of the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott Hotel and the Ritz-Carlton Residences to CCA-member AEG's L.A. Live project, adjacent to the Staples Center and the Los Angeles Convention Center. Joined by Governor Schwarzenegger , Assembly Speaker Nunez , Mayor Villaraigosa , Councilwoman Perry, and numerous civic, business and community leaders, AEG moved forward with Phase II of the L.A. Live project, which will add the Hotel and residential density to the site.
CCA has been long awaiting this component of the project, as the proposed Hotel will enhance the economic potential of the Convention Center and make it competitive with other regional convention centers. With Phase I of the project, which includes the Nokia Theatre, already underway, L.A. Live is a critical facet of Downtown's continued renaissance.
CCA has been a strong advocate of L.A. Live since its inception and helped shepard the project through the legislative process, testifying at numerous public hearings. The Nokia Theatre is set to open in October 2007. The Hotel will open in 2010.
Promoting Investment in Redevelopment Areas: CCA Submits Policy Recommendations to the CRA Board CCA submitted policy recommendations to the CRA Board of Commissioners outlining business-friendly solutions to promote investment and development in redevelopment areas. Over the past several years, CCA has grown increasingly concerned with the number of policies and recommendations promoted by the CRA Board that, collectively, make it more difficult and expensive to develop in CRA areas. In particular, CCA has been closely monitoring the CRA Board's monthly Policy Review Committee meetings, where the agendas emphasize anti-development policies such as project labor agreements, prevailing wage, and local hiring requirements.
Meeting with CRA Commissioners Bill Jackson and Bruce Ackerman in March, CCA's Housing, Land Use & Development Committee expressed concern with the direction of the Board. In response, the Commissioners requested that CCA outline the business community's priorities and "vision" for the CRA.
CCA's recommendations include: (1) incentivize affordable and workforce housing production; (2) require public benefits for financially-assisted projects only; (3) eliminate mandates associated with discretionary review; (4) extend the CRA's power of eminent domain; (5) revise the CRA's Art Policy to be consistent with the City's Art Policy; (6) hire additional staff and coordinate with City departments; and (7) re-evaluate project areas. CCA looks forward to discussing these pro-investment recommendations with the Commissioners, and will advocate that they be agendized in the CRA's Policy Review Committee.
CCA's President & CEO Carol Schatz participates in AEG's groundbreaking ceremony for the Ritz-Carlton Residences and the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott Hotel at L.A. Live with City and State officials, including Governor Schwarzenegger, Assembly Speaker Nunez, Mayor Villaraigosa, and Councilwoman Jan Perry. (Photo courtesy of Wachovia.)
CCA Welcomes Hotel and Residences to L.A. Live
CCA's President & CEO Carol Schatz participated in a panel discussion and groundbreaking ceremony to mark the future addition of the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott Hotel and the Ritz-Carlton Residences to CCA-member AEG's L.A. Live project, adjacent to the Staples Center and the Los Angeles Convention Center. Joined by Governor Schwarzenegger , Assembly Speaker Nunez , Mayor Villaraigosa , Councilwoman Perry, and numerous civic, business and community leaders, AEG moved forward with Phase II of the L.A. Live project, which will add the Hotel and residential density to the site.
CCA has been long awaiting this component of the project, as the proposed Hotel will enhance the economic potential of the Convention Center and make it competitive with other regional convention centers. With Phase I of the project, which includes the Nokia Theatre, already underway, L.A. Live is a critical facet of Downtown's continued renaissance.
CCA has been a strong advocate of L.A. Live since its inception and helped shepard the project through the legislative process, testifying at numerous public hearings. The Nokia Theatre is set to open in October 2007. The Hotel will open in 2010.
Promoting Investment in Redevelopment Areas: CCA Submits Policy Recommendations to the CRA Board CCA submitted policy recommendations to the CRA Board of Commissioners outlining business-friendly solutions to promote investment and development in redevelopment areas. Over the past several years, CCA has grown increasingly concerned with the number of policies and recommendations promoted by the CRA Board that, collectively, make it more difficult and expensive to develop in CRA areas. In particular, CCA has been closely monitoring the CRA Board's monthly Policy Review Committee meetings, where the agendas emphasize anti-development policies such as project labor agreements, prevailing wage, and local hiring requirements.
Meeting with CRA Commissioners Bill Jackson and Bruce Ackerman in March, CCA's Housing, Land Use & Development Committee expressed concern with the direction of the Board. In response, the Commissioners requested that CCA outline the business community's priorities and "vision" for the CRA.
CCA's recommendations include: (1) incentivize affordable and workforce housing production; (2) require public benefits for financially-assisted projects only; (3) eliminate mandates associated with discretionary review; (4) extend the CRA's power of eminent domain; (5) revise the CRA's Art Policy to be consistent with the City's Art Policy; (6) hire additional staff and coordinate with City departments; and (7) re-evaluate project areas. CCA looks forward to discussing these pro-investment recommendations with the Commissioners, and will advocate that they be agendized in the CRA's Policy Review Committee.
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• The City convened a task force with CCA and other key stakeholders to update the Housing Element of the General Plan for 2006-2014. The task force met for the first time last week and will meet through next year. • CCA President & CEO, Carol Schatz, is meeting with City officials to discuss concerns with Council proposals that would extend the authority of Neighborhood Councils to creating Council files and appealing entitlement requests. • The CRA Board's Policy Review Committee will discuss the City's revised TFAR Ordinance on June 7th. In preparation for the hearing, CCA has been meeting with CRA Commissioners, staff, and CEO Cecilia Estolano to explain the new Ordinance and the CRA's limited authority to mandate additional public benefits. CCA IN THE NEWS "Carol Schatz of the Central City Association, who has been working on the project for years, said the hotel will bring tourists and local residents downtown. "'We have met the mark when it comes to housing," Schatz said. "For the first time in decades, you see people pushing baby carriages and walking their dogs. This hotel will bring more investment and more people to the downtown area.'" June 1, L.A. Daily News , " Ground Broken for Downtown Mega Hotel ," by Rick Orlov.
STAFF CONTACT Director of Business Development, Lauren Klausen ( lklausen@ccala.org ) |
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