Photo by LaBellaVida via Flickr

Changes could be brewing over at Olvera Street where a Downtown News investigation looks at the cost of rent, which is currently well below market rate. The area, which is run by a City of Los Angeles department not quite self-sufficient yet:

El Pueblo, a collection of shops and cultural attractions on the site of the city's birthplace, operates on an annual budget of $4.1 million. The department earns $800,000 a year from rent paid by merchants and takes in about $2 million from parking fees, although moves were recently made to hike parking rates by 30%.

Approximately $300,000 a year comes from filming, but El Pueblo still requires about $1 million from the city's general fund to balance its budget.

Officials are looking into rent increases and the weekly paper also says a new coffeehouse is on its way to the historical street. "Camacho's Incorporated, which operates restaurants in Staples Center and numerous other locales, has signed a deal to open a 3,460-square-foot coffeehouse and store in the old Bank of America building..." Hopefully this won't affect the lovely vegan friendly Casa de Sousa, which also serves some excellent iced hot chocolate.

Speaking of rent, tomorrow California votes on Propositions 98 and 99 with outcomes that could severely affect rent control in the state.