Topline:
L.A. Mayor Karen Bass on Friday laid out her vision for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, announcing a series of orders aimed at mobilizing city resources to prepare for the summer of 2028.
What's in the directive: Bass directed city officials to focus on mobility and transit, city services, and streamlining bureaucratic processes like permitting for Olympics-related projects.
Why now: The Games are 1,000 days away — an eternity in the eyes of some, but a sprint for the city tasked with hosting it all. Organizers say putting on the Olympics is the equivalent of hosting seven Super Bowls a day for a month.
The backstory: Los Angeles has twice hosted the Olympics in the past, but 2028 will mark the first time the city will put on the Paralympics, which convenes the world's best athletes with disabilities to compete.
Read on... for what else Bass is directing L.A. to do to prepare.
L.A. Mayor Karen Bass on Friday laid out her vision for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, announcing a series of orders aimed at mobilizing city resources to prepare for the summer of 2028.
In an executive directive, Bass directed city officials to focus on mobility and transit, city services and streamlining bureaucratic processes like permitting for Olympics-related projects.
Speaking in front of some of Venice Beach's iconic palm trees, Bass painted the Olympics as a chance to leave the city more prosperous and functional for its residents.
"It is an opportunity to reimagine our infrastructure, strengthen community resilience, and expand opportunity for all Angelenos," she said on the beachfront that will host the Olympic and Paralympic Triathlon competitions.
Why now?
The Games are 1,000 days away — an eternity in the eyes of some, but a sprint for the city tasked with hosting it all. Organizers say putting on the Olympics is the equivalent of hosting seven Super Bowls a day for a month. Millions are expected to pour into L.A. and its neighboring cities for the spectacle. Plus, the city's on the hook financially if the Games go over budget.
Los Angeles has twice hosted the Olympics, but 2028 will mark the first time the city will put on the Paralympics, which convenes the world's best athletes with disabilities to compete.
Bass said Friday that the Olympic and Paralympic Games were an opportunity to improve city services for all Angelenos, including those with disabilities.
What’s in the executive directive?
The mayor directed the city's Office of Major Events to work with a group of city departments to make a list of public right-of-way and mobility projects to prioritize and fast-track.
Paul Krekorian, the former Los Angeles City Council member who now heads up the city's major events office, said Friday that these projects will include preparing areas around venues for an influx of spectators. He said that will mean shade structures, bathrooms and, at times, closing down streets for pedestrians.
" I think it's difficult for people to understand the scale of the '28 Games and how impactful it's going to be on everyday life," Krekorian said. " We're going to have hundreds of thousands of people approaching these venues. And so for probably a mile outside of the venue, we're gonna have to make sure that we have improvements to the right of way."
The city's budget crisis means resources for such improvements are slim. Krekorian told LAist that funding for infrastructure improvements like fixing the city's beleaguered sidewalks typically falls on the city — and that the priority will be putting projects near Olympic venues at the top of the queue rather than investing more city money.
"It just means reprioritizing where we're doing that work and when," he said, emphasizing that he sees projects ahead of the Games as a model for how Los Angeles can improve its services across the city.
Part of the mayor's directive also seeks to bring in money from the Games. Bass is asking her staff to look into renting city properties to countries, organizations and other interest groups that will come to town in 2028.
Bass also directed city departments to streamline permitting applications related to the games, and urged the city planning department to quickly work on an ordinance that would allow some temporary builds to bypass zoning regulations and city planning approval. The L.A. City Council will need to approve that ordinance, and advanced a plan to do so earlier this month. As planned, the ordinance would also create a pathway for temporary Olympic projects like bathrooms or water stations to become permanent.
What else will be prioritized?
Another major question ahead of the Games is if L.A. will be prepared to deliver a “transit-first” Olympics in a city known for its sprawl and car culture.
Metro has an ambitious plan for 28 projects by 2028, including more bus services, bike lanes and rail expansions, but faces questions on if it can all get done in time and on budget.
On Friday, Bass directed the city engineer and the head of the city’s transportation department to report back on ways to streamline permitting and support Metro projects.
"We are thrilled with the executive directive to build on what we've been doing together," Metro CEO Stephanie Wiggins said on Friday. "Metro's goals related to the Games are clear."
Wiggins referenced plans to add thousands of buses to Metro's fleet to temporarily bulk up transit for the Games, as well as long-standing projects like the Metro D-Line extension. The first segment of that project is expected to be completed early next year.
She said that once the full D-Line is completed, a trip from the Olympic village at UCLA to downtown Los Angeles should take less than 30 minutes.
