David Wagner
covers housing in Southern California, a place where the lack of affordable housing contributes to homelessness.
Published January 22, 2024 5:00 AM
Developer Steven Scheibe stands on the dirt lot where he hopes to soon begin construction on a 44-unit building reserved for low and moderate-income renters.
(
David Wagner
/
LAist
)
Topline:
After telling affordable housing developers that their projects would no longer be delayed by lengthy environmental reviews, Los Angeles city officials have quietly started accepting challenges from groups opposed to new apartments.
The background: During her first week in office, Bass signed an executive order streamlining the approval of new affordable housing. That initiative — Executive Directive One, or ED1 — exempts new low-income housing from lengthy environmental reviews.
The details: One developer aiming to build a four-story apartment building for low and moderate-income renters in the Westside neighborhood of Sawtelle was assured by the L.A. Planning Department last month that their building was exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Two weeks later, the same department accepted a CEQA appeal from opponents of the project.
Keep reading... for next steps and more details on the efforts to expedite affordable housing.
L.A. Mayor Karen Bass has made speeding up the development of new affordable housing a centerpiece of both her successful campaign and her time in office.
During her first week on the job, Bass signed an executive order streamlining the approval of new affordable housing. Executive Directive One, or ED1, represents her biggest step toward making good on those promises. And exempting new affordable housing from lengthy environmental reviews has been a key pillar of ED1.
Now, about a year after her swearing in, LAist has found that city officials have quietly started accepting environmental challenges from groups opposed to new apartments.
One developer aiming to construct a four-story apartment building for low and moderate-income renters in the Westside neighborhood of Sawtelle was assured in writing by the L.A. Planning Department in mid-December that their project was exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Two weeks later, the same department accepted a CEQA appeal from opponents of the development.
Steven Scheibe — co-founder of Generation Real Estate Partners, the company behind the development — said the city signing off on a CEQA challenge was “highly unexpected.”
“It's pretty frustrating,” he said. “It has obviously delayed the start of construction, which we were expecting to do in the middle of February. We're unlikely to be able to start at that time period.”
Scheibe and his partners submitted the project through ED1, which promises to speed up the construction of 100% affordable housing projects by approving applications within 60 days, and issuing building permits within five days.
Exempting projects from CEQA allows developers to avoid lengthy environmental impact studies that can delay new housing construction, often for a year or more. So far, the city has fast-tracked dozens of projects under ED1 that bypass CEQA.
The Planning Department’s guidelines continue to say that ED1 projects are “exempt” from environmental review. A letter of compliance Scheibe received on Dec. 12 explicitly says his project “is statutorily exempt” from CEQA. Scheibe was surprised to see the city sign off on a CEQA appeal on Dec. 27, because he was counting on ED1’s guarantees.
Standing in a dirt parcel where two single-family homes were recently torn down to make way for the 44-unit project, Scheibe said, “We would not have acquired this lot if it wasn't for ED1.”
So far, affordable housing plans have nearly doubled
L.A. housing advocates have generally cheered ED1, saying it has convinced many private developers to build affordable housing without taxpayer funding.
The planning department reported in late November that in ED1’s first year, the program had received proposals for more than 9,000 units of new affordable housing, almost double the amount proposed the previous year.
But some housing advocates now worry that the Sawtelle project’s appeal could open the floodgates for all ED1 projects to be delayed.
“I think it was a bad decision. I think the city should have not accepted the appeal,” said Scott Epstein, the policy director for the pro-housing group Abundant Housing L.A. “This appeal directly attacks ED1 and its legitimacy.”
A street sign designating this neighborhood as “Sawtelle Japantown” hangs above a busy intersection on L.A.’s Westside.
(
David Wagner/LAist
)
In response to questions from LAist, the mayor’s office said they’re currently working with the city attorney on how to handle the appeal moving forward.
“CEQA should not be used as a strategy to block affordable housing projects from moving forward,” said Clara Karger, a spokesperson for the mayor’s office, via email. She said ED1 “cuts through red tape and breaks down bureaucratic barriers.”
Could environmental appeals derail new low-income housing?
If time-consuming CEQA appeals are allowed to move forward, L.A. could struggle to meet obligations under state law to plan for nearly 185,000 new low-income homes by 2029.
City planning officials also recently accepted a CEQA appeal for an ED1 project in the San Fernando Valley’s Sherman Oaks neighborhood. Land use attorney Dave Rand, who represents the developers behind the project, described the appeal as a “Hail Mary” attempt by opponents.
Rand believes city officials’ hands were tied by opponents’ interpretation of state law, essentially forcing them to accept the CEQA appeals. But he expects the city to bat down the challenges.
“Even though this is an annoyance and a slight hiccup in the process, this by no means undercut the substantial benefit of ED1,” Rand said.
It’s unclear what happens next for the projects facing CEQA challenges. Typically, these appeals go to the city council, where public commenters will have a chance to express opposition or support for new housing projects. Affordable housing developers expected their ED1 projects to proceed without contentious public hearings and council votes.
“All of this is very new for both us and for the city,” said Scheibe. “We're unsure as to what it means. But we do know that we're going to be delayed.”
Why opponents are fighting new housing on L.A.’s Westside
State lawmakers passed the California Environmental Quality Act in 1970, and it was signed into law by Gov. Ronald Reagan. The law requires studies and disclosures of possible environmental harms from various development projects.
A fierce debate has raged over the years about CEQA’s role in slow-rolling, and even killing, new housing. Local governments exempt many projects from CEQA. The California Legislative Analyst’s Office has concluded that CEQA is often used to delay or scale down housing projects, and can result in years of review for projects in the state’s largest cities.
A “now leasing” sign advertises apartments for rent in L.A.’s Sawtelle neighborhood.
(
David Wagner/LAist
)
Opponents of the Sawtelle project have raised some familiar objections to new housing, including concerns about street parking. Located about a mile from two Metro stops on the Gold Line, the project includes no on-site parking.
Other complaints have centered on perceived impacts to nearby property values and neighborhood crime levels. Manhattan Beach resident Allen Pachtman owns an apartment building next to the proposed 44-unit building. He helped organize the CEQA appeal filed by a group calling itself Missouri Avenue Neighbors.
“I can just picture somewhere down the line that it's going to end up being a high-crime neighborhood,” Pachtman said. “People will be leaving, and it'll just ratchet downwards.”
Pachtman, a doctor, said he’s relying on the apartment building on Missouri Avenue to help fund his retirement. But he worries new low-income apartments next door will harm that investment.
“It’s going to degrade the value of my building,” Pachtman said. “I don't know if that's environmental enough. I don’t know that you're going to be able to measure, like, air pollution is any worse. But the quality of life is certainly going to decline.”
Such concerns about the impact of low-income housing on neighborhoods have been studied, with academic researchers finding that these projects do not hurt nearby property values and do not increase crime. When LAist asked Pachtman by phone to elaborate on his concerns about increased crime, he hung up and ended the interview.
One-bedroom apartments near UCLA for under $1,900
The proposed Sawtelle project consists mainly of one-bedroom apartments. Most of the units will be restricted to tenants in the city who qualify as low-income (the cut-off is currently $70,640 for a one-person household).
The project also includes a few studios and two-bedroom apartments. Some units will be reserved for moderate-income tenants (those earning up to $82,500 for a one-person household).
If the apartments were being rented today, most one-bedroom units in the building would rent for no more than $1,892 per month.
“If you go two blocks over, you're looking at $3,000 rents for a one-bedroom,” said Scheibe. “We saw this as a really good opportunity to provide affordable housing that is at a major discount.”
Unlike other ED1 projects in areas such as South L.A., where existing renters are now facing relocation, no tenants were displaced for this project. Scheibe said many of the prospective tenants will likely be students and staff commuting to the nearby UCLA campus without a car.
Should ED1 projects be stopped in cultural districts?
Some opponents of the Sawtelle project have argued the entire neighborhood should be off-limits to ED1 projects. They’ve said it’s unfair that Bass banned ED1 projects in single-family neighborhoods, while allowing developments in designated ethnic enclaves such as Sawtelle’s Japantown.
“What we foresee is that this will be of catastrophic effect to us,” said Cesar Aranguri during a recent planning and land use committee meeting of the West Los Angeles Sawtelle Neighborhood Council. “It’s striking right at our core in terms of our culture and our history.”
A hand-written sign calls on residents to help “save Sawtelle” by weighing in on plans for a new affordable housing project in the neighborhood.
(
David Wagner/LAist
)
Aranguri presented a plan calling on Bass to exclude all named cultural districts from ED1, just as she did back in June for single-family neighborhoods. California housing advocates have already sued over the city’s decision to halt projects in single-family zones, which make up 74% of the city’s residential land.
Scheibe says affordable housing benefits communities. In Sawtelle, he says new low-income housing could provide a place for aging Japanese American residents to live.
“A lot of seniors who want to stay in their neighborhood feel like they're being priced out,” he said. “This would provide an opportunity for them.”
Where lawmakers stand on the appeals
The district’s council member, Traci Park, said she has not yet taken a position on whether the CEQA appeal should move forward.
“I was surprised that it had been accepted,” Park told LAist. “Now that it’s there, and the question exists, it's going to have to be answered. I don't know that there is any kind of process to roll back the appeal.”
Kristina Kropp, the attorney helping opponents of the Sawtelle and Sherman Oaks projects pursue the CEQA appeals, declined to comment for this story.
Councilmember Nithya Raman, who represents Sherman Oaks, has supported the ED1 project in that neighborhood. The full council is currently considering a plan to transform ED1 from a mayoral directive into a permanent ordinance.
What happens next?
Meanwhile, L.A. faces a lawsuit aiming to overturn ED1 in its entirety. The Westside nonprofit Fix The City, which frequently sues the city over land use issues, filed the complaint in December, claiming ED1 “eliminates public hearings, due process and the right of appeal.”
The developers behind the Sawtelle project have sent the city a letter demanding a dismissal of the CEQA appeal. They said if the city fails to overturn the challenge within 90 days, it will be in violation of the state’s Housing Accountability Act.
The legal sparring is playing out against the backdrop of a worsening housing crisis. Most L.A. County tenants pay more than 30% of their income on rent according to the U.S. Census Bureau, a level deemed unaffordable by federal government standards. The number of people experiencing homelessness in the city of L.A. increased 10% last year to 46,260.
Scott Epstein with Abundant Housing L.A. said environmental challenges, which he sees as often abuses of CEQA’s original intent, are slowing down much-needed new housing.
“We need to shift our attitude away from the notion that housing is an impact, and toward the notion that housing is a benefit,” Epstein said.
Lucas Brady Woods
covers the weather and disasters, among other climate and science topics.
Published August 24, 2026 4:32 PM
People shade themselves with umbrellas near the Santa Monica Pier on Monday. Even at the coast this week, expect very little relief from the sweltering weather.
(
Arwen Clemans
/
Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
)
Topline:
The National Weather Service has issued extreme heat warnings for much of Southern California from Tuesday morning through Friday evening.
The details: Highs in downtown Los Angeles are expected to reach 100 degrees over the next few days. The warmest parts of inland valleys, such as Santa Clarita, are expected to get up to 112. L.A. County beaches will hit the high 80s. Temperatures are expected to peak between Tuesday and Thursday and cool down slightly over the weekend, although they will stay above normal.
Driving the heat: A high pressure system over the southwestern U.S. is largely to blame for this heat wave and others this summer. At the same time, offshore winds are blocking the ocean’s cooling effect.
Smog concerns: Air quality officials have issued an advisory for high ozone pollution this week, caused in part by the heatwave.
Read on … for more details on this week’s forecast.
There unfortunately isn’t much respite in sight for heat-weary Southern Californians.
Forecasters say this week’s heat wave is likely to be the hottest so far this summer. Extreme heat warnings will be in effect from the National Weather Service for almost the entire region from Tuesday morning through Friday evening.
Temperatures will peak between Tuesday and Thursday.
Highs in downtown Los Angeles are expected to reach around 100 degrees, and the warmest inland valleys will get up to 112. L.A. County beaches will hit the high 80s.
Forecasters have also issued Red Flag Warnings for the interior mountains and foothills of Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. Gusty winds and low humidity at higher elevations mean fires could spark and spread quickly.
At lower elevations, humidity continues to make the heat feel more sweltering and make it harder to cool down, especially at night. Nighttime temperatures will only get down to the 70s in most places, including along the coast.
A slight cooldown is expected this weekend, though forecasters say temperatures will stay above normal into next week.
The extreme heat this week poses an especially high risk of heat-related illness for people over 65, young children, people who work or spend a lot of time outside and those without access to air conditioning.
Staying safe in the heat
Hydrate
Don't wait until you're thirsty to drink water or electrolyte replacements.
Drink cool water, not extremely cold water (which can cause cramps).
Avoid sweetened drinks, caffeine and alcohol.
Protect pets
Never leave a pet or animal in a garage.
Never leave a pet or animal in a vehicle.
Never leave a pet or animal in the sun.
Provide shade.
Provide clean drinking water.
Protect people
Check in frequently with family, friends and neighbors.
Offer assistance or rides to those who are sick or have limited access to transportation.
And give extra attention to people most at risk, including:
Elderly people (65 years and older).
Infants.
Young children.
People with chronic medical conditions.
People with mental illness.
People taking certain medications (i.e.: "If your doctor generally limits the amount of fluid you drink or has you on water pills, ask how much you should drink while the weather is hot," the CDC recommends).
Driving the heat
Several factors are behind this week’s heat wave, many of which have also been behind the rest of this summer’s consistently hot weather.
The main driver is a high pressure air system hovering over the southwestern U.S., trapping warm air, compressing it and warming it further, and blocking cooler air from entering the region.
Offshore winds are also pushing warm inland air toward the coast, preventing cooler onshore winds from blowing inland.
“That blocks our natural air conditioning off the ocean from coming in as early as it normally does,” said Weather Service meteorologist Mike Wofford. “So as long as that cool air stays offshore, it heats up on land.”
The offshore winds are not strong enough, however, to significantly dry out the air in the L.A. Basin and cut down on the humidity.
“That's probably going to be around for the whole summer because you’ve got all this warm ocean water that's feeding into that,” Wofford said.
Warmer seawater evaporates faster, adding to moisture in the air and increasing humidity across the region, especially along the coasts.
Making sense of heat forecasts
Southern Californians are no strangers to hot weather in the summer, but heat waves are getting hotter, longer and more frequent as the climate changes.
So you should know the words forecasters use to describe these weather events — and the risks they pose.
Heat advisory: Advisories are issued when temperatures are expected to be hot enough to cause discomfort and potentially lead to heat-related illnesses, especially for more vulnerable populations like young children and the elderly.
Extreme heat watch: Watches are essentially forecasts for upcoming periods of extreme heat. Forecasters say heat watches often cover wide areas and will be revised into more focused warnings and advisories as conditions become clearer over time. Watches are a good time to prepare for extreme heat.
Extreme heat warning: Warnings are issued when heat levels are or will likely become extremely dangerous. Under extreme heat warnings, it's a good idea to avoid strenuous outdoor activity, stay hydrated and help loved ones and pets stay cool.
Along with the heat this week, many Southern Californians also have smog to worry about.
The South Coast Air Quality Management District issued an ozone advisory on Monday for inland areas of Los Angeles and Orange counties, much of Riverside County and parts of San Bernardino County. It will remain in effect through Friday evening.
The multi-day smog event is in part driven by the heatwave.
Officials say ozone pollution may reach unhealthy levels or higher in the Santa Clarita Valley, parts of the San Gabriel and San Bernardino valleys, and portions of the San Bernardino Mountains.
Under unhealthy levels, it’s possible for anyone to experience adverse health effects like difficulty breathing and throat irritation. Sensitive populations could experience more serious effects.
Levels are expected to be unhealthy for sensitive groups in the San Fernando Valley, Perris Valley, Mission Viejo, Lake Elsinore, Corona, Hemet, Riverside and Pasadena.
Officials advise certain vulnerable groups — including people with heart or lung disease, those with asthma, pregnant women, children and people over 65 — to limit their time outdoors.
Officials predict that ozone levels will be lower along the coast.
Jill Replogle
covers public corruption, debates over our voting system, culture war battles — and more.
Published August 24, 2026 4:11 PM
Water is sprayed on a damaged tank at GKN Aerospace in Garden Grove in May after the tank containing a chemical used to make plastic parts overheated.
(
Allen J. Schaben
/
Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
)
Topline:
The company responsible for the Garden Grove hazmat scare earlier this year, which forced some 50,000 residents to evacuate, announced a $100 million compensation fund on Monday.
Who can apply? The fund from GKN Aerospace will be available to nearby residents and businesses that suffered damages associated with the evacuation.
The backstory: Over Memorial Day weekend, a tank full of toxic and highly flammable chemicals at GKN’s Garden Grove plant threatened to explode, forcing residents in six surrounding cities to evacuate. The emergency subsided after first responders discovered the tank had a crack, which relieved the internal pressure.
What will the fund cover? Applicants can request reimbursement for hotel stays, meals, transportation, loss of wages and loss of use. Details are pending, including how to apply. The program is expected to launch this fall, according to the company’s announcement.
A deal with O.C. prosecutors: The compensation fund is part of a settlement deal under negotiation between the company and the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, according to the company’s announcement and a news release from District Attorney Todd Spitzer. The D.A.’s Office, Spitzer added, concluded its criminal investigation into the incident as part of the deal.
Keep up with LAist.
If you're enjoying this article, you'll love our daily newsletter, The LA Report. Each weekday, catch up on the 5 most pressing stories to start your morning in 3 minutes or less.
The Supreme Court has paused a lower court's ruling that blocked key directives from President Donald Trump's executive order to restrict mail-in voting for this fall's midterm election in about two dozen states and Washington, D.C.
The executive order: Trump's order, issued in March, calls for the Department of Homeland Security to develop state lists of adult U.S. citizens and for the Postal Service to obtain lists of eligible mail voters from states. According to the order, USPS is supposed to deliver mail-in ballots only to people on those lists. All election officials would also be required to have certain barcodes on their mail ballot envelopes. But with the start of absentee voting for the midterms just weeks away, legal and practical hurdles loom over whether the U.S. Postal Service and other federal agencies can finish carrying out Trump's directives. The order has so far not directly affected eligible absentee voters' option to cast ballots by mail.
The ruling: Released Monday, the order marks the latest court action in the legal fight over Trump's order — one of many efforts he has made to try to exert control over how elections are run. In June, a lower court In June, blocked key parts of Trump's order in the 23 mainly Democratic-led states, plus Washington, D.C., that sued the administration. The Supreme Court has now granted emergency requests from the administration and 12 Republican-led states to pause the judge's June ruling while not weighing in on the legality of Trump's order.
The Supreme Court has paused a lower court's ruling that blocked key directives from President Trump's executive order to restrict mail-in voting for this fall's midterm election in about two dozen states and Washington, D.C.
But with the start of absentee voting for the midterms just weeks away, legal and practical hurdles loom over whether the U.S. Postal Service and other federal agencies can finish carrying out Trump's directives.
Released Monday, the order marks the latest court action in the legal fight over Trump's March order — one of many efforts he has made to try to exert control over how elections are run.
As part of a separate but related lawsuit, the U.S. Postal Service remains blocked from following Trump's directives under a nationwide ruling released Aug. 11 by U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston.
The Supreme Court did not weigh in on the legality of Trump's executive order, which has so far not directly affected eligible absentee voters' option to cast ballots by mail.
In June, Talwani issued an earlier ruling that blocked key parts of Trump's order in the 23 mainly Democratic-led states, plus Washington, D.C., that sued the administration.
Trump's order calls for the Department of Homeland Security to develop state lists of adult U.S. citizens and for the Postal Service to obtain lists of eligible mail voters from states. According to the order, USPS is supposed to deliver mail-in ballots only to people on those lists. All election officials would also be required to have certain barcodes on their mail ballot envelopes.
Talwani's June ruling concluded Trump overstepped a president's authority under the Constitution, which gives power to state legislatures and Congress to set federal election rules. USPS, which is independent of a president's administration, also has no legal authority to control mail-in voting, the judge found.
It remains unclear what impact the high court's order will actually have on eligible mail-in voters.
The legal fight is likely far from over, with a separate set of lawsuits led by Democrats and voting rights groups continuing to play out as this fall's election draws closer.
The administration has previously acknowledged the shrinking window of opportunity for the administration to implement Trump's order for this year's midterms. In a July court filing, U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer noted that there may not be enough time to resolve the legal challenges through the appeals process with the courts.
"That is especially true because implementation efforts for any USPS rule or DHS policy will need to begin well before November—indeed, as soon as early to mid-August—to be effective for the 2026 election, particularly given that absentee and mail-in voting begin (in some States) several weeks prior to Election Day," Sauer noted.
Editor's note: USPS is a financial supporter of NPR.
Lineage Logistics walked back its report that it had removed more than 100% of food waste from its burned Boyle Heights warehouse, acknowledging the figure misled residents about how much rotting food remains inside.
(
Steve Saldivar
/
The LA Local
)
Topline:
Lineage Logistics walked back its report that it had removed more than 100% of food waste from its burned Boyle Heights warehouse, acknowledging the figure misled residents about how much rotting food remains inside.
Revised calculation: Lineage last week reported through a community update that it had removed 104% of the rancid food waste from the warehouse, a figure that confused many residents because cleanup was not complete. In a community update on Sunday, Aug. 23, Lineage said that Freezer 2 has been demolished and all food waste removed, and that Freezer 1, the remaining room, is 92% clean of food waste. “Our prior reporting percentages tied weight removed from the building relative to our estimates of total food weight at the time of the fire,” reads a statement from Lineage. “That approach produced figures greater than 100% in our reporting this week, potentially creating the misimpression that food removal waste was complete when it is not.”
Full cleanup deadline: The company also pushed back its timeline for when it would finish food removal until Aug. 30, about a week behind the deadlines required by a South Coast Air Quality Management District order from earlier this month. That could open the company up to fines, though AQMD didn’t immediately respond to The LA Local about what consequences Lineage would face.
Lineage Logistics walked back its report that it had removed more than 100% of food waste from its burned Boyle Heights warehouse, acknowledging the figure misled residents about how much rotting food remains inside.
The company also pushed back its timeline for when it would finish food removal until Aug. 30, about a week behind the deadlines required by a South Coast Air Quality Management District order from earlier this month. That could open the company up to fines, though AQMD didn’t immediately respond to The LA Local about what consequences Lineage would face.
Lineage last week reported through a community update that it had removed 104% of the rancid food waste from the warehouse, a figure that confused many residents because cleanup was not complete. A company spokesperson admitted that the percentage was misleading for residents who have voiced their frustration about putrid air, the health hazards of living near the facility and confusion about how long the cleanup will take.
Lineage Logistics walked back its report that it had removed more than 100% of food waste from its burned Boyle Heights warehouse, acknowledging the figure misled residents about how much rotting food remains inside.
In a community update on Sunday, Aug. 23, Lineage said that Freezer 2 has been demolished and all food waste removed, and that Freezer 1, the remaining room, is 92% clean of food waste.
“Our prior reporting percentages tied weight removed from the building relative to our estimates of total food weight at the time of the fire,” reads a statement from Lineage. “That approach produced figures greater than 100% in our reporting this week, potentially creating the misimpression that food removal waste was complete when it is not.”
It added that moving forward, the company would measure 100% cleanup when “food waste removal is fully done.”
The revised calculations for cleanup completion come after questions from residents and reporting by The LA Local and Boyle Heights Beat about how Lineage has been reporting its progress and how that progress is being verified by public officials.
The cleanup progress has been largely based on the company’s estimates.
The LA Local obtained a copy of the daily reports Lineage is required to send to AQMD, showing that the company reports to the oversight agency the number of waste bins of food they remove each day and estimates the pounds of food they contain.
The company has already missed multiple deadlines.
Lineage failed to meet the Aug. 20 deadline for bulk food cleanup established by the order it agreed to with AQMD. There is a second approaching deadline, disinfecting the remaining freezer facility after all the food is removed, which is scheduled for Aug. 27.
AQMD did not immediately respond to The LA Local’s inquiries about what consequences Lineage faces for violating that order.
Lineage said that it expects to spend about $100 million on cleanup, and stressed that it has been working diligently to remove the food and damaged materials from the remaining freezer room.
“We are not pausing, slowing, or reducing our work in any way. If anything, this final stretch demands more focused effort, not less urgency, and we are treating it that way,” the press release reads.
