The Brief

Los Angeles City Council District 14 will soon have a new representative in Ysabel Jurado.

She defeated incumbent Kevin de León earlier this month after a tense race, scooping up 57% of the vote in the district that includes parts of Boyle Heights, Highland Park and downtown L.A.

Jurado — a tenant rights attorney, daughter of undocumented Filipino immigrants, and single mother — spoke with LAist's Morning Edition host Austin Cross about her top priorities as the newly-elected councilmember. This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

Housing issues in CD14

LAist: Let's talk about housing because your background as a tenant, your background as a tenant rights attorney gives you a unique perspective. What are the most urgent housing issues that you're seeing in your district right now?

Jurado: We have to stop the eviction to homelessness pipeline, strengthen our renter protections, actually fund the departments that can enforce it to make sure that folks like our seniors can stay in the housing that they've stayed in for the majority of their lives.

That is a huge issue for us. So making sure that renters have a place to stay, using the ULA funds that we all voted for to make sure that seniors can still stay in these low income affordable units for the duration of their livelihood, right? Making sure that folks can age well in the neighborhoods in which they're choosing.

And when it comes to homelessness, this district is home to Skid Row and we haven't had a City Council leader that's been able to corral all of the agencies, non profits, mutual aid groups that are coordinating in that area. And so wanting to work hand in glove with Supervisor Hilda Solis to really attack Skid Row's homelessness problem and try out new things.

They may not always work out, but we can't keep doing the same things and expecting different results.

Public land for more housing

LAist: In the past, you've pointed to Hilda Solis' Care First Village as an effective, more affordable model for housing. You've also spoken about community land trusts. That was a part of your housing platform. What kind of housing solutions will you prioritize? What do you think is going to bring the most change the most quickly?

Jurado: I mean, one of them is the Care First Villages, right? Supervisor Solis was able to use public lands to build transitional and interim housing for unhoused people, whether it's women, whether it's seniors, whether it's young folks who are just newly unhoused, and able to stand that up in less than six months using rehabbed shipping containers, and that's something that we can be doing in the city.

LAUSD, the county, and the city — we have all of these unused parcels that are underutilized. We already know which ones they are, we should really start leveraging them in that same way to create more interim housing, especially in this district. Comparatively to other districts, this district has less interim housing sites, based on sheer location and numbers.

The second thing is, yes, working with community land trusts, using the public monies we raised through ULA, in order to help give tenants a pathway to homeownership, promising them permanent affordability, making sure that's embedded in the covenant for the housing.

Obstacles to combatting homelessness

LAist: Just looking at some of the numbers, councilmember, L.A. city's latest point in time homeless count saw a 10.4% drop in unsheltered homelessness in the past year. We're still talking about close to 30,000 people living on the streets in L.A. city alone, about 75,000 in the county. What's not happening in your view, though? And how do we speed up the change?

Jurado: Part of it is even just looking at the numbers of shelter beds that we have. The city controller has put out a great briefing on this and showing how we're just not meeting the demand and the need.

CD14 is one of the districts that has the most, and I think there's a lot of discretionary funds that they could be using to tackle these crises head on and yet isn't. I think part of it has to do with priorities and failed leadership and, you know, lack of interest. And so looking at the inspiration from the Care First Village of like innovating through shipping containers, using public lands, we all have the opportunity in this district and we should really be doing that to meet the moment right now with our homeless crisis here in LA.

"F— the police" controversy

LAist: I want to go back to a time during the campaign. There was a moment in that campaign that made national news, and that was your response to a question about police budgets during a public forum at Cal State LA. You quoted a song by N. W. A. Would you have handled that question differently?

Jurado: I mean, I was talking to students and I was reflecting back the sentiment of folks in this district in which, you know, they are concerned with over policing. I think, you know, if anybody knows a parent or someone that's talking to you, or even a group that maybe you're not necessarily a part of, you start from a point of reference in which . . . we'll do something that's familiar to them and then drift off to a further point.

And at the end of the day, we were having a conversation about how neighborhoods like Boyle Heights and El Sereno, you know, they want more policing, but at the same time, they don't want to be over policed. They don't want to call the police when they're the victim and then suddenly be arrested for being the suspect, which is a reality that is far too common than we care to admit, right?

And so, I think we can all have a conversation, a mature one at that, about public safety and also about accountability at the same time. And so, that's what we were having that day, and we can continue to have that as we continue moving forward and looking at our city and trying to figure out what's best for, you know, the constituents in CD14 and greater L.A.

LAist: I mean, a lot of people would say, "Yeah, there's a real benefit to connecting with your audience, meeting them where they are at," — the lyrics of that song, is that your personal view of the police?

Jurado: No. . . you know, the song is a criticism. Like when we think about the song and why it was created, it was created [in] the wake of the violence of Rodney King in an L.A. that was torn.

That's where I grew up. That is, I grew up in Highland Park before it was cool and public safety was a real big issue for me and even one of my cousins joined a gang and got caught up in trouble and struggles with recidivism. And so I think the reality of that is still here. Part of why I ran was, you know, the racial reckoning we were promised post George Floyd, that doesn't feel like it's been reckoned with — really.

And so I think when we look at public safety, it looks different for every community, and my constituents do want more police, and it's about public safety and police accountability. And also thinking about the bigger issues, right? What we've been doing has not been working.

On the LAPD

LAist: I'm sure there will be some efforts to invest in those but looking at topics such as the LAPD staffing levels, they have hit their lowest mark in more than two decades. In your view, should the size of the LAPD grow, shrink, or stay the same?

Jurado: The department has been funded more than it's ever been before. But when we look at departments like street lighting, it's funded less than 1% and has been continued to be cut over the years, especially as we head into a financial deficit. We're looking at CD14 where downtown nearly half of all the lights are out, where every main street in this district, Eagle Rock, Highland Park, El Sereno, down the street from my house, every light has a sign that says out of service call this number, you call the number, and it goes to no one, and the reality is 70% of these lights are out because of lack of maintenance.

Because we've underfunded a department. And so when we think about safety, I really think we should be broadening it, because we know the studies show that lighting industry cleanliness contributes to the safety of a neighborhood.

LAist: I will say on the topic of street lights, that is a topic that we have covered extensively here. There is a task force involving the LAPD regarding those lights because some of the wiring has been removed possibly for profit by individuals. I do want to come back though to my question about LAPD and their size and their budgets. Should they grow, shrink, or stay the same?

Jurado: At the end of the day, we have to look at what's been working and we can't keep doing the same things and expecting different results. And they have already, you know, they've been spot on. They've been paid more than they've ever been before. I don't know if you know this — in the past year, due to bad policing and the liability claims from that, the city has had to dip into 300 million of its reserves.

That's our emergency funds and that was in the first three months of the year, 300 million. And if we continue on that rate, we are going to bankrupt the city, and next year, the city council may need to declare a fiscal emergency, and so every expense after that declaration would have to be voted by a 15-member council. . . So I think we really have to be critical about the choices that we're making in funding departments in this next year, especially with a lot of our responsibilities as council members to our constituents, but also with these global events that are coming up in our city.

LAist: Although you did say that the people within your district, they do want police. How do you find that balance when it sounds as though they might need more police, more hiring might be necessary at this point? It sounds to me as though you aren't really in a position right now to say that you want to put more money toward the hiring of more LAPD officers.

Jurado: When we look at our budget, how can we allocate more money that we don't have? And reimagining public safety and widening what that view means, means different things for every community.

And so part of our first 100 days, in addition to lighting up CD14 . . .doing some deep listening and deep canvassing, which is what we intend to do in our first 100 days, to talk to all of our constituents and see what that is.

The budget cycle is going to come again as it does every single year, but we're in a big fiscal deficit and it sounds like we're not going to have enough money to fund many things this next year.

Street safety and reducing traffic fatalities in CD 14

LAist: What are your plans to improve street safety? Maybe what recommendations would you make to reduce those fatalities?

Jurado: Increasing the multi-modality of downtown is important, but even in neighborhoods like Boyle Heights, which is a neighborhood that is considered a hot spot because it's bordered by a lot of freeways, it is one of the areas where there are a lot of traffic fatalities. So looking at how we can reduce the distraction of drivers, increase the ability to have reliable, accessible transit, and make sure that we do have the cleanliness and the city services to make sure the streets are actually safe for folks and pedestrians alike.

What gives Jurado hope about LA's future?

LAist: My last question, you're entering office at a challenging time for the city. What gives you hope about LA's future? 

Jurado: I always said on the campaign trail, we always find joy in the struggle. Whether we're singing at the picket line or, you know, we're going to organize a party to raise money for someone who needs legal funds.

And I think that this group of people that have elected me have always been able to find joy and work and living in community with one another. And I think that will continue no matter who their elected is, but being elected can uplift that joy and make it easier for people to feel that has always been kind of the thing that brings me joy, right?

And throughout this campaign that has been a through line for me, and everyone that has chipped in has always provided me with some hope that they have for CD 14. So starting a new chapter, having radical colleagues who are willing to join me in the struggle, and all the people that we are serving who still are resolving the problems on their own, creatively and without a budget all the time.

And making sure that working class voices are heard and we'll do it alongside them.

This story first appeared on The LA Local.

Across from an auto shop on Venice Boulevard and Albany Street sits a narrow, sunken strip of land lined with overgrown shrubs and cacti. It’s mostly filled with trash — from plastic bags and cups to containers, straws, chip bags and aluminum foil.

It’s original purpose was to capture and filter storm water runoff, helping reduce flooding and keep pollutants from flowing into the ocean. But neighbors in Pico Union say that this bioswale and many others across the city have become dumping grounds.

The sidewalk features were installed during former Mayor Eric Garcetti’s Complete Streets program around 2018. The initiative aimed to improve streets, add greenery and better manage stormwater along key corridors across the city.

Local resident Aurora Corona — a longtime Pico Union community organizer involved in local environmental and cleanup efforts — said in some instances it looks like the bioswales were not fully installed.

Citywide, there are about 23 bioswales that appear abandoned, Corona said. Many are located in central and South Los Angeles and spread across at least eight council districts.

In some cases, the concrete structures were installed but left without vegetation for years, Corona said, raising concerns that they were never able to function as intended.

Heberto Portobanco, owner of the Nicaraguan restaurant Portobanco in Pico Union, first noticed the bioswale outside his business about eight years ago, but it became hard to ignore about two years ago when it became a hazard.

“We had an accident, one of the people who does maintenance for us came and fell into it,” he said.

The bioswale was deeper and not fully finished, Portobanco said. After multiple people reported what happened to the city, Portobanco said the city added more soil to level it out.

“The idea might be nice, but if it’s not maintained, it’s a problem,” Portobanco said.

The biggest concern for Portobanco remains safety, especially as he said that people continue to use the space improperly or fail to notice it altogether.

He would be willing to help maintain the bioswale outside his restaurant if the city created a formal program to do so.

For him, keeping the space clean is also about pride and perception.

“I don’t want people to think that Latinos are careless and that we don’t take care of our surroundings,” he said, adding that a well-kept space could encourage others to take better care of the neighborhood.

Corona, the local organizer, has experienced similar issues to the ones Portobanco described. 

She lives near two bioswales, including the one near Portobanco’s restaurant.

She first encountered them while organizing a cleanup around 2024 and said she didn’t initially know what they were. What she did know was that they were not being taken care of.

“I was tired of seeing this being a dumping ground, they would just throw trash here all the time,” she said.

That frustration pushed her to take action. She thought of what she had already done with other public spaces in her community.

In 2024, she helped transform a neglected dirt space on Venice Boulevard and Union Avenue into a small community green area — also known as a median — using local grant funding. With the help of volunteers, they removed contaminated soil and planted drought-tolerant greenery.

“It’s only been here since November and it’s grown a lot,” she said about the green belt, pointing to plants that started as small pots and are now taking root.

Corona continues to organize cleanups and, through the city’s “Adopt-a-Median” program, works with neighbors to maintain the space. She said she’d like to see a similar model applied to bioswales — essentially an “Adopt-a-Bioswale” program that would allow residents to take ownership of the ones near them.

“I think people would step up if they were given the chance and the support,” she said.

Across from an auto shop on Venice Boulevard and Albany Street sits a narrow, sunken strip of land lined with overgrown shrubs and cacti. It’s mostly filled with trash — from plastic bags and cups to containers, straws, chip bags and aluminum foil.

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Marina Peña

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The LA Local

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The program for the bioswales, as she envisions it, would involve planting California natives such as dudleya edulis, dudleya pulverulenta and other species that can withstand the weather. It would also call for improving their visibility by painting the bioswale borders in colors that reflect the neighborhood.

That idea has already been discussed at the city level.

Steve Kang, president of the city’s Board of Public Works, agrees that many bioswales now sit “barren” and are treated as “more of a trash repository.” 

He said his office is now working to create a program similar to “Adopt-a-Median” that would allow community members and organizations to formally maintain bioswales.

“My intention is to make the process as seamless and easy as possible,” Kang said, adding that the goal is to launch the program sometime in 2026.

Under the proposal, participants would enter into agreements with the city, with support from the Office of Community Beautification, which can provide tools like gloves, trash bags and gardening supplies.

For residents like Corona and business owners like Portobanco, that kind of partnership could turn what are now neglected strips of land into something more useful. 

“If we take care of these spaces, they can become something people are proud of,” Corona said. “It changes how people see the neighborhood and how they treat it.”

Big Bear’s famous bald eagles — Jackie and Shadow — appear to be welcoming a new chick into the world.

The first pip, or crack, was spotted in one of the feathered duo’s two eggs around 10 a.m. Friday, according to Friends of Big Bear Valley, the nonprofit that runs a popular YouTube livestream of the nest overlooking Big Bear Lake.

More than 26,000 people were watching the livestream shortly after the organization confirmed a pip had been spotted, which signals that an eaglet is starting to poke its way out of the egg shell.

“Yesterday afternoon, evening and throughout the night we heard little chirps coming from the chick,” Friends of Big Bear Valley wrote on Facebook to more than a million followers. “This indicates that the chick was able to break the internal membrane and took its first breath of air.”

As of Friday, the first egg is around 38 days old and the second egg is about 35 days old. Jackie and Shadow's usual incubation timeline is around 38 to 40 days, according to the nonprofit.

There’s still time for the second egg to show signs of hatching, and a pip could be confirmed in the coming days.

What we know

Jenny Voisard, the organization’s media manager, told LAist earlier this week that hatching is an arduous process for chicks that takes some time.

For example, last season, the first chick hatched more than a day after the initial pip was confirmed, according to Friends of Big Bear Valley records. The second chick hatched about a day after pipping as well, and the third chick worked its way out into the world about two days after the first crack was confirmed.

The chicks may look like little blobs of gray fluff at first, but they grow quickly, as fans saw with Jackie and Shadow’s eaglets last year. One of last season’s trio of chicks, believed to be the eldest and most dominant sibling, died during a winter storm within weeks of hatching.

In March 2025, Jackie and Shadow welcomed two eaglet chicks with one remaining egg in their nest.

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Friends of Big Bear Valley

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YouTube

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Jackie and Shadow's three chicks on March 7, 2025. One of the chicks later died, while Sunny and Gizmo successfully fledged a few months later.

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Friends of Big Bear Valley

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YouTube

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Jackie and Shadow's eaglets during a feeding of fish in April 2025.

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Friends of Big Bear Valley

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YouTube

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Sunny and Gizmo in Big Bear's famous bald eagle nest on Friday, April 18, 2025.

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Friends of Big Bear Valley

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YouTube

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Viewers watched as the surviving eaglets, Sunny and Gizmo, grew from a few ounces to several pounds in a matter of months before fledging, or taking their first flight away from the nest, last June.

But any chicks arriving this season will have to learn how to feed before they can fly.

The initial meals may be a bit awkward while the chicks learn to sit up straight. Jackie and Shadow could start feeding the chicks the same day they hatch, typically tearing off pieces of fish or raw meat and holding it up to their beaks.

Bald eagles don’t regurgitate food for their young, unlike other birds. But the feathered parents do pass along a "substantial amount of saliva” full of electrolytes and antibodies to their chicks during feedings, according to the nonprofit.

Voisard said new life coming to the nest is a reminder “why it’s so important to conserve their lands.”

Big Bear fundraiser

Friends of Big Bear Valley is trying to raise $10 million by the end of July to purchase land pegged for a planned housing project that some say would harm rare plants and wildlife in the area, including bald eagles.

You can learn more about the fundraiser here.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta provided guidance this week to childcare providers on new legal requirements to protect children and their families from immigration enforcement activities.

Under a new law that went into effect this year, childcare providers are not allowed to collect information about a child's or family member’s immigration status, unless necessary under state or federal law. Bonta’s office says there currently is no such requirement, though that could change with federal programs like Head Start.

“Childcare and preschool facilities should be safe and secure spaces so children can grow, learn and simply be children,” Bonta said in a statement.

His office says daycare centers also should not keep information about a formerly enrolled child longer than is required by state law.

The new law also requires facilities to inform the attorney general’s office and the state’s licensing agency if they get any requests for information from law enforcement related to immigration enforcement.

Facilities also must ask families to regularly update a child’s emergency contact information to make sure someone can be reached in case a parent is detained by federal immigration officials.