Planning in Los Angeles: Inside Joke

In a city that looks as thrown together as many parts of Los Angeles do, the very notion that there is any serious municipal planning here might strike some as amusing. What’s even funnier now is that the Los Angeles City Council and the mayor are actually suggesting, with straight faces, that they want a new “strong, independent” director of the city Planning Department.

Of course the council and the mayor have always said they wanted an independent, decisive planning leader. Until, that is, a major developer would come along waving blueprints for a new office building and promises of new jobs, more traffic and lots more campaign contributions.

Of course council members have always wanted a director who applied fair and equal policies across the board. Until, that is, a vocal group of homeowners would argue that the same type of multiunit building that was approved in a residential area on the south side of town would be incompatible with the residential area on their side of town. Then the council member representing those angry homeowners would demand that the Planning Department make exceptions to defer to the wishes of the elected official. Of course the Planning Department always did.

Now, with a decades-long legacy of the city’s plan-on-demand policy, the council suddenly wants a strong department. “But everybody wants to be able to tell it what to do in their district,” admits one council member.

Now we see. This isn’t supposed to be funny. Just a joke.