Panel Takes New Tack on Quake Repair

Taking a new tack to rebuild the most vulnerable of quake “ghost town” buildings, a Los Angeles housing panel tentatively approved a $900,000 loan Monday to restore a crumbling Reseda apartment complex for low-income tenants.

City housing officials say the loan is the first of its kind, aimed at producing low-income housing by salvaging financially troubled buildings, primarily within the 15 designated ghost towns. Those structures would otherwise sit neglected for months, perhaps years, attracting graffiti, crime and vermin.

“We are trying to encourage the nonprofits to come out and eat these properties up,” said Beth Bergman, a finance officer for the city’s Housing Department.

The loan, which was approved by the City Council’s Housing and Community Redevelopment Committee, would provide enough money for the Los Angeles Community Design Center to buy the severely damaged 64-unit apartment building at 7939 Reseda Boulevard. The nonprofit group has also requested a second loan for about $600,000 to rehabilitate the building.

The entire council must still give both loans a final approval, but no opposition is anticipated.

The red-tagged building is located in the middle of a chain of vacant quake-damaged buildings along Reseda Boulevard and is already in foreclosure. It shifted off its foundation during the Jan. 17 quake and is now leaning noticeably, although a “Now Renting” sign remains on its front wall.

Housing officials say they are not sure how many damaged buildings may be turned into low-income housing projects, but they hope the strategy will save at least some of the hundreds of vacant apartment complexes that have become magnets for blight.

“It’s part of a long-term strategy,” Bergman said.

Under the loan plan, the Los Angeles Community Design Center will redesign the buildings, reducing the number of units to 46 to allow for bigger apartments.