Downtown L.A.
Such disparate elements as a performing arts school, an arena, a concert hall and a cathedral cannot begin to generate what is truly required. As fine as they will be, these new projects cannot rescue downtown Los Angeles from the common perception of the place.
To assume that they can turn the tide is an acute misapprehension of regional economics.
If downtown ever fulfills its finest potential it will happen only with a massive return of the suburban population to the urban core. Downtown needs to become an enchanting odyssey and symbol of unity rather than the expensive, disorienting maelstrom that so many avoid at all cost.
The City Council and the redevelopment agency are simply incapable of the vision and leadership that the mayor must begin to provide.
JOHN CRANDELL
Westwood Village
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
