City Council approves $3.8 million to clean up and secure painted skyscraper in downtown LA
LA Politics, Homepage News
Summer Lin Caroline Petrow-CohenFebruary 16, 2024
The Los Angeles City Council voted Friday to allocate nearly $4 million to remove graffiti and secure an unfinished skyscraper in downtown Los Angeles that has been badly ravaged in recent weeks.
Councilor Kevin de Len submitted a motion this week to provide the resources to secure the financing
real estate development
and restore the public right-of-way, which is obstructed by plastic barriers, scaffolding and
other
debris.
“I’m not holding my breath waiting for the developer to clean up his property,” De Len said Wednesday. The purpose of my motion is clear: to prepare our city for decisive action if the developer of Oceanwide Plaza ignores their responsibility and leaves them on the hook for the city’s costs.
The motion directs $1.1 million into a fund to shield and secure the ground floor of the building, and a further $2.7 million into a fund for security services, improving fire safety and abatement graffiti.
The motion also calls on the city attorney and city manager to report to the City Council within 30 days with a legal strategy to recover all related costs from the city from property owners.
The Oceanwide Plaza project, located
an unfinished development
about
the
Crypto.com Arena’s Figueroa Street has become a spot for graffiti tagging and even paragliding in recent weeks, causing headaches for city officials and authorities alike. Before the Grammy Awards to be held in
the
Crypto.com Arena, dozens of floors of the skyscraper were tagged with colorful spray paint.

The owner, Oceanwide Holdings, is a listed Beijing company that halted the project in 2019 when it ran out of money.
At least 18 people have been arrested, including 12 on Sunday, on suspicion of trespassing, according to Los Angeles police.
The city council passed a motion earlier this month, also submitted by De Len, that orders the owners of the property to fence off and clean the site by Saturday. If they miss the deadline, the city will secure the property and charge the owners the costs, the motion said.
Just one day before the deadline, that
property.property
owners have not indicated this
or
they will follow the orders of the city.
The increase in activity at the
property
website has that too
stretched out
resources at the Los Angeles Police Department, LAPD Chief Michel Moore said Tuesday during the Los Angeles Police Commission meeting.
Officers spent “more than 3,000 hours” securing the complex, Moore said.
“We have deployed a number of officers on an overtime basis so that we can provide these additional patrols or station them at that location to deter vandals and others from accessing it, while also ensuring that we meet the minimum wagering requirements for stations located around the world. the city,” Moore said.
At a city council meeting last week, council
memberwoman
Imelda Padilla
said that noted
she was surprised at how much attention the skyscraper received and
attributed that it is probably due
to its great size.
Padilla said at least four “mini versions” of the unfinished skyscraper exist in Los Angeles. The buildings include abandoned commercial, manufacturing and family business structures.
Padilla was directed to abandoned buildings on Sepulveda Boulevard and Kester Avenue, as well as a Denny’s restaurant
convenient
at Vineland Avenue and Sunland Boulevard, a spokesperson for Padilla’s office said.
The fourth building, a Roscoe hardware store, is located at Sunland Boulevard and San Fernando Road, according to its spokesperson. Padilla is currently working to have it demolished.
“It is troubling that blight is receiving more attention when it affects wealthier parts of the city,” Padilla said in a statement Thursday. “Yet working-class neighborhoods like the one I represent struggle with this problem every day. The plague is unacceptable regardless of zip code, and we deserve the same sense of urgency.”
The Oceanwide Plaza project is located among shops and restaurants near the LA Live complex.

Fernando Dowling is an author and political journalist who writes for 24 News Globe. He has a deep understanding of the political landscape and a passion for analyzing the latest political trends and news.