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Big Day of Giving

Today is Big Day of Giving, the biggest fundraising day of the year for hundreds of California-based nonprofits. Pacific Crest Consultants has been involved with Sierra Service project for 13+ years and today would be a great day to make a donation to a worthy cause.

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City News, LADBS

City Re-Opens Metro DSC … sort-of

The Los Angeles departments of Building & Safety and Planning recently re-opened to the public, but operations and services remain very limited and several other critical departments to development services remain closed to the public. First, the good news. LADBS and City Planning re-opened their doors at the city’s downtown Metro Development Services Center on […]

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City News, Planning

City issues guidelines to turn 1 lot into 4 DUs

The Los Angeles development community has been eagerly awaiting the release of guidelines from the city that explain how the city will process applications for SB9, the ground-breaking state law that allows some residential property owners to subdivide their property into as many as 4 dwelling units. Last week, PCC reported that City Planning had […]

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City News, Planning

Draft Wildlife & Ridgeline ordinances merge

Two of the most watched proposed ordinances were merged by City Planning earlier this month, restarting the clock for draft regulations that could potentially place significant additional limits on property owners in the city’s Hillside areas. The original draft Hillside ordinance was highly controversial, drawing a wide variety of critics who said that it would […]

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City News, Planning

No SB9 guidelines yet but parcel-by-parcel review is available

As previously reported Sacramento passed a law late last year that requires cities counties and other municipalities to approve the creation of up to 4 homes where 1 dwelling unit currently exists beginning Jan. 1. The state allowed the local governments to exempt certain areas for specific reasons including but not limited to fire/life/safety concerns […]

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City News, Planning

Planning Dept. Changes Notification Policy to Benefit of Applicants

Applicants who file projects that require a notification package to City Planning will no longer have to provide mailing lists and labels at the time of filing. Instead, those notification materials won’t be required until they are ready to be used by Planning and/or its mailing subcontractor, BTC. Beginning on Dec. 1, applicants now only […]

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City News

LA Likely to Minimize SB9 Housing Benefits

City Council motion instructs departments to issue memo by Dec. 31 that will explain who can use SB9 for more housing … and who can’t As expected, the Los Angeles City Council has instructed key city departments to develop and issue a memo before the end of the year that will significantly limit the neighborhoods […]

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City News

Mulholland: A Brief History & Explanation Of What Projects Are Still Exempt Or Only Need Administrative Review

The Mulholland Scenic Parkway Specific Plan was created in 1992 to “assure maximum preservation and enhancement of the parkway’s outstanding and unique scenic features and resources.” The corridor’s regulations cover properties within approximately 3,000 feet of either side of Mulholland Drive, from Hollywood Hills to Woodland Hills. The Specific Plan automatically requires that any property […]

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City News

Reduced Staffing, More Projects And More Regulations Have Made The Process Crazy At One Of Planning’s Busiest Units

Several years ago, the staff at the Mulholland unit of City Planning hung a sign right behind their public counter that read, “Mulholland Madness.” It was a copy of the sign created for the ride at Disney’s California Adventure of the same name. The Disney ride has changed its name but things haven’t changed at […]

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City News

Hillside Federation Files Lawsuit vs. Mulholland Policy

One of the longest-standing and most influential neighborhood groups in Los Angeles filed a lawsuit this summer alleging that a recently adopted policy from the Department of City Planning will “dramatically alter oversight” of projects in the Mulholland Corridor. The Hillside Federation’s lawsuit, filed on June 25 in Los Angeles County Superior Court, says that […]

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