HOME: Historic Preservation Saves Affordable Housing

Affordable housing and homelessness

Pilot or new project, program, or initiative (testing or implementing a new idea)

Founded in 1978, LAC’s mission is to save the places that matter to all Angelenos, including historic neighborhoods that hold most of L.A. County’s existing affordable housing and historic buildings that can be transformed into new fair housing. In L.A. County, 60% of Angelenos rent, and 48% are severely rent burdened, spending more than 50% of their income on rent. California Housing Partnership’s recent data shows the County has a shortfall of 500,000 homes affordable to the lowest-income renters. LAC’s recent Preservation Positive study shows that L.A. County has lost 26,000 rent-controlled units in the last 20 years. A severe lack of affordable housing is the primary driver behind a staggering 70,000 Angelenos experiencing homelessness. The L.A. County Department of Health points to proven relationships between the ability to afford housing and one’s physical and mental wellbeing.

LAC is the only local historic preservation organization providing vital services county-wide to save places that matter to all Angelenos, including affordable housing such as Santa Fe Arts Colony, Wyvernwood Garden Apartments, and historic neighborhoods containing high concentrations of multifamily housing. LAC will initiate new partnerships with local housing advocates (like Legal Aid Foundation, Abundant Housing LA, Climate Resolve, etc.) in convenings to find alignment on housing policy goals. Conversations will inform a white paper that will 1) articulate the intersection of affordable housing strategies and preservation through our three focus areas of adaptive reuse, preservation of existing natural occurring affordable housing (NOAH), and sensitive infill, 2) use case studies to highlight good examples and policy gaps, and 3) offer policy recommendations and action steps. LAC will publicize the white paper during the launch of a public tour highlighting multifamily housing in L.A. County. This deeply researched tour will provide Angelenos with an opportunity to learn about the history of multifamily housing development in L.A. County and visit successful examples of multifamily affordable housing that have been sustained through preservation intervention. The tour will highlight community-based efforts to preserve affordable housing along our focus areas and inspire the public to get involved in our work to preserve and create additional affordable housing.

HOME sets up LAC’s preservation work to be integrated into a county-wide holistic strategy to address the affordable housing crisis. HOME will engage stakeholders and community members on how preservation brings value and tools that can be used to keep and increase affordable housing. LAC's white paper will support an argument for expansion of L.A.’s landmark Adaptive Reuse Ordinance that since 1999 has helped create 46,000 housing units in downtown L.A. and has the potential to provide 9%-14% of L.A. County’s next-eight-years of housing need. LAC’s advocacy strategies in L.A. County will result in new historic designations to protect additional historic buildings and existing affordable housing from being demolished. LAC’s public tour of multi-family affordable housing will help participants better understand how historic preservation fosters cost-effective rehabilitations, community engagement and resilience, while protecting existing and creating new affordable housing.

LAC measures success via surveys, partner conversations and participant feedback. We track attendee numbers and comments on logistics and content to support program improvement. LAC’s goal: raise awareness of the vital, effective role historic preservation tools play in preserving and creating affordable housing throughout L.A. County. Measurable goals: - facilitate 5 stakeholder convenings, building new partnerships with diverse housing advocate organizations. - publish a white paper, with feedback from community partners, establishing an action plan to fully integrate preservation into L.A. County’s affordable housing solutions. - serve 800 Angelenos of all ages and backgrounds through convenings, community events and a public tour, and 110,000 people indirectly through LAC’s robust social media platforms and highly trafficked website. - 90% of surveyed participants will report having a better understanding of the role historic preservation plays in affordable housing.