Welcome to the Livable Communities Initiative
By Jennifer Levin
Welcome to the Livable Communities Initiative, a.k.a. the LCI. We are so happy you’re here. To start things off, we figured you’d want to know a few basics, like who the heck are we? And how did this whole thing get started?
I’m Jennifer Levin and I co-run a grassroots community group in L.A. called HangOutDoGood, or HODG—yes, we’re fans of acronyms here. About a year ago, when there was a whole load of drama swirling around SB9 and 10—two statewide zoning laws that make it easier to build multifamily housing—I realized I didn’t know what I thought about those bills, because I didn’t know squat about housing. So, I sent out an email to HODG which basically said: I’m clueless about housing, if you’re clueless, too, but up for learning, meet me on a Zoom next week and we can stumble through it together. More than 40 people showed up.
We called ourselves The Housing Huddle, and for about six months we huddlers educated ourselves, which mostly meant talking to people—all sorts of them: elected officials, pro-housing activists, anti-housing activists, developers, architects, professors, even L.A.’s Department of Transportation.
In those convos we learned about parking minimums and Prop U, which limited housing on L.A. commercial corridors. About 15 Minute Cities, and how 63,000 people commute into Westwood every day. But, mostly we learned that the buildings that do get built—you know, the hideous ones that cost a fortune—get built because our laws make it so those are the only buildings that “pencil out.” That’s something we heard again and again. Housing that’s affordable doesn’t pencil out.
Out of those conversations a couple of huddlers—Lindsay Sturman and Tony Gittleson—began forming a plan. It combined building small, market-rate, naturally affordable multifamily units along our underused—and frankly ugly—commercial corridors with complete streets. Streets with trees, and cafes, and bike lanes, and parklets. You know, places where actual human beings would want to live. They called their plan The Livable Communities Initiative.
Since then, the LCI has developed into a full-on movement that’s spread to all corners of the city—from Westwood, to Hollywood, to South L.A.—and beyond. And it’s made up of all kinds of people. We have city planners, urbanists, architects, and climate and bike activists, but we also have teachers and parents who just want a city where they, their adult children, and elderly parents can live. But here’s the thing: we may not be experts, but that doesn’t mean we’re naive. We know this is hard—that more housing means change, and change makes everyone uncomfortable, and when people get uncomfortable, they typically say no.
Another thing you should know about the LCI movement: We‘re not interested in name calling or playing the blame game. Shaming folks is not our thing. Our focus is on bringing us all together—homeowners, developers, renters, activists—meeting everyone where they are, educating one other, and showing up for one another—so we can build a more equitable, healthier, prettier, and—yes—better city for everyone. That is our goal: not a perfect city—a better one.
We at the LCI believe that’s possible. We’re tired of all the naysaying and finger pointing. For too long we’ve accepted that our city doesn’t work. We believe it can—and will. We just need to roll up our sleeves, lock arms, and get to work. We’re so happy you’ve come to join us.