SUBJECT: Oppose CF 15-1138-S42 – Let Venice Dell Move Forward
TO: councilmember.hernandez@lacity.org, councilmember.padilla@lacity.org, heather.hutt@lacity.org, Councilmember.Nazarian@lacity.org, rita.moreno@lacity.org
CC: clerk.cps@lacity.org
City Clerk: Please attach the following letter as written public comment to Council File 15-1138-S42
Dear Chair Hutt and Members of the Transportation Committee (Councilmembers Park, Hernandez, Padilla, and Nazarian),
I’m writing to ask the committee to oppose Council File 15-1138-S42 and the accompanying City Attorney report scheduled for March 11.
Venice Dell is not a new proposal. The project on Lot 731 has already moved through nearly a decade of planning and approvals, including votes by the Los Angeles City Council and the California Coastal Commission. When built, it will provide 120 units of deeply affordable housing, including permanent supportive housing, and has already secured tens of millions of dollars in public funding.
In October 2025, several councilmembers recognized the risks of reopening this process. Councilmembers Eunisses Hernandez, Ysabel Jurado, and Hugo Soto-Martínez voted against the proposal to move the housing to Lot 701, noting that such a move would likely derail or significantly delay a project that is already approved and funded.
The City Attorney’s recent report raises questions that have already been addressed through both the public approval process and litigation. A Superior Court judge has already reviewed these issues and upheld the City Council’s approval of the project’s development agreement.
Meanwhile, the project has undergone extensive review by state and county housing agencies, which ultimately awarded roughly $45 million in funding after determining the project was viable.
The new proposal to study a mobility hub on Lot 731 introduces further uncertainty. The Department of Transportation’s own report makes clear that a mobility hub would require years of studies, permitting, and approvals before any construction could begin. Replacing a fully approved housing project with a long exploratory process would only push urgently needed housing further into the future.
Los Angeles should be moving forward with projects that are ready to build, especially those that have already cleared the necessary approvals and secured funding.
I urge the committee to keep the Venice Dell project on Lot 731 and allow the approved affordable housing development to proceed.
Thank you for your consideration.
