This is what we learned in a live meeting with Planning on August 22, 2024:
Community Input Window?
- From now until December 2024. Planning will continue gathering Wetschester-Playa community input to their Draft 3 maps.
- Shorter term, Planning is focusing on specific collaboration with the Ladera community between August and September, 2024.
Actual Map Draft Changes?
- August to December, 2024, the new Citywide Housing Incentives Program (CHIP) is going through draft review.
- By February 2025, The State of California has demanded Los Angeles have its updated ordinances related to CHIP approved by the City Council.
- March to ??, 2025—after the CHIP**-related ordinances are finalized—Planning begin integrating public input gathered since the release of Draft 3 W-P Maps (April, 2024), cross referenced with what’s new (now possible) via the CHIP “six strategies” ordinances.
Draft 4 W-P CPU Maps when?
- Realistically, it’s going to be late Spring or early Summer 2025, when Planning likely publishes revised maps for all four Westside Planning areas (including Westchester-Playa).
- What follows then is the CPU Environmental Impact Report (EIR) study. We have been informed (by Planning) this process is likely to kick off 2H 2025, and is expected to take approximately 12-18 months.
Final City Council vote on new W-P CPU maps and plan?
- Probably late 2026 / early 2027.
**It’s important to understand how CHIP and Zoning correlate:
- CHIP ordinances generally creates new developer incentives and process efficiencies to encourage production of new housing units.
- However, if the underlying zoning category doesn’t allow the built form, incentives in the CHIP ordinances are not unlocked.
- This is why it’s so important for Community Plans get zoning changes right. Without it, CHIP incentives can’t be activated.
