Agency / Organization:
Central City Association of Los Angeles (CCA)

Status:
Complete

Intent:
Omgivning partnered with the Central City Association of Los Angeles (CCA) to co-author a white paper, issued in 2021, that highlights the benefits of adaptive reuse to address economic recording,and provides concrete steps the City of Los Angeles can take to allow for new uses in existing structures.

The Covid-19 pandemic, housing shortage and climate change continue to impact cities, and one of best and most powerful tools to tackle these issues is adaptive reuse: reimagining and repurposing existing older structures and spaces to meet today’s needs.

Adaptive reuse has a wide range of benefits for cities, including: Supporting recovery from COVID-19 by converting vacant and/or underutilized spaces to be active uses that better contribute to the health of neighborhoods, which fosters jobs and tax revenues and can create new opportunities for housing and meet other community needs. Proactively preserving both historic and background structures through reinvestment and generating revenues by changing in alignment with real estate trends. Improving environmental sustainability by updating older, less energy efficient buildings to contemporary standards and promoting walkable, mixed-use neighborhoods through infill development and making use of already in place and often under-used (in terms of capacity) urban infrastructure.

CCA references this white paper as the foundation for the framework on which they have been strongly advocating for policy reform both at the local city level and at the state level.