At the end of May, the City Planning Commission is set to hold a hearing on the proposed redevelopment of Boyle Heights's Wyvernwood Garden Apartments; in advance of that meeting, the nonprofit East LA Community Corporation is staging a march tomorrow--May Day--to protest the project. Miami-based owner/developer Fifteen Group hopes to replace the 1,187 units, which date back to 1939, with 4,400 apartments, 300,000 square feet of retail and commercial space, 25,000 square feet of civic space, and 10.5 acres of publicly accessible, privately maintained community parks. Fifteen says current residents will have first dibs on new apartments and won't see their rents hiked, and that 15 percent of the new units will be affordable, but the community is still so vexed by the proposal that the neighborhood council can't decide whether they're for or against it. ELACC and other local groups that comprise the "Save Wyvernwood" campaign are unwavering in their opposition, saying the redevelopment will lead to mass displacement: "The redevelopment would transform the site by nearly quadrupling the current density to include roughly 4,400 housing units, the mass majority of which are slated for market rate ownership for people earning $90,000 or more. Yet, the median income for Boyle Heights is $41,821."
WYVERNWOOD. from FORM follows FUNCTION on Vimeo.
The Los Angeles Conservancy will join the "Save Wyvernwood" campaign at tomorrow's march, which begins at noon at Wyvernwood. The preservation group also helped produce a video on the development's history.
Following the release of the project's final environmental impact report in December, it's now making its way through the city approvals process.
· Plans Released For Giant Wyvernwood Redevelopment [Curbed LA]
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