terra non firma

population growth, housing and more sprawl

the LA Daily News covers a new population growth study released this week (altho its a bit unclear who conducted the research). the study provides some insight into why LA scored so dismally in the southern california association of government's report card. LA's coastal population growth is slowing as people move farther and farther inland. again, a crisis in affordable housing is the main culprit (altho the link to congestion and air pollution are not discussed in the article):

The median price of a home in Los Angeles County was $463,450 as of December, while it was $327,210 in Riverside and San Bernardino counties, according to the California Association of Realtors. The median was $612,460 in Ventura County and $474,480 statewide.

"It really has exacerbated the affordability crisis in California," said Leslie Appleton-Young, chief economist with the California Association of Realtors.

"One way to address it is to look at condos. Another way is to look at neighborhoods that have been abandoned and reclaimed. Look downtown. Look at loft development.

"Another way is to look farther and farther out and endure longer commutes. Another option is to leave the state."

KING argues in one of the comments that the upside of LA's poor report card is a recognition that these problems need to be addressed. Yet this article shows a remarkable disengagement. our implicit options are - move into a multimillion dollar loft downtown, move to another county, or move out of the state. granted, I'm going to assume the chief economist of the california association of realtors has a vested interest in NOT solving the affordable housing crisis (at least short term). so the question remains, who does?

posted by marissa @ 4:34 PM