
LA County Supervisor Kathryn Barger
REGION
With the housing crisis worsening, Los Angeles County is considering a move to convert some struggling commercial properties into affordable housing.
The board of supervisors voted in late February to explore options for commercial conversions, with an eye on distressed properties, Commercial Observer reported.
The motion directed county staff to gather a list of underutilized commercial properties that could be transformed into permanent housing. Around 191,000 acres in L.A. County are zoned for commercial uses. The motion also recommends establishing public-private partnerships to repurpose properties, according to the report.
Around $430 billion worth of commercial and multifamily real estate debt is set to mature this year and that debt could motivate some landlords to sell at distressed prices, according to news reports and a U.C. Berkeley study the county cited.
“Allowing new homes and mixed-use projects to be built on these sites can serve as a catalyst for new economic growth while at the same time addressing California’s ongoing housing shortage,” according to the U.C. Berkeley findings.
Both the city of Los Angeles and the county have struggled to address the affordable housing shortage. The pandemic has situation even more dire—a UCLA report released in May warned of hundreds of thousands of evictions when local and state eviction moratoriums are lifted.
The city owns thousands of underutilized or vacant properties and in recent years has pushed to find new uses for them. City Controller Ron Galperin in 2019 proposed a municipal development corporation to lead that effort.
BALDWIN PARK
The Baldwin Park City Council will end its contract with CEO Shannon Yauchzee, the city’s top administrator since 2014, in the next three months. The council voted unanimously to give Yauchzee a 90-day notice during a special closed session meeting March 9. Yauchzee formally retired in December and has been serving on an interim basis while a search for his replacement is underway.
Yauchzee decided to retire before the new council—which includes Baldwin Park’s first new mayor in two decades—took office in January. The 90-day notice was based on the search for the next CEO reaching its halfway point, Estrada said.
In February, Baldwin Park hired Robert Lopez, a retired LAPD commander, as its police chief, after churning through nine police chiefs in seven years.
Baldwin Park took applications for the CEO position through Feb. 26. At the March 9 meeting, the council agreed to accept late applicants and established the hiring procedure. More than 10 candidates are in the running, Estrada said. An interview with council members will be followed by an interview with a panel of city managers from neighboring cities. The council will then compare the rankings from both rounds and either choose its CEO, or narrow the list for new interviews.
CHINO HILLS

Joann Lombardo