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March 23, 2007
Councilwoman Jan Perry, City of Los Angeles Ninth District, 3-21-07
Urban Marketplace 2007 is a unique conference on investment opportunities and development strategies for Southern California's emerging lower income and distressed neighborhoods. The ULI LA Urban Marketplace has become a national model over the past six years, attracting over 3400 real estate and related professionals, as well as community and government leaders to its case studies, roundtable discussions, and exhibits. Attendees learn best practices and solidify relations with key professionals and leaders at the forefront of revitalizing the inner city.
This year's event will explore strategies and best practices for investing and developing in Los Angeles' emerging neighborhoods. The discussion — entitled Where is L.A. Headed? Solving the Real Estate Puzzle — focuses on redevelopment and economic investment in four regions within the city: Hollywood, Downtown L.A., East L.A., and Inglewood.
As Councilwoman of the Los Angeles City Ninth District, Jan Perry understands the unique needs of her diverse constituency. Greater access to basic city services, expansion of after-school programs for kids, increasing green space, and fostering economic growth in all parts of the district are among her priorities for her second four-year term in office. Perry continues to work with the community to bring millions of dollars in capital improvements to parks and recreation centers, to increase public safety, and to achieve environmental justice for all.
Perry is committed to increasing green space and the clean-up of brown fields in the Ninth District. She has successfully “greened” eight parks, reducing blighted property on these essential community gathering places. Additionally, she recently unveiled the Augustus Hawkins Wetland, the first-of-its-kind, man-made wetland in a highly urban area in the nation. The wetland is a demonstration project aimed at launching the development of a larger urban wetland park that will bring nature to the heart of South Los Angeles.
As the past Chair of the Environmental Quality and Waste Management Committee and present chair of the Energy and Environment Committee, Perry continues to ensure that the needs of her constituents are met. Perry co-authored and is credited with the passage of Proposition O. The funds created by Proposition O will be used to stop dangerous pollutants and bacteria from flowing from neighborhoods throughout Los Angeles into waterways. Additionally, the measure benefits every neighborhood in Los Angeles by upgrading storm-drain systems, eliminating flooding at key intersections, creating new community parks, and improving water quality.
The Ninth District encompasses Central City East, which faces the unique and challenging problems that accompany homelessness. In 2003, Councilwoman Perry effectively lobbied both the mayor and members of the Los Angeles City Council to provide more funding to keep the city’s portion of the emergency shelter system that was operating from December to mid March open year-round. This unprecedented effort has allowed for an additional 250,000 bed nights with supportive services for the homeless.
Perry currently serves as the Chair of the Energy and the Environment Committee; the Chair of the Ad Hoc Homeless Committee; Vice-Chair of the Arts, Parks, Health, and Aging Committee; the Vice-Chair of the Ad Hoc Committee on Recovering Energy, Natural Resources, and Economic Benefit from Waste for LA (RENEW LA) Committee, and as a member of the Housing, Community and Economic Development Committee, Ad Hoc Los Angeles River Committee, and Ad-Hoc Stadium Committee. She was appointed by the Mayor to represent the City of Los Angeles as a Governing Board Member of the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) and was re-elected in January of 2006 by the Western cities to serve another 4-year term. She also serves as the Assistant Pro Tempore for the Los Angeles City Council, making her the first African-American woman to hold this position in the history of the city.
Posted by David Lemberg at March 23, 2007 10:15 AM Return to ARTSCAPE home page