Statement on Housing and Urban Development final Promise Zone Application

“I am disappointed that the Final Promise Zone Application released today did not take into account the concerns raised by Los Angeles community groups, our City Council, our Congressional Delegation and numerous individuals. This Final Application will pit Los Angeles neighborhoods against each other as they apply for Promise Zone designation, forcing Mayor Garcetti to choose just one application and turn down other strong ones. Other federal programs have taken Los Angeles’ population into account because our city has a larger population than twenty-four states. Angelenos are being punished for no other reason than because over 3.8 million Americans call this great city home.

“The Final Application will also make it difficult specifically for poorer areas in South LA to apply because it penalizes the area because of its truly mixed-income surroundings. Communities with both high- and low-income residents are typically the goal for urban planning, and middle-class African Americans have stayed in South LA because it is a great neighborhood. But because of this, low-income neighborhoods applying will suffer under the application rules of the Promise Zone grant. Other federal programs take this fact into account, so it is unfortunate that the Promise Zone Application did not.
 
“South Los Angeles is a diverse and wonderful part of our city and our state, and I will continue to work together with community groups and elected officials to ensure our community gets the resources that it needs.”