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This week, we’re launching something new: a series of Community Conversations across Council District 5. These are opportunities to hear directly from you—and for you to help shape the decisions we make together. We’re starting with a topic that readers of this newsletter are no strangers to: the City budget.
As I’ve shared over the past few weeks, Los Angeles is facing its most serious budget challenge in over a decade. And as the new Chair of the City Council’s Budget Committee, I’m working closely with my colleagues and the Mayor to close a billion-dollar shortfall while protecting essential services and building a more sustainable financial future for our city. The Mayor’s proposed budget will be released next week, and later this month, I’ll be leading the Council’s formal review process. The choices we make this spring will shape how Los Angeles operates for years to come—and I want you to be part of the conversation.
On Thursday, I joined Spectrum News to talk about the scale of the crisis and where we go from here. From smaller-than-projected increases in revenues to inefficient service provision and larger-than-projected liability payouts, the challenges are real. But so is the opportunity to course-correct. With your input, we can focus on what matters most: public safety, housing, sustainability, and the essential services that keep our neighborhoods running.
I hope you’ll join me. We’re hosting three Community Conversations this month—two in person and one online—to break down the numbers, answer your questions, and hear your ideas. I’d love for you to be part of it. Sign up here. |
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Holmby Westwood Property Owners Association Annual Meeting
On Tuesday, I joined the Holmby Westwood Property Owners Association for their annual meeting to talk through neighborhood priorities and answer questions from residents. I shared community updates on sidewalk repairs, tree planting, and public safety, including how LAPD is using overtime funding to respond more quickly to crime. I appreciate the HWPOA board and President Sandy Brown for bringing neighbors together and continuing to advocate for local improvements. |
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UCLA Luskin Day at City Hall
I welcomed 25 graduate students from the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs to City Hall as part of their annual day focused on local public service and policy. After a long day of panels with City leaders, I sat down with them for a conversation about my path to elected office and my experience on the Council so far. Students brought smart questions and big ideas, and I’m glad I could spend time with the next generation of civic leaders. |
Community Chametz Burning
Just before Passover, our team joined neighbors and Congresswoman Sydney Kamlager-Dove for a community chametz burning. Events like this help preserve traditions, build connection, and ground us in shared values. To everyone celebrating, Chag Pesach Sameach! |
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Streamlining Affordable Housing Approvals
The Council approved a major update to the Affordable Housing Managed Pipeline (AHMP)—a reform I co-authored with Councilmember Nithya Raman. City-funded affordable housing projects currently take more than two years to navigate an outdated, eight-step approval process. This revised framework cuts that down to just two, reducing unnecessary delays while preserving Council oversight. These changes will also help us deploy Measure ULA funds more efficiently. If we want to solve our housing crisis, we need to fix the systems that slow us down and get out of our own way.
LA Convention Center Expansion
This week, the Council voted to continue to pursue a Convention Center expansion Downtown, while also insisting that any finalized project results in as close as possible to a net zero impact on the City’s general fund. While this isn’t final approval of the project, it does signal continued support for what could be a multi-billion-dollar renovation. I share the goal of a stronger downtown economy—but I’ve been clear that we can’t move forward without a real plan to reduce the financial risk to the City. That’s why I introduced an amendment requiring staff to bring back options for cutting costs and boosting revenues through naming rights, signage, and other sources. If we’re going to take on a project of this size, we have to make sure it’s not at the expense of core city services.
New Leadership at Personnel Department
The Council voted to confirm Malaika Billups as the new General Manager of the Personnel Department. Malaika brings a rare combination of legal, administrative, and budget experience, and she knows how City government works from the inside. We need her leadership to modernize and accelerate hiring, and reduce liability.
Solid Resources Rate Increase
On Friday, the Council voted to raise trash collection fees for single-family homes and small multi-family buildings with two to four units in order to cover the true cost of trash collection service. This is the first trash fee increase for folks living in single family homes and 2-4 unit buildings in 17 years. As a result, the General Fund has been required to cover a growing shortfall—nearly a quarter of a billion dollars this year alone—in the cost of trash collection for single-family homes and two- to four-unit buildings. Larger apartment and condo buildings use private trash haulers and have long paid higher monthly fees that fully cover the true cost of trash collection services. That means that in effect, all LA taxpayers have been subsidizing the true cost of trash collection for a subset of Angelenos living in single-family homes and small multi-family buildings. In such a tight budget year, that’s money we need for police, fire, and basic infrastructure.
I don’t take this vote lightly. Like many of you, my family and I will pay this increased trash fee, and I know what it means for working households and seniors on fixed incomes who are already concerned about the cost of living. The program will continue to include a subsidy program for lower income individuals and families who need to pay a reduced rate. But in a crisis like this, we can’t afford to keep subsidizing basic services to the tune of $250 million each year.
Earlier this year I asked City departments for a report back on all City fees and the status of when each was last updated. In some cases, previous elected officials failed to update fees for decades, and service provision correspondingly has suffered over the years. The Budget and Finance Committee will be working on a sustainable, gradual plan to rationalize our fee system so we don’t have to pass on large increases to constituents simply because our predecessors failed to implement smaller, more manageable increases in years past.
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Donuts & Dinosaurs at Palms Park | Saturday, April 19
Join Palms Park for Donuts & Dinosaurs — a free, fun-filled community event featuring dino-themed egg hunts, crafts, games, face painting, a bounce house, and of course… donuts!
WHERE: 2950 Overland Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90064
Dino Egg Hunt Schedule:
Ages 3–4: 12:30 PM
Ages 5–6: 1:00 PM
Ages 7–9: 1:30 PM
No registration required — just show up and enjoy. For more information, contact: Palms.recreationcenter@lacity.org or (310) 838-3838
Operation Sparkle: Wilshire Clean Up Event | Saturday, April 26
We’re excited to invite you to Operation Sparkle, a fun and rewarding Wilshire clean-up event where neighbors come together to give our community a fresh shine!
Date: Saturday, April 26th
Time: 9:00 AM – 11:30 AM
Location: Wilshire Green Park (8th St. at Sierra Bonita)
Come ready to beautify the neighborhood—and enjoy some treats along the way! All volunteers will be treated to coffee, donuts, and tacos as a thank-you for pitching in. We’ll be joined by LAPD Officer Andrew Jones and other neighborhood leaders.
Sign up now or learn more at www.miraclemilela.com
Community Cleanup & Resource Fair | Sunday, April 27, 2025 at 9:30 AM
Join Keep Los Angeles Beautiful for a Community Cleanup and Resource Fair on Sunday, April 27, from 9:30 AM to 12:30 PM at Queen Anne Recreation Center (1240 West Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90019). Volunteers are needed, and all are welcome. The event will feature free coffee and donuts, a rain barrel giveaway, and shade tree adoptions for LA residents.
Sign Up for CERT Training at Pan Pacific Park
The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program offers free training to help residents prepare for emergencies. Participants learn basic disaster response skills, including fire safety, medical operations, light search and rescue, and team organization. CERT volunteers play a vital role during emergencies—especially when first responders may not be immediately available. Sign up here. |
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JEWISH HOLIDAY: PASSOVER AND SHAVUOT– PARKING SCHEDULE
This letter is to inform you that the Department of Transportation, Parking Enforcement and Traffic Control Division will relax enforcement of street cleaning, time limit and preferential parking restrictions as requested during the dates and times listed below.
As a reminder, any additions to this memorandum must be added by council district personnel via the City Council approved parking exception database. Any new locations must be entered into the database prior to the effective current holidays below.
PLEASE NOTE: METERS, TOW AWAY ZONES, LOADING ZONES, AND OTHER
SAFETY VIOLATIONS WILL BE ENFORCED
Passover: Friday, April 11th 5:00 PM thru Sunday, April 20th 11:59 PM
Shavuot: Sunday, June 1st 5:00 PM thru Tuesday, June 3rd 11:59 PM |
If you have any need pertaining to the City of Los Angeles, please reach out:
City Hall Office
200 N. Spring Street, Suite 440
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 473-7005
(323) 866-1828
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Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky 200 N. Spring St., Los Angeles, CA 90012 Unsubscribe |
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