Last week, I had the privilege of attending the 2024 Paralympic Games as part of the official City of Los Angeles and L.A. Metro delegations. As Council District 5 prepares to host the Athletes’ Village for the 2028 Olympics on UCLA’s Westwood campus, this trip provided key insights into both the opportunities and challenges that come with hosting such a singular world event.

While the Olympic and Paralympic Games offer an exciting opportunity to showcase our district and bring meaningful investments to our city, we also need to be thoughtful and careful in how we plan for them. As Vice Chair of the City Council’s Olympic and Paralympic Committee, I take seriously the responsibility of protecting our communities from potential financial and logistical impacts, while making sure we leverage every benefit the Games can bring.

Here are some of the key lessons we learned in Paris, and how I’m working to make sure Council District 5—and all of Los Angeles—are prepared, protected, and positioned for long-term success.

Hosting the Olympics presents significant financial risks, particularly with the potential for cost overruns that could leave our City on the hook. According to the Host City Agreement, signed by the previous mayor and City Council, Los Angeles is responsible for the first $250 million in cost overruns, with the State covering the next $250 million. Beyond that, the City is again liable. That's why it's crucial we closely monitor these risks and learn from Paris' experience to minimize potential financial impacts. This is where I’m especially focused as Vice Chair of the Olympic and Paralympic Committee. Our job is to make sure we’re budget-conscious and that the City isn’t saddled with debt from the Games.

At the same time, we saw in Paris that there are real opportunities for local businesses and neighborhoods to thrive. I’m committed to ensuring that the revenue generated from the Games directly benefits our district and its businesses, including small businesses, and that investments in transportation and public spaces create lasting value. We will also push for transparency and accountability in how Olympic-related funds are spent, so every dollar is maximized for the benefit of Angelenos.

Enhancing Mobility
One of the key lessons from Paris was how their Metro system created a seamless and safe way to move people during the Games. While LA’s Metro system is still expanding and not nearly as extensive, we can learn from how Paris activated its stations by surrounding them with shops, events, and public spaces, making the areas feel vibrant and secure. For LA 2028, with the Metro D Line opening in time for the Games, we’re focused on ensuring our stations are safe, welcoming, and well-connected to key areas like Westwood and Mid-Wilshire.

In addition to making the Metro system feel more accessible, we’re prioritizing first/last mile infrastructure—improving sidewalks and pedestrian routes to ensure it’s easy to get to and from stations. We’re committed to securing funding from county, state, and federal sources to cover these investments, ensuring that our transit improvements serve not only the Olympics but leave a lasting positive impact for all Angelenos.

Balancing Security with Community Needs
One of the greatest concerns in hosting a global event is ensuring safety without overburdening local communities. In Paris, we saw how critical it is to implement security measures like monitoring systems and secure perimeters, especially around key venues like the Athletes’ Village.

In Council District 5, we’re already thinking about how to balance necessary security with the needs of our residents and businesses. We will work to make sure that while the Athlete’s Village is secure, we will also minimize disruptions for the people who live and work in and around Westwood. 

Sustainability and Green Space: A Lasting Legacy
Paris made great strides in ensuring their Games were environmentally friendly, with a strong focus on sustainability and green space. They worked to incorporate green spaces into public areas, planted tens of thousands of new trees well before the Games, and promoted sustainable transportation options. This emphasis on sustainability is a lesson that aligns with our vision for Council District 5.

We are already working to create more green spaces in our district, with plans to plant more trees along major pedestrian routes and around venues Citywide, and enhance the walkability of our neighborhoods. These improvements not only beautify neighborhoods, but also provide shade, thereby reducing the urban heat island effect, and making our communities more livable for everyone long after the Games are over. Paris showed us that it is possible to balance large-scale events with a commitment to the environment, and we plan to follow their lead in preparing CD5 – and LA more broadly – for 2028.

The delegation met with several officials from the City of Paris to learn more about how they approached different challenges related to hosting the Games and hear about lessons they learned along the way.

Looking Ahead
The 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games provide us with a unique chance to showcase the best of Los Angeles and bring lasting improvements to Council District 5. But I also know that we must proceed thoughtfully, ensuring that the decisions we make today protect our communities from financial risks while delivering long-term benefits.

My goal is to balance opportunity with responsibility—using the Games to uplift our city while protecting us from potential downsides. I’m committed to making sure that we do this in a way that benefits everyone in our district and leaves a positive legacy for years to come.

Thank you for your trust and support as we work together toward this exciting, high stakes next chapter for Los Angeles.

All my best,
Katy  

In response to the ongoing LAPD staffing challenges, I introduced a motion in City Council this week, seconded by Councilmember Traci Park, to allocate $200,000 from our office’s Neighborhood Service Enhancements fund to support additional police overtime. This funding will be distributed across the local LAPD divisions that serve CD5 —$90,000 each to the Wilshire and West LA Divisions, and $20,000 to the Pacific Division (which covers a smaller portion of CD5). This investment is critical to ensuring that, even in the face of staffing shortages, our officers can maintain the safety and security of our neighborhoods. By addressing these gaps, we’re reinforcing our commitment to public safety across the district. In particular, these funds will help with additional patrols and enforcing the removal of encampments in front of schools and in parks across the district. If you see an encampment in front of a school or in a park, please reach out to one of our field deputies by emailing my office or by calling 323-866-1828.

On Thursday, the Los Angeles City Planning Commission approved the Television City (TVC) Project’s Specific Plan with additional modifications requested from my office. When I first ran for office, I made clear my commitment to preserving the Television City campus, recognizing its critical importance to our regional and local economy. Los Angeles is, after all, the entertainment capital of the world, and our local economy depends on the long-term viability of our studios. So many Angelenos work directly in the entertainment business, or indirectly benefit from the massive economic impacts production jobs indirectly create across our region. However, I also expressed concerns that the project, as originally proposed, was out of scale with the surrounding community and would require additional modifications to earn my support. At every step of this process, I have worked with the developer and the surrounding community to address concerns while maintaining the viability of a state-of-the-art studio that meets the evolving needs of the industry.

Over the past year, my office worked with the developer to reduce the size of the project by 150,000 square feet. On Wednesday, I requested additional square-footage reductions, along with greater setbacks and lower building heights along Fairfax Avenue, resulting in a total 188,000-square-foot reduction, or 10% from the initial plan. I also shifted some square footage from general office to production office, reducing the general office space to 500,000 square feet (down from the originally proposed 700,000 square feet). I had also previously imposed the most aggressive Transportation Demand Management programs possible, which will reduce vehicle trips by 30%. The Planning Commission and the Developer agreed to these conditions at the commission meeting on Thursday.

In addition to these concessions, my office also secured a significant community benefits package valued at $6.4 million. These funds will be used, among other things, to upgrade our streets and sidewalks, build new bike infrastructure, support local businesses through seed money to create a business improvement district, and improve Pan Pacific Park.

I’m grateful to everyone who provided feedback throughout this process, and worked with my team and I to ensure the compatibility of the project with the neighborhood. Together, I am confident that we’ve achieved a solution that benefits both the long-term viability of the entertainment industry in Los Angeles and our community.

Metro Service Advisory: D Line Rail Service Interruption l Sunday, September 8
Metro will replace electrical wires on a section of the Metro D Line to optimize its efficiency for a smooth rider experience. This work will require an interruption of rail service at Wilshire/Western Station and Wilshire/Normandie Station from 4:30 am, start of service, to 12:00 am, end of service, on Sunday, September 8, 2024. In place of the existing D Line, please utilize Line 20 and Line 720 on Wilshire Bl. B Line service will be increased during the daytime from every 12 minutes to every 10 minutes to accommodate riders and minimize delay.

Pedestrian Facilities Inventory and Condition Assessment Pilot Project
BOE recently kicked off a Pedestrian Facilities Inventory and Condition Assessment Pilot Project. The objective of the pilot project is to identify the minimum requirements, needs, technologies, and costs required to perform a citywide inventory and assessment of pedestrian facilities within the public right-of-way. (By pedestrian facilities, we mean: sidewalks, curb ramps, crosswalks, pedestrian signals, bus stops, etc.) The pilot will test various technologies in representative locations in order to determine the most cost-effective approach for capturing this information throughout the city.

While this is primarily a technology-focused project, they are soliciting public input through a stakeholder survey. The survey will help us to better understand your perspectives and priorities about pedestrian facilities. Spanish translation is available via the language setting at the top of the survey. The survey will remain open through mid-September.

The survey can be found here.