ICYMI: CicLAvia returns for its 50th event since 2010 on February 25 with CicLAvia – Melrose between Fairfax and Vermont Avenues.

Route of the February 25 CicLAvia on MelroseCicLAvia

And once again for those in the back, don't forget rule number one: only people-powered vehicles allowed. That means no electric scooters, skateboards, hoverboards, unicycles, motorcycles and other non-people-powered vehicles are permitted. However, Class 1 e-bike pedal-assist is allowed, Class 2 e-bikes are allowed when throttle is powered off, and Class 3 e-bikes are allowed when pedal-assist is powered down. 

View of the Biltmore Hotel from above Pershing SquareKenedy Wilson Brokerage

Some good news for the Downtown office market. This week, Kennedy Wilson Brokerage announced that California Appellate Project of Los Angeles (CAP-LA) is sticking around, signing a lease for a 10-year term at Biltmore Court (520 S. Grand Avenue) next door to the historic Biltmore Hotel. The non-profit law firm will continue to occupy approximately 13,000 square feet on the fourth floor of the building. 

CAP-LA’s renewal is one of the largest office deals in DTLA for Q4 2023, says Kennedy Wilson, citing CoStar data. The deal was led by Kennedy Wilson Brokerage executive vice president Lee Shapiro and sales associate Max Browne.

Here's what we're reading this week:

Proposed route for the Brightline West systemBrightline West

Rancho Cucamonga-to-Las Vegas high-speed rail project to hire 11,000 workers "About 11,000 workers are needed to complete the 218 miles of rail by 2028 -- in time for the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles." (ABC 7)

Zombie Street Widening Strikes Topanga Canyon Blvd Today, based on 2011 Approval Why do zombie street widenings killed in 2015 and again in 2019 still roam the streets in 2024? (Streetsblog LA)

Proposed Boyle Heights apartment complex to house a Chicano museum "Intended for the historic César Chávez corridor, the project dubbed Xola is being developed by local investors" (Boyle Heights Beat)

Aerial view looking northeastToledo Capital Development LLC

Turnbull Canyon Road Grade Separation Construction Underway Soon, Includes Ped/Bike Bridge "The bridges will be built over the Union Pacific tracks where many cut through for a reprieve from the area’s busy arterials (Streetsblog LA)

Endorsement: Yes on Measure HLA. Los Angeles needs safer, more bikeable, walkable streets "Frustrated by the lack of political will and bureaucracy, street safety advocates collected enough signatures to put Healthy Streets LA, or Measure HLA, on the March ballot. The initiative would force the city to carry out the improvements in the Mobility Plan. Any time city departments repave at least one-eighth of a mile of street, they would have to add the improvements outlined in the plan, whether bike lanes, bus lanes, pedestrian enhancements or fixes to ease vehicle traffic." (LA Times)

Subway opening pushed to 2025 "Sotero said no exact timeline for a 2025 opening to La Cienega Boulevard has been set. The second phase of the Purple Line Extension through Beverly Hills to Century City is still on track for completion in 2025, and the third phase to the Westwood/VA Hospital station is scheduled to open in 2027." (Beverly Press)

Route of the Purple Line extensionMetro

In Beverly Hills, no kitchen remodels or pool grottoes as judge orders building moratorium over lack of affordable housing "The city’s strategy has been to try to continue to wall off its existing residential neighborhoods — those with the mega-mansions and apartments buildings alike — and instead concentrate growth in commercial areas through mixed-use development....The plan hasn’t worked. The state has rejected five blueprints from Beverly Hills since summer 2021, most recently in December. California housing department officials said the city is overestimating how many of its commercial properties could add residential development and criticized the plan on fair housing grounds for not allowing more affordable housing in the city’s whiter and more affluent areas." (LA Times)

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