Building Sustainable Communities is no longer just a vision or hopeful plan. LISC is putting this plan into action...

In 2008, Los Angeles LISC adopted a new  strategic plan to pursue a Building Sustainable Communities approach in three targeted low- and moderate-income neighborhoods:  the Crenshaw and Central Avenue corridors in South Los Angeles and the Boyle Heights area of East Los Angeles. 

The following highlights the results of the Quality of Life planning process over the past year:

Investing in the Physical Environment in Los Angeles, LISC supported a partnership between Coalition for Responsible Community Development (CRCD) and Little Tokyo Service Center (LTSC) to provide 47 units of permanent supportive housing for newly emancipated foster youth living in South LA. This type of supportive housing not only contributes to the redevelopment of disinvested South LA, but also decreases the risk of young people becoming homeless within a year of being emancipated.  Additionally, LISC/NEF provided $12 million in tax-credit equity for the Boyle Hotel , a 51-unit rehab development that targets Mariachi musicians many of whom work in the nearby Mariachi Plaza in Boyle Heights.

Increasing Family Income and Wealth in an effort to address job-training and placement as a priority for the Quality of Life plan for the Vernon-Central neighborhood, CRCD established the Vernon-Central Workforce Development Network in partnership with All People’s Christian Center, Los Angeles Conservation Corps and Los Angeles Trade Tech College.  The Network provides 65 youth and young adults (90% of whom are on probation) with case management and coaching; educational support; and on-the-job training with the South Los Angeles Beautification Team.  The Network also provides access to apprenticeships with construction trade unions.

Increasing Access to Quality Education LISC joined forces with Global Green USA on a pilot program to create five “green” charter schools that serve low-income children in Los Angeles.  Two projects are now complete, including the 27th Street Learning Complex, comprised of the adaptive reuse of a 55,000 square foot garment manufacturing facility in South Los Angeles into two LEED-Certified, Green Dot Public Schools serving 1,050 students.  The second grant rehabilitated a 4,200 square foot office building by Tzicatl CDC creating 100 new seats for Academia Semillas del Pueblo, a K-9 public charter school in El Sereno. LISC provided each project $75,000 in green grant funds to support  energy efficiency and architectural assistance.

Fostering Safe and Healthy Environments LISC and its partners are reviving ethnically diverse commercial corridors along Central Avenue in the Vernon Central District, Crenshaw Boulevard in the Crenshaw Corridor and First Street in Boyle Heights. The successful Central Corridor Graffiti Removal Program has received accolades from the Los Angeles Police Department and MetLife Community Policing Initiative.  In addition, LISC is assisting ELACC and LTSC in their effort to advocate for community-driven transit-oriented development that ensures the community enjoys the potential benefits of TOD such as job creation, community facility and real estate creation and assistance to small businesses.