City Terrace - The Last Affordable Area in LA With Hills and Views

[r0x]

thanks much for the feedback!!

[JFFCT]

What special interests developers don't want you to know about City Terrace

Real Estate Media will tell you there is the lack of affordable homes but won't give details as to why. Also, they avoid telling you where you can find them.

Los Angeles City

FACT: The minimum buildable requirement for a single family home zoned R-1 in the City of
Los Angeles is 5000 square feet per unit.

Do the math: At the average cost of construction approximately $250.00 per square foot =
$1,250,000.00 + the cost of land acquisition.

Versus City Terrace

FACT: The minimum buildable requirements for a single family home zoned R-1 in City
Terrace, located in the County of Los Angeles, is only 800 square feet per unit.

Do the math: At the average cost of construction, approximately $250.00 per square foot =
$200,000.00 + the cost of land acquisition, approximately $150,000.00 to
$300,000.00 average = $500,00.00 approximately.

NOTE: The zoning regulations for a single family home zoned R-1 in City Terrace is less than
1/5th the minimum buildable requirement of Los Angeles City! This does not mean
you can't build a larger house, it only means that you are not forced to build a larger
home if you can't afford to do so!

NOTE: THIS IS TRULY THE LAST NEIGHBORHOOD ADJACENT TO THE
METROPOLITAN DOWNTOWN CIVIC CENTER TYPE HOUSING AREA WHICH
PEOPLE CAN STILL AFFORD TO PURCHASE.

FACT: Within zip code area 90063 alone, City Terrace and East Los Angeles, there are over
200 vacant parcels which have an address and still many more which do not have
addresses! The obvious question is, why don't more people know about this?

Since 1969, Special Interest Developers have had ongoing relations with the City & County Planning Departments of Los Angeles. Together, they worked diligently to redirect real estate potential away from the working class. Instead of evenly spreading density and new construction (wealth) over the entire city and county areas, there are high concentrations of multi-level housing units, which in turn cause unbearable traffic conditions while creating neglectful conditions in what are now considered marginal areas.

As a consequence, there is an over abundance of vacant parcels owned by small mom and pop property owners who have paid taxes, upkeep and maintenance for many years without being able to realize the fruits their labor! These abusive conditions are due to over regulation on single family and duplex land uses, as many lots do not meet today's minimum buildable requirements. In many cases, you will need to purchase two adjacent lots in order to meet minimum buildable requirements.

Historically, minority property owners have had to endure carefully planned recessionary conditions up to and including the carefully crafted strategy of turning minority tenants against minority property owners. In the midst of controversy, home buyers have been made to feel uncomfortable and thus flee where special interests developers want them to purchase = dirty politics, dirty business.

On a positive note, Special Interest Developers can't compete with the single family home environment and the Maverick Image of the hidden community of City Terrace.
Not known by many, the community can boast of spectacular city and mountain views! This hillside community is comprised of mostly single family homes and down below, a very mild concentration of duplexes, truly the last neighborhood type housing setting.

To those who say that it will take years for City Terrace to have a more pleasant neighborhood appeal ... I say that it is easier to address the issue of neighborhood aesthetics, than it is to reverse the “negative impact” associated with high density and flexible regulations for Special Interests. City Terrace can also boast about the outstanding services of the Los Angeles County Sheriff Department, which unlike the City of Los Angeles, have not reduced their police officers to mere pencil pushers.

City Terrace is not for the individual who succumbs to a divisive methodology. This is a community which has been progressing steadily and by those who truly embrace the concept of unity, diversity, equality and who do not see improving our nation's under served communities as an inconvenience!

I welcome you to the hills of City Terrace. Mi casa es su casa!

Jesus Gonzalez Franco

[Texamichiforniasota]

Originally Posted by JFFCT

What special interests developers don't want you to know about City Terrace

Real Estate Media will tell you there is the lack of affordable homes but won't give details as to why. Also, they avoid telling you where you can find them.

Los Angeles City

FACT: The minimum buildable requirement for a single family home zoned R-1 in the City of
Los Angeles is 5000 square feet per unit.

Do the math: At the average cost of construction approximately $250.00 per square foot =
$1,250,000.00 + the cost of land acquisition.

Jesus Gonzalez Franco

This isn't a fact. In fact, it's completely wrong. The avg lot size in the LA city portion of the basin is 6,000-7,000 sqft, and floor area for R1 is limited to 45% of the lot size in LA city. So, for a standard city lot, the MAXIMUM SIZE allowed without exemptions is around 3,000 sqft. I can't find any mimum size. The 5000 sqft requirement is that the lot must be at least 5000 sqft, not the home. So 5000 sqft is the smallest lot size for R1, although are some older, smaller, grandfathered properties. A home on a 5000sqft lot would be LIMITED TO A MAXIMUM of 2250 sqft, but there doesn't seem to be a minimum size.

[Miss Pip]

Originally Posted by r0x

have been scouring this board and the discussions. am wondering if anyone has any updated opinions on the area?

a bit of background on myself that could inform your answers and what i'm looking for in terms of feedback.

i grew up in echo park when it was a truly frightening place and towards the end of my time there, people would always ask 'are you sure you want to live there?'. from the 70's until the early aughts it was a bit neglected (and worse) though always transitional feeling, with great economic and demographic diversity.

today, echo park has become pretty unrecognizable, and tbh, has become a rich person's playground. nice to have more things to do in the area, but the character and neighborhood feeling has become so much less friendly - from the perspective of a (white collar/creative field) brown person.

i've been looking into the area of city terrace, as it reminds me a bit of how echo park used to be, complete with roosters crowing from time to time. the only thing that seems to be missing is nightlife and interesting venues that are accessible on foot. (since i currently am staying on the western edge of ktown, i've grown accustomed to that accessibility. however the amount of crime and vagrancy in ktown and even near the mayoral residence has been fairly high and seems to be on the rise)

i'd love to hear some recent opinions/experiences of city terrace. crime rates/types? friendliness of the residents? activities/stores that are nearby. anything.

thanks!

We now have a vegan tex-mex joint, coffee shop, an Italian restaurant and an urban tails pet groomers is about to open soon. There are club nights happening in the warehouses. There was an event sponsored by Red Bull on Worth St, which is borderline El Sereno.

Crime is definitely lower than what it used to be. I feel safer in City Terrace than Santa Monica. No piles of human feces either.