LOS ANGELES-Los Angeles Superior Court judge Alan Goodman has ruled against Hollywood's Community Plan update in a tentative court ruling this month. The judge deemed the plan to be “fundamentally flawed,” specifically due to the use of 2005 population estimates from the Southern California Association of Government rather than 2010 US Census Bureau information, which would have served better to prove the submarket had sufficient infrastructure to accommodate the growth.

Originally presented in 2012, the Community Plan update included zone changes and amendments that would help drive development in the Hollywood submarket. As a result of the ruling, the city will not be authorized to grant entitlements related to the update. According to Dale Goldsmith and Damon Mamalakis, attorneys at Armbruster Goldsmith & Delvac, there is no information on the validity of entitlements already approved under the update.

The association, Fix The City and SaveHollywood.org brought the lawsuit against the city in the summer of 2012, challenging the update. They presented evidence showing that the population growth noted in the update contradicted the most recent U.S. Census, which shows that the population in Hollywood has been declining since 1990. Potential population growth was the foundation for the Community Plan update. Developers will be forced to adjust and redevelop plans for new construction.

Although development may be slowing in Hollywood, it is only picking up in Downtown Los Angeles where developers are scooping up available land for new construction. For example, Mack Urban and AECOM Capital purchased six-acres in Downtown's South Park district for $80 million. The joint venture plans to build a mixed-use complex on the site.

Instant Insights /

L.A. Superior Court Ruling Stops Development

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