Urban L.A.: Hungover & Hoodwinked in Hollywood

A few new updates around town...

The new Hollywood Trader Joe's on Selma and Vine St. just opened its doors! Upon my inaugural visit after a particularly self-indulgent evening the night before, the coffee sample guy took one look at me and proclaimed, 'Wow! You look like you need coffee more than anyone I've seen all day!' Thanks, buddy, I needed that, and the coffee too. Nevertheless, the specialty market is a much needed anchor in the area and should do wonders to support the urban growth of the neighborhood.

Meanwhile, the L.A. City Council is searching for ways to increase revenue (surprise, surprise) and has aimed its sight on foreclosure homes that aren't being properly maintained by banks and lenders. The City has implemented a new foreclosure registry website called L.A. Hoodwinked, where concerned citizens can go online and report unkempt or neglected homes in their neighborhoods. As a foreclosure broker, I can attest that despite every effort to properly secure these homes, it is not uncommon to find squatters, abandoned animals, school aged gangsters practicing their tagging, and a myriad of other nuisances in these properties that are often left vacant for months at a time. The city's new ordinance will require lending institutions that own homes found in violation of local requirements to pay fines of up to a thousand dollars a day, not to exceed $100,000/year. Pretty clever, City Council, but I wonder how effectively the system will operate, considering the data is fed by a third party provider called Realty Trac, that doesn't always deliver property updates with real time accuracy.

Finally, developer extraordinaire, Rick Caruso, known for his Disney-like urban retail developments (including The Grove, The Americana at Brand, and The Commons at Calabasas) announced his interest in running for Mayor once Antonio Villaraigosa terms out in 2013. Caruso might be a formidable candidate, considering his background in development and his enthusiasm to implement a monorail system along I-10 from downtown L.A. Like the proposed Wilshire Monorail, Caruso's plan may reveal a timelier option to the Subway to the Sea, which won't be realized for at least another twenty years. Supposedly, the monorail would take only five years to complete and at one-fourth the cost of the proposed subway system. More power to you, Rick. If you can accelerate Smart Growth, get me the hell out of my car and spare the bad drivers of L.A. from my road rage, you've certainly got my vote!