The Los Angeles City Council Tuesday advanced a proposal to establish an ordinance allowing temporary and permanent construction of facilities, installations and or activities for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
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In a 14-0 vote, council members instructed the City Attorney's Office and Department of City Planning to draft the Olympic/Paralympic Zoning Exemption Ordinance, which aims to streamline and expedite various structures for the international event such as public bathrooms, fan zones, training facilities, security checks, broadcast and media centers, live sites and transit infrastructure.
Councilman Curren Price was absent during the vote.
Temporary projects would be required to be removed six months after the Games, and no later than Feb. 27, 2029.
Permanent or so-called "legacy" projects would be able to pursue exemptions before, during and up to six months after the conclusion of the Games. Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, a 22-acre public park built for the 1996 Games, is an example of a legacy project, as well as the CalTrans freeway mural arts program that officials implemented for the 1984 Games in Los Angeles.
The city has created a preliminary list of projects that would not benefit from zoning exemptions under the ordinance, which involve large-scale cable-guided or aerial mobility projects, Metro 28 by 28 Light Rail projects, housing demolition, changes to city landmarks and hotels.
City staff are expected to identify potential projects that could benefit from the policy, such as those that advance mobility, pedestrian, multimodal or wayfinding initiatives.
The city's Planning Commission is expected to consider the draft ordinance before it comes back to full council for a vote.
The 2028 Games will feature 36 Olympic and 23 Paralympic sports at more than 40 venues throughout Southern California, with two sporting events scheduled in Oklahoma.
There are 15 official competition venues in Los Angeles with potentially more venues to be added, such as the USC Sport Center, Memorial Coliseum, Convention Center and Sport Center at L.A. Live, Grand Park, the Riviera Country Club, the Sepulveda Basin and UCLA, as well as the Port of Los Angeles.
"The draft ordinance aims to strike a balance that allows the city to deviate from conventional zoning and planning procedural requirements while maintaining oversight and accountability, addressing the needs of the city, its communities and stakeholders," according to a city report.
The Mayor's Office of Major Events, the City Council, LA Metro, LA28, the city administrative officer and the chief legislative analyst are expected to identify and approve projects to streamline.
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