Councilmember Marqueece Harris-Dawson’s proposed Broadway Manchester Active Transportation Equity Project is expected to receive as much as $46M by early spring. The project will transform 2.8-miles of Manchester Ave and Broadway, located in South Los Angeles, into a safe and vibrant street. Due to over 50 years of disinvestment, this once vibrant commercial district has become blighted with vacant lots and crumbling infrastructure. The current conditions have led to detrimental impacts on public health, including high rates of asthma and traffic fatalities.
“It’s high time we see investment like this on our thoroughfares and on the east side of South L.A.,” said Councilmember Marqueece Harris-Dawson. “With its proximity to the Port and Downtown, there’s more opportunity than most neighborhoods and less investment.”
Proposed in 2015, the project will redesign the critical corridors of Broadway and Manchester and implement a protected bike lane, sidewalk improvements, pedestrian lighting, and 480 new trees. Project designs were presented to stakeholders at 15 community workshops and in a community survey before they were finalized.
The city of Los Angeles and the Councilmember submitted an application to fund the Broadway Manchester Active Transportation Equity Project under the Southern California Association of Governments’ Active Transportation Program are expected to receive as much as $46M by early spring. The project is located in the top 5% of disadvantaged census tracts in California. The project area has 14 public schools and 92% of the students receive free or reduced-price school meals. The streets are priority corridors on the city of Los Angeles’ High Injury Network due to the high volume of traffic deaths and serious injuries. There have been 249 injuries and 9 fatalities within the project area in the last 6 years.
The Broadway Manchester Active Transportation Equity Project is slated to be funded as one element of a revitalization of the Broadway and Manchester Corridors. The Isla Intersections project, located on Broadway and Imperial, will use recycled shipping containers to construct 54 dwelling units, in addition to on-site amenities and some commercial space. The project will also incorporate a green “shared street” with landscaping and other traffic calming elements to enhance aesthetics and reinforce safety.
These investments are anchored by the redevelopment of Vermont and Manchester by Los Angeles County under the leadership of Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas. The project will include affordable housing, retail, a boarding school, for young people pursuing transit careers soon, and open space. In September, the County picked a developer for the residential and retail portions of the project.
There are two additional proposed projects on these corridors that can address housing affordability and access in the area. The proposed Manchester Urban Homes, will create apartments and townhomes for low-income families will providing public green space, bike/pedestrian‐friendly allotments, parklets, exercise facilities, innovative parking, and a community garden. The proposed mixed-use project on 94th and Broadway is slated to provide housing and business opportunity. These projects are still in the development phase and are subject to change.
