For too long, he said, planning has focused only on specific development projects while excluding input from the areas most deeply affected. They have been horribly excluded in the past and we need to get them involved, since they bear the burden. The creation of Area Planning Councils and Neighborhood Councils under the new City Charter presents an opportunity to deal with both problems, he said. As an example of the need for local participation, he cited proposals to increase density along Ventura Boulevard in the Sherman Oaks-Studio City area. But not this area.
Traffic already is too heavy there.
Too heavy along all of Ventura Boulevard and in other parts of the Valley. We need to find ways to deal with that. But there are areas where we should have higher density, like in downtown, where we can make greater use of mixed-development to have housing and business together. That is exactly why we need to have local input, to tell us where the problem areas are. In dealing with neighborhoods, Villaraigosa said he wants the city to recognize the distinctions of different communities.