Brief

The Board of Public Works submitted an environmental impact report for the Sidewalk Repair Program in May 2025. After review by the Energy and Environment Committee and Public Works Committee, the City Council adopted the report on November 12, 2025, by a vote of 14-0-1. A City Attorney document was referred back to the Public Works Committee in May 2026 for further consideration.

Full summary

This file is part of a long-running effort to establish a streamlined approval process for sidewalk repair projects under the City's obligations stemming from the federal disability-access settlement in Willits v. City of Los Angeles. The core policy goal is to add Section 62.104.1 to the Municipal Code, which would create a faster permitting track for sidewalk repairs that qualify for credit under that settlement agreement. The file has a complicated legal history. The City originally enacted this streamlined process through Ordinance No. 187,106, but a separate lawsuit — United Neighborhoods for Los Angeles v. City of Los Angeles — resulted in a court judgment ordering the City to set aside both that ordinance and the environmental impact report (EIR) it had adopted in 2021 to support it. In compliance with that court order, the City repealed the ordinance and voided the EIR. City staff then prepared Recirculated Portions of the EIR (REIR) to address the deficiencies identified by the court. The Board of Public Works initiated this file in May 2025 to re-approve the environmental documentation and reinstate the sidewalk repair streamlining ordinance. After the Energy and Environment Committee waived consideration and the Public Works Committee approved the item as amended in October 2025, the full City Council adopted the matter on November 12, 2025, by a vote of 14-0-1. That action approved the REIR, re-approved the underlying 2021 EIR, and directed the City Attorney to draft a new ordinance reinstating the provisions of the original Ordinance No. 187,106. In response to that directive, City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto transmitted a draft ordinance in May 2026, which would formally add Section 62.104.1 back into the Municipal Code. That draft ordinance was referred to the Public Works Committee on May 6, 2026, where it currently awaits action. The file remains open and expires May 6, 2028.

Activity (10)

• 2026-05-06 City Attorney document(s) referred to Public Works Committee.
• 2026-05-06 Document submitted by City Attorney, dated May 6, 2026.
• 2025-11-15 Council action final.
• 2025-11-12 Council adopted item forthwith.
• 2025-11-07 City Clerk scheduled item for Council on November 12, 2025.
• 2025-10-22 Public Works Committee approved as amended .
• 2025-10-17 Public Works Committee scheduled item for committee meeting on October 22, 2025.
• 2025-09-04 Energy and Environment Committee waived consideration of item .
• 2025-05-23 Board of Public Works document(s) referred to Energy and Environment Committee; Public Works Committee.
• 2025-05-22 Document(s) submitted by Board of Public Works, as follows:Board of Public Works report, dated May 22, 2025, relative to the Sidewalk Repair Program and Environmental Impact Report.

Documents (6)

• 2026-05-06 Report from City Attorney · report
• 2026-05-06 Attachment to Report dated 5-06-26 - Draft Ordinance · attachment
• 2025-11-15 Council Action · council_action
• 2025-11-12 Speaker Card(s) · speaker_card
• 2025-10-22 Report from Public Works Committee · report
• 2025-05-22 Report from Board of Public Works · report