Requiem for a Growth Machine

Abstract

In the last quarter century, the city of Los Angeles has suffered a chronic housing shortage due to exclusive zoning policies tied to the rise of antigrowth advocates over developers as the prime determinants of land use policy. This article considers the history of two major land use reforms affecting the city of Los Angeles in the 1980s: the General Plan Zoning Code Consistency Program (GPZCP) and Proposition U. These reforms represented the decline of the growth machine in 1980s Los Angeles and demonstrate the viability of an antigrowth regime in a large, non-suburban jurisdiction. This shift has not necessarily led to more democratic planning in Los Angeles. The GPZCP and Proposition U instead represented the empowerment of new antigrowth elites at the expense of old capital-driven elites. This has been to the detriment of hopeful homeowners and renters seeking economic and social opportunities in the city of Los Angeles.