L.A.'S FUTURE IS ON THE LINE REPORT GIVES COUNTY LOW MARKS IN EVERY AREA, BUT OFFERS HOPE.Byline: KERRY CAVANAUGH Staff Writer After nearly a decade of worsening traffic, stagnant air pollution and increasingly unaffordable un·af·ford·a·ble adj. Too expensive: medical care that has become unaffordable for many. un housing, Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, is on the verge On the Verge (or The Geography of Yearning) is a play written by Eric Overmyer. It makes extensive use of esoteric language and pop culture references from the late nineteenth century to 1955. of turning around, local government leaders said Thursday. While the annual State of the Region report card again ranked the region's quality of life as dim -- with no significant improvement in any of seven key indicators -- city and county officials said billions of dollars in infrastructure bonds approved by voters in November should reverse years of failing grades. ``Southern California has reached the tipping point The point in time in which a technology, procedure, service or philosophy has reached critical mass and becomes mainstream. See network effect. See also tip and ring. of planning and building activity so that in the next decade you will look at Southern California and you will say, We're not the same place we were 10 years ago,'' said Mark Pisano, executive director of the Southern California Association of Governments, which compiles the report card. The dismal grades -- an F in transportation and D's in housing and education -- reflect conditions that spurred voters to support recent tax measures and $43 billion in bonds to pay for highway improvements, public transit, schools and affordable housing. ``The people of Southern California recognize it costs money to do these things "These Things" is an EP by She Wants Revenge, released in 2005 by Perfect Kiss, a subsidiary of Geffen Records. Music Video The music video stars Shirley Manson, lead singer of the band Garbage. Track Listing 1. "These Things [Radio Edit]" - 3:17 2. ,'' said Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County Supervisor Yvonne B. Burke. ``There is no way you're going to have affordable housing unless you have funds available for housing. There is no way you're going to have a mobility increase unless you have some increase in your highways or rapid transit rapid transit, transportation system designed to allow passenger travel within or throughout an urban area, usually employing surface, elevated, or underground railway systems or some combination of these. .'' Since its inception, the report card has highlighted the region's major problems: traffic, air quality, troubled schools, crime and a sluggish economy Sluggish Economy A state in the economy in which the growth is slow, flat or declining. The term can refer to the economy as a whole or a component of the economy, such as weak housing starts. . And despite billions of dollars spent over the past nine years, the Years, The the seven decades of Eleanor Pargiter’s life. [Br. Lit.: Benét, 1109] See : Time grades have barely improved. Missing out on funds The problem, Pisano said, has been that the region has been shortchanged by the federal government, while the state has diverted local dollars to balance its budget. Infrastructure investments were cut, the population continued to grow and the region's quality of life suffered. The infrastructure bonds will help, officials said. And for the first time, SCAG scag - To destroy the data on a disk, either by corrupting the file system or by causing media damage. Compare scrog, roach. officials said, the region has a plan that promises money for cities and counties that build denser housing -- such as apartments and condos -- next to public transit corridors. Los Angeles leaders are also optimistic after seeing additional transportation funds and new projects, such as the proposed ``subway to the sea,'' moving forward. ``There is a real focus on transportation and infrastructure investment. Because transportation has been so bad, people are willing to look at solutions they haven't looked at before,'' said Councilwoman Wendy Greuel Wendy Greuel is President Pro Tempore of the Los Angeles City Council representing the 2nd District. Greuel was elected in 2002 to fill the remainder of the term of Councilman Joel Wachs. She was elected in her own right in 2003 and reelected in 2007. , who sits on the City Council's transportation and housing committees. However, Valley Industry and Commerce Association Chairman Robert Scott said the bonds will simply help the region catch up with infrastructure demands. He said city and county elected leaders haven't done enough to encourage economic growth, build housing and ease transportation. ``The region has the bone structure for great success, but frankly it hasn't been well managed.'' The SCAG report card is based on 2005 data from Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, Riverside and Imperial counties. For the second consecutive year, Southern California got an F in mobility for having the worst traffic congestion The condition of a network when there is not enough bandwidth to support the current traffic load. congestion - When the offered load of a data communication path exceeds the capacity. in the nation. Because of high gas prices, the number of people carpooling and taking public transit rose slightly, to 12.6 percent and 4.5 percent, respectively. But it would take $5-a-gallon gas to get half of solo commuters to consider leaving the car at home, according to a SCAG survey. Housing squeeze Southern California earned a repeat D grade in housing. Even though the region issued building permits for 91,000 units -- the second-highest number since 1989 -- Southern Californians continue to be squeezed by rising housing costs. Just 14 percent of Los Angeles County residents could afford to buy a median-priced house of $529,000 in 2005. And nearly half of the region's homeowners spend more than 30 percent of their income on their mortgage. Among the other findings: The region earned a B for employment and economic growth, adding 120,000 jobs in 2005, the largest increase since 2000; and the unemployment rate dropped to 5 percent, the lowest rate since 1988. But the region earned only a C for income, which averaged $42,900, last among the nine largest metropolitan regions. The region's median household income The median household income is commonly used to provide data about geographic areas and divides households into two equal segments with the first half of households earning less than the median household income and the other half earning more. -- $52,069 -- declined by 0.5 percent from 2004. Education got a D for the fifth consecutive year, with local seventh-graders testing below national standards for reading and math. kerry.cavanaugh@dailynews.com (213) 978-0390 CAPTION(S): box Box: State of the Region SOURCE: Southern California Association of Governments Gregg Miller/Staff Artist |
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