LAUSD to work with developer on mixed-use project. (Real Estate).THE L.A. Unified School District A unified school district is a school district which includes both primary school (kindergarten through middle school or junior high) and high school (grades 9-12). In Illinois, these districts are called unit school districts. , the city of Los Angeles
Under the "memorandum of understanding A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is a legal document describing a bilateral or multilateral agreement between parties. It expresses a convergence of will between the parties, indicating an intended common line of action and may not imply a legal commitment. " negotiated by advocacy group New Schools-Better Neighborhoods, the parties will work on a master plan for the four-acre parcel bordered by 4th and 5th streets and Hartford and Lucas avenues in the Westlake neighborhood. Total investment for the K-2 school, dubbed Gratts New Primary Center, along with a childcare center and the housing project to be developed by A Community of Friends, could exceed $35 million. "If a joint-planning agreement hadn't occurred, we'd be battling over this site," said Jose Huizar, a member of the LAUSD LAUSD Los Angeles Unified School District (Los Angeles, CA) board. "There's such a scarcity of land in this area that there's been competition between housing developers and the school district to provide the two most urgent needs." That battle may yet happen, since the group only controls one acre of the site. ACOF ACOF A Circle of Friends ACOF Attendant Control of Facilities ACOF Anthony Callea's Official Forum ACOF Antenna Cut-Off Frequency ACOF Action for a Common Future ACOF Adult Circle of Friends purchased a one-acre parcel on Fourth Street with two abandoned houses and an empty apartment building about two years ago, planning to develop 58-units of low-income housing. LAUSD later approached the developer about using the site for a school, but turned its sights to property south of the ACOF parcel as part of the proposed mixed-use development. That portion of the proposed development must still be acquired, potentially through eminent domain eminent domain, the right of a government to force the owner of private property sell it if it is needed for a public use. The right is based on the doctrine that a sovereign state has dominion over all lands and buildings within its borders, which has its origins in . Dora Leong Gallo, executive director at A Community of Friends, did not set a time frame on completing the residential portion of the site, but LAUSD officials hope to construct the school there by the fourth quarter of 2006, said Huizar. In developing educational and residential uses jointly, Gall said, "we'll likely be able to increase the number of units." ACOF has built three other residential projects in Westlake, one of the most densely populated sections of the city. Staff reporter Danny King can be reached at (323) 549-5225 ext. 230, or at dking@labusinessjournal.com. |
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