Joe Bray-Ali for CD 1

Los Angeles is changing and that's a great thing. The obsolete "vision" of the great big freeway, communities historically and economically segregated by race, economics and ethnicity and not-in-my-backyard (NIMBY) politics is giving way to more rail, bus rapid transit (BRT), bike lanes, bike share, social and economic integration and transit-oriented development. A demographic shift back to urban living, a smart, hard-working good governance mayor, a growing grassroots movement for quality-of-life improvements including walkable complete streets, sensible density, pedestrian- and bike-friendly neighborhoods and open space, green infrastructure and a move toward renewable energy are making living here better and better.

Consistent with these changes, is a shift away from the business-as-usual ways of City government and an embrace of the adage that all politics is local. A wave of locally-focused community leaders has brought to Los Angeles candidates for office who read, believe in science and wield a strong command of state-of-the-art urban policy and practice.

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