A $2.55 million grant awarded to the city of Los Angeles will be used to fund initiatives that assist businesses and help create jobs, Mayor Eric Garcetti announced Monday.
The grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies will pay for an “innovation team” to work on projects aimed at minimizing “displacement” and helping low-income residents in areas selected as part of city’s Great Streets initiative and the federal Promise Zone program, according to the mayor’s office.
“I’m thrilled that L.A. will join the Bloomberg Philanthropies Innovation Teams program,” Garcetti said. “This data-driven, results-oriented initiative will bolster my administration’s work to solve the most pressing problems facing our neighborhoods and will help communities across L.A. become more prosperous and better places to live.”
Bloomberg Philanthropies also gave innovation grants to Long Beach, Albuquerque, Boston, Jersey City, Mobile, Minneapolis, Peoria, Rochester, Seattle, Syracuse, Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
The mayor’s office chose 15 streets, one in each City Council district, to receive upgrades that increase their walkability. The initiative’s first project, a lighted welcome sign on the Gaffey Street Pedestrian Bridge in San Pedro, was unveiled last week.
The Los Angeles communities of East Hollywood, Thai Town, Little Armenia, Pico-Union/Westlake and Koreatown are also expected to receive some federal help and funding through their designation as Promise Zones, as part of a program created by President Barack Obama.
— City News Service