Alissa, Mike, and Godfrey discuss yet another new LA rebuilding effort focused on climate — and why this one could be different. Plus, California becomes even more uninsurable, and city leaders are colluding to stop affordable housing in Venice. And remembering Donald Shoup, the UCLA professor who changed the way LA looked at parking.

UCLA’s new Blue Ribbon Commission "to promote a safe, resilient recovery” announced by LA County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath

The Science Moms Super Bowl ad that benefitted California Community Foundation’s wildfire recovery fund

LAT: “Palisades checkpoints to remain, Bass says, reversing course hours before reopening”

LAT: After critics blast move to pay L.A. wildfire recovery czar $500,000, he’ll do it for free"

“Lawmakers shouldn’t use the fires as an excuse to slow down on clean energy,” writes Los Angeles Times columnist Sammy Roth

The FAIR plan, California’s insurer of last resort has run out of money

California insurance commissioner Ricardo Lara confirmed that the state’s insurance customers will see temporary fee increases to cover the FAIR plan

Remembrances of legendary parking reform advocate Donald Shoup from UCLA, the Los Angeles Times, Henry Grabar, and Alissa’s piece at Torched

The High Cost of Free Parking video by Vox

Produced by Sophie Bridges

Alissa, Rachel, and Godfrey talk about the protests that are drawing attention to Trump’s mass deportation policies when California’s elected officials are not. Then: Rick Caruso launches his nonprofit, Steadfast LA, into a field that grows more crowded each day, and how Mayor Karen Bass should be thinking about rebuilding LA City infrastructure. 

De Los: "Why LA students walked out of school and protested mass deportations"

Boyle Heights Beat on how LAUSD is working to protect immigrant families

Here’s how you can order red cards or print your own

LA Times: "Who’s in charge of Palisades fire recovery? The answer has gotten complicated"

New rebuilding initiatives: Rick Caruso’s Steadfast LA and the Department of Angels, led by Snap’s Evan Spiegel and California Community Foundation’s Miguel Santana

Rick Caruso on the Joe Rogan Experience

Joe Mathews: “Why Didn’t L.A. Plan for This?”

Designing the Future of LA City: A Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) for LA, an LA Forward Institute teach-in

Produced by Sophie Bridges

Alissa, Mike, and Hayes ask the big questions: is the fire department underfunded, who is really in charge of LA’s recovery, which electeds are taking all the blame, and why? Plus, emergency tenant protections are once again shelved by LA City Council.

Hayes’s Big City Heat story: “The question no one is going on TV about”

"24 hours that changed Los Angeles” by the Los Angeles Times’ Laura Nelson

UCLA study: "Altadena’s Black residents disproportionately hit by Eaton fire”

How Steve Soboroff, the city’s rebuilding czar, is going to help the Palisades

Alissa on Gavin Newsom’s LA Rises announcement at Torche

The Rent Brigade is a group of volunteers fighting price gouging 

LAist: "New fire eviction protections sent back to committee"

Produced by Sophie Bridges

On January 8, 2025, Angelenos woke up to a city that had been irrevocably transformed overnight. On a special live show recorded on Zoom, Alissa, Mike, and Rachel discuss the fires, the city and county response, and where LA goes next. Also joining: Eater LA reporter Mona Holmes on Altadena, Hayes on housing, and Public Counsel’s Faizah Malik on emergency housing justice initiatives

The Guardian on LA’s “perfect storm” 

NPR: What LA did right before the fires — and why it wasn't enough

Julia Wick on LA Mayor Karen Bass’s fire response: "Only time will reveal the severity of the political fallout."

“Recovering Together:” Mike’s most recent newsletter includes a long list of resources

Alissa’s newsletter includes a story about the fires and questions about hosting the Olympics

Eater LA’s Mona Holmes wants you to eat at restaurants

Also on Eater: “Customers Are Not Coming In”: LA Restaurants Reach a Breaking Point Due to the 2025 Wildfire

De Los (LAT): "Advocates gather to demand equitable fire recovery for long-time Altadena residents, immigrants and others”

NYT: Shattered in the Fire: A Historic Black Haven

Hayes has a story about searching for the real arsonist and an pre-fire story about building housing in safer areas

Public Counsel’s comprehensive fire recovery resources

77 tenant groups are demanding emergency renter protections with Keep LA Housed

Mike Davis's provocative essay, The Case for Letting Malibu Burn, with a new postscript written after the Woolsey Fire 

Produced by Sophie Bridges

It’s the final episode of 2024! Scott, Alissa, Rachel, and Mike discuss the biggest (or most under-reported) stories of the year including the implosion of local media, trust in elected officials, 2028 Olympics leadership, and the breakdown of LA City services. Plus, the co-hosts make some predictions for 2025 and beyond.

Take Mike’s local media survey! Mike will be interviewing journalists on his podcast, What’s Next, Los Angeles?

The Guardian: “LA Times owner asks editorial board to ‘take a break’ from writing about Trump - report"

California Democrats shifted right due to the state’s cost of living: "A recent report from the Legislature’s fiscal advisor, the Legislative Analyst’s Office, says that living costs have risen nearly 20% since January 2020, driven by a 41.5% jump in housing and utility costs."

LAT columnist Mark Barabak on "how organized labor boosted California Democrats"

The Wrap: "Billie Eilish Dumps Casey Wasserman After Scandal Over Extramarital Affairs” & “Casey Wasserman Says He Won’t Step Down as LA Olympics Chair"

Alissa’s Torched story on Executive Directive 9

Investing in Place on LA’s "Comprehensive, Multi-Year Capital Infrastructure Plan”

Produced by Sophie Bridges

Alissa, Rachel, Mike, David, and Hayes discuss last week’s election results, including the déjà vu-inducing national swing to the right, a mixed bag of state props, and many local progressive wins, including the passage of Measure A. And then: where we're finding hope and focusing energy in the weeks ahead.

LA County election results

California State election results

The AP VoteCast data on the Latino vote nationally and @Vanessid’s thread on the disaggregated data

LA Times: “This election showed LA voters are fed up with City Hall corruption and scandal”

The Rachel Maddow Show: “Ballot measures deliver big wins for progressive policy priorities”

Hayes wrote about getting "off the feeds and into the streets”

Rachel recommends broadening coalitions and fighting back against Trump’s Games with NOlympics LA

Mike wrote about looking for silver linings and interviewed Assemblymember Isaac Bryan for the next What’s Next, Los Angeles?

Alissa recommends volunteering at your local LAUSD school and organizing with Angelenos for Green Schools, Trust for Public Land, and the LA Living Schoolyards Coalition

David invites everyone to join LA Forward’s Election Debrief & Processing event on Tuesday, November 12 from 7-8:30 p.m. on Zoom and getting involved with future in-person events all over the county — just find a group and plug in!

Produced by Sophie Bridges

Alissa and Rachel are joined by Mike Bonin, Godfrey Plata, and David Levitus to talk about all the tricks and treats on your ballot, including the key local races in next week’s election, a slew of state props, and very consequential county and city measures. Plus, some exciting changes are in store for the podcast!

LA Forward Voter Guide

"What is LACAHSA and how can it prevent homelessness?" Alissa’s Report Forward piece on the new housing authority funded by Measure A

The "more powerful offspring of Measure H”: read Hayes Davenport on Measure A (bonus: audio discussion with Scott!)

Join us for the LA Forward & LA Podcast Ballot Party in Grand Park on Sunday, November 3, 2-4PM.

Alissa’s new newsletter about LA and mega-events, Torched

What’s Next, Los Angeles? with Mike Bonin featuring interviews with George Gascon and Ysabel Jurado

"Now is the time to keep talking about policing in Los Angeles" from Mike’s newsletter

Let us know what you want to hear on the show! Follow and DM us at @thelapod and @laforward

And be sure to vote by Tuesday, November 5!

Produced by Sophie Bridges.

“Why is Frank McCourt really pushing it?” LA Times sports writer Bill Shaikin went in search of answers last year

“The secret to reducing car trips in LA is often much simpler than what well-connected consultants might want you to believe.” Alissa’s gondola story from 2020

Supervisor Hilda Solis’s motion with 31 requirements for the gondola developer

Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez’s motion requesting a Dodger Stadium traffic study

NOlympics LA’s 2021 report on community benefit agreements

Join one of LA Forward’s ballot-filling parties: February 29 in DTLA, March 4 on Zoom

“At the Beverly Hills fundraiser, the political consultant Jimmy Blackman told the crowd that unseating Raman would set the stage to go after other progressives in 2026.” Mike Bonin and Peter Dreier’s story in The Nation

Adam Conover's thread on Republican money in the CD 4 race

Rebecca Traister on California’s senate race

Voter guides from LA Forward, Initiate Justice, Knock LA

Revisit our emergency episode from one year ago

"I can still hear Nury’s poisonous slurs and cruel laugh, and Kevin’s conspiratorial whisper and malicious tone." Former Councilmember Mike Bonin reflects on what he hears one year later

Kevin de León and Gil Cedillo file lawsuits that claim they said nothing wrong on the recording but yet somehow it also ruined their reputations

Tavis Smiley hosted an excellent 2-hour special which aired after we recorded (Part 1, Part 2)

The third episode of LAist's "Nury & the Secret Tapes" podcast airs this week 

Alissa's Report Forward piece on the state of governance reform, including independent redistricting and council expansion

From 2021, Scott on the case against John Lee, "a co-conspirator on City Council"