South LA applies for Promise Zone grant



The proposed Promise Zone for South L.A. shaded in light blue. The current Promise Zone is shaded in gray. | Photo: Courtesy Los Angeles Trade-Technical College

The proposed Promise Zone for South L.A. shaded in light blue. The current Promise Zone is shaded in gray. | Photo: Courtesy Los Angeles Trade-Technical College

A coalition led by a South Los Angeles college submitted a key application Thursday for the “Promise Zone” initiative that would give South L.A.  priority in federal funding for anti-poverty programs.

“This project brings together everybody with a very common purpose which is … the economic revitalization of this area through increased opportunities,” said Leticia Barajas, Vice President of the L.A. Trade-Technical College.

The program, created by President Obama in 2013, named five Los Angeles neighborhoods as “promise zones” in 2014. South L.A. was left out, to the disappointment of the Los Angeles City Council and community members.

The coalition hopes to become a designated area for federal help because the poverty rate in the region is close to 50 percent and the unemployment rate is 12 percent.

The college-led coalition formed a group called the South Los Angeles Transit Empowerment Zone (SLATE-Z). The SLATE-Z group would invest in transit centers, educational programs, businesses, and South L.A. redevelopment. The City Council and L.A. County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, who represents the area, support the application.

Originally published on Annenberg TV News.

South LA could get Promise Zone funding in Obama’s 2015 budget plan



Obama | The White House

Obama discussed the 2015 budget at an elementary school in Washington D.C. | The White House

President Barack Obama released his 2015 budget proposal on Tuesday, revealing a plan to create 40 new “Promise Zones” nationwide — a major bump from last year’s designation of just five. As a low-income neighborhood, South Los Angeles stands to benefit, said Rep. Karen Bass.

“I’m thrilled by the resources he’s putting in,” she said. “In regards to South L.A., he’s calling for the establishment of 40 more Promise Zones, so that could really increase the possibility that an application from South L.A. would be successful.”

Last year, Obama passed over South L.A. in selecting neighborhoods eligible for funding that could improve education, housing and public safety. Instead, he picked L.A.’s Pico-Union, Westlake, Koreatown, East Hollywood and Hollywood neighborhoods. The move left some L.A. leaders and activists feeling that South L.A. had been neglected. [Read more…]