Skip navigation
Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism University of Southern California
Top Stories

Repairs for South L.A. Sidewalks Take Step Forward

While money budgeted for sidewalk repairs goes unspent, Councilmember Bernard Parks is using discretionary funds to smooth over the problem.

Eighty-year-old Helen Young has been confined to her house, but not because of her age. A cracked sidewalk made her fearful.

"I could not go out my front door," Young told ATVN. "I couldn't walk on the sidewalk without tripping or falling."

But the city is starting to curb the problem: the sidewalk in front of her home is the first of 400 to be repaired in her district.

The city has vowed to double the funding for sidewalk repairs in next year's budget, bringing the allocated funding to $20 million, but last year's budgeted $10 million has not yet been spent. Sidewalks like Young's that are being repaired will be done by the Los Angeles Neighborhood Initiative in collaboration with the office of Councilmember Bernard Parks, who is committing up to $350,000 from his discretionary fund to underwrite the construction.

While red tape has tangled the funding for sidewalk repairs, Young is glad that her sidewalk is being fixed. 

"It's my community and I want to see people be happy," Young said. "And that means a lot to me."

COMMENTS
Leave a comment
Name:
E-mail:*
URL:
Comments:*

We've Moved!


By Sam Bergum
01/21/16 | 11:09 a.m. PST

Visit us at uscannenbergmedia.com!

USC Basketball Knocks Off Rival UCLA 89- 75


By Scott Cook
01/14/16 | 12:05 a.m. PST

USC defeats UCLA with stellar play from their Freshmen. 

Holiday Bowl - USC vs Wisconsin Post-Game Press Conference

Su'a Cravens: "It's the players that need to step up"

Darreus Rogers: "It comes down to the players"

Trojans Fall to Wisconsin in the Holiday Bowl 23-21

We detected that you might be on a mobile device such as an iPad or iPhone. Sorry, at this time the video box is only visible on desktop computers.