LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles city leaders are taking another stab at figuring out how to fix the city's miles of crumbling sidewalks after agreeing to settle a lawsuit.
During a press conference Wednesday, city leaders announced a renewed effort to tackle the problem.
Various proposals, including a sales tax to support a bond measure or requiring property owners pay half of the repair costs, have been floated over the past decade, but nothing has ever moved forward.
Meanwhile, the city's sidewalks have continued to deteriorate.
Councilmembers Paul Krekorian and Joe Buscaino said they will be unveiling a policy proposal over the next few weeks.
The City Council's joint Budget and Finance and Public Works will hold committee meetings across the city to get input from residents and stakeholders on the proposal.
The renewed sidewalk effort came following the announcement that the city has reached an agreement in Willits v. City of Los Angeles, a case brought against the city under the federal Americans With Disabilities Act.
"This settlement is an enormous step forward for the City of Los Angeles and its residents," Krekorian said in a prepared statement. "For decades, buckled sidewalks have plagued neighborhoods from the San Fernando Valley to the South Bay."
The agreement, announced Wednesday, is supposed to result in a more than $1 billion investment in city sidewalk repairs and other pedestrian improvements, according to city officials.
The class action sought to ensure better access for persons with mobility disabilities to the city's sidewalks, curb ramps, crosswalks, pedestrian crossings and other walkways.
Plaintiffs included Mark Willits, Judy Griffin, Brent Pilgreen, and the group Communities Actively Living Independent and Free.
The Mayor's Office, City Council President Herb Wesson, Krekorian, Buscaino, and City Administrative Officer Miguel Santana all played key roles in the shaping of the agreement, officials said.
"This $1.4 billion settlement is the largest disability access class action settlement in U.S. history," Plaintiffs' lead counsel Guy Wallace said in a statement.
The settlement requires that the city make sidewalks accessible to persons with mobility disabilities by taking such measures as installing curb ramps, fixing broken sidewalks, and installing accessible sidewalks where they do not exist, Wallace said.
"Now people with mobility disabilities will be able to go whether they need to go, and also where they want to go," said Lillibeth Navarro, Executive Director of CALIF. "That is what the ADA is all about."
Under the settlement, people with disabilities will also be able to make requests for access fixes in their own neighborhoods, such as for curb ramp installation, or tree root repairs.
"It's so much better to prevent residents from being injured in the first place than to react after the fact. This settlement directs taxpayer dollars to where they belong: solving one of our city's most longstanding problems," City Attorney Mike Feuer said.
The agreement, reached after five years of litigation, calls for the $1.4 billion investment over the next 30 fiscal years, starting at the beginning of FY 15-16. Annual investments will range from $31 million during the next five years to more than $63 million in years 26 to 30. The amounts increase over time to ensure value is not lost due to inflation.
The settlement proposal will now go to the supervising court for approval and ultimate implementation.
