Mayor Announces Street Repair Initiative

By City News Service

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti announced an initiative Thursday to improve 40 streets around the city.

Under the mayor's "Great Streets'' program—issued under his first official executive order—a working group will be assembled across five city departments.
  
The group's "first priority will be to make sure streets projects are coordinated,'' Garcetti said. "No more Bureau of Street Services paving a street on Monday, DWP digging it up on Tuesday.''
  
A pipe project in the Department of Water and Power could be combined with street furniture and sidewalk repair projects, for example, he said.

The task force will include officials from the planning, cultural affairs, transportation, public works and the economic and workforce development departments.

The Great Streets group will be charged with coming up with a criteria for identifying 40 streets that will be included in the program, determining what types of projects need to be done and their costs, creating a method for coordinating service, setting a time table, and developing metrics and benchmarks to track progress.
   
The program marks a "fundamental change in how we perceive, interact and build around us,'' Garcetti said. "A great neighborhood needs a great street as its backbone, and, as city leaders, we need the backbone to make the bold changes necessary to build great streets.''

Will this working group between departments cut down on waste? Do you know of a particularly bad street/area the group should consider tackling first? Share your opinions in the comment section.