Harbor LA Community Plans Update

The Los Angeles City Planning Department is updating its 35 Community Plans over the next several years. The plans constitute the Land Use Element of the General Plan, the long-range planning document that presents the goals and policies for the future of its neighborhoods.

The Community Plan Update consists of a General Plan Land Use Map, a Community Plan policy document and new Zoning. Land use designations establish the general location and intensity of different uses of land. Each land use designation has corresponding zones which regulate the size, shape, location, and use of buildings on a given property. As part of this community plan update, new zoning developed through the comprehensive update of the City’s Zoning Code will be applied to every property. 

This interactive 'Storymap' will walk you through some of the major changes proposed in the Harbor LA Community Plan Areas and presents new information from what was shared in October 2020 (see Archive: 2020 - 2023 by clicking on menu tab above).

Scroll down or click menu tabs above to explore the storymap.

Click below for background information on the process:

Community participation in the process is vital to ensure that the City’s land use policy reflects the community’s long-term vision for the Harbor LA Community Plan Areas.

From 2018 to 2019, the Harbor LA planning team held and participated in numerous public meetings to identify key issues and inform land use and zoning changes, including community workshops, Neighborhood Council and community organization meetings and community events.

Since the start of the pandemic in early 2020, our outreach efforts shifted to online and virtual activities due to the City's safety protocols. The Harbor LA Team has held virtual office hours, participated in virtual meetings with community groups and collected community input on draft land use and basic zoning (height, density & FAR) provided in the fall of 2020 (see Archive: 2020-2023). Below is the summary of comments received from 2021.

The Harbor LA Community Plans Update is a multi-year program which began in 2018. Please refer to the timeline below to see the major steps in the process.

Visit our events webpage for future outreach events:  Events .

Next Steps

• Begin Adoption Process:
  • Virtual Open House & Public Hearing - Held on November 9, 2023
  • City Planning Commission - February 8, 2024 at 8:30 a.m.
  • Planning Land Use and Management Committee (PLUM) - 2024
  • City Council - 2024
• For more details, please see the Status/ Adoption section.

The Community Plans Update includes the following:

• Opportunity Areas: Targeted areas near public transit where new zoning will increase the development potential for mixed-use projects that provide community benefits, such as mixed-income housing and open space amenities, among others.
• Industrial Transition Areas: Targeted changes that advance environmental justice by transitioning industrial land that is in close proximity to residential to a more compatible land use.
• Corridor Consistency: Remove Q Conditions along select corridors that limit density, height or uses to create consistency with General Plan Land Use designations.
• Equivalent Zoning: The majority of the plan areas will get new zones that match the currently permitted scale and density to the extent possible.
• Character Districts: Special zoning regulations proposed for select areas in order to conserve their cultural and/or architectural character.
• Residential Alignment: New zones are proposed to match existing residential density or embedded services, like churches or small markets.
• Administrative Corrections: Correct inconsistencies between zoning, land use and/or as-built conditions.

See Archive: 2020 - 2023 for more information on proposed changes.

The Community Plan policy documents set the vision, goals and policies that guide decision-making and future development in the community plan areas over the next 20 years. The proposed policy documents for Harbor Gateway and Wilmington-Harbor City are revisions to the current policy documents for the plan areas that incorporate community input and address issues identified through our community engagement process. The drafts also reflect the Department’s new template for community plan documents.

PRELIMINARY DRAFT PLANS - The Preliminary Draft Plans (policy documents) released in May 2022 include infographics, photos and refinements to goals, policies and programs that reflect community input received on the text-only versions. In Summer 2023, the Preliminary Draft Plans were revised to include community input and correct technical errors. In January 2024, the Proposed Plans were revised to include feedback heard at the Public Hearing and correct technical errors.

• Harbor Gateway -  Proposed Plan - January 2024 
• Wilmington-Harbor City -  Proposed Plan - January 2024 

• Harbor Gateway -  Preliminary Draft Plan - Summer 2023 
• Wilmington-Harbor City -  Preliminary Draft Plan - Summer 2023 

• Harbor Gateway -  Preliminary Draft Plan - May 2022 
• Wilmington-Harbor City -  Preliminary Draft Plan - May 2022 

DRAFT COMMUNITY PLAN POLICY DOCUMENTS (text-only) - Below are the text-only drafts that were released for public review in the Summer of 2021.

• Harbor Gateway -  Draft Policy Document 
• Wilmington-Harbor City -  Draft Policy Document 

CURRENT COMMUNITY PLAN POLICY DOCUMENTS - The current plans are provided for your reference.

• Harbor Gateway -  Community Plan  (adopted 1995)
• Wilmington-Harbor City -  Community Plan  (adopted 1999)

The Draft Land Use Maps below provide the latest land use recommendations based on the input received on the land use maps over the years. (see Archive: 2020 - 2023 for previous versions).

The interactive Draft Land Use Map below shows the Proposed Form, Frontage, Development Standard, Use and Density (base) districts. To see the proposed zoning, please click on any parcel or search an address on the search bar. Interactive land use map includes updates to proposed zones and revised Zoning Code Articles linked to each zoning district. Please note, nomenclature district names changes have been made to Articles 2,3, and 5. Please review Exhibit C1 - Amendments to the New Zoning Code (LAMC Chapter 1A) on the Department  website  for further details.

Please note: If any property is missing any part of the zone string, it may be due to a technical error. Please reach out to planning.harborlaplans@lacity.org for clarification.

We want to hear your thoughts! Comments can be submitted to the following:

EMAIL: planning.harborlaplans@lacity.org

Learn more about the Harbor LA Community Plans Update at the Los Angeles Department of City Planning's website:  Harbor LA Plans .

Thank you for visiting the Harbor LA Plans StoryMap!

This section provides the information shared in our October 2020 - December 2023 Storymap. Please note that some of the land use information presented in the archive has changed to reflect community input.

  Article 1: Introductory Provisions     Article 2: Form Districts     Article 3: Frontage Districts     Article 4: Development Standards     Article 5: Use Districts     Article 6: Density Districts     Article 7: Alternative Typologies     Article 9: Community Benefits 

The Draft Land Use Maps below provide the latest land use recommendations based on the input received on the land use maps over the years. (see Archive: 2020 - 2022 for previous versions).

The interactive Draft Land Use Map below now shows the Proposed Form, Frontage, Development Standard, Use and Density (base) districts. To see the proposed zoning, please click on any parcel or search an address on the search bar.

The draft Frontage and Use Categories proposed for the plan areas are described below. Proposed Form and Development Standards Districts are under development and will be available in early 2022.

The Draft Land Use Maps below provide the latest land use recommendations based on the input received on the land use maps presented in October 2020 (see Archive-2020).

Coming Soon - interactive map with full zoning recommendations!

 Harbor Gateway GPLU Map 

 Wilmington-Harbor City Map 

The Harbor LA Plans direct future growth to targeted Opportunity Areas through increased development potential where it can be supported by existing transportation infrastructure. These areas would promote mixed-use projects that provide community benefits, such as mixed-income housing and open space amenities, among others.

In Harbor Gateway, opportunity areas are proposed primarily at the Harbor Gateway Regional Center (Regional Center) and along Figueroa Street, Gardena Blvd and Carson Street (Neighborhood Center and Villages). Moderate increases are proposed along Vermont Ave (Hybrid Industrial).

In Wilmington & Harbor City, opportunity areas are proposed primarily along Pacific Coast Highway (Community Center) and Avalon Blvd (Villages). Moderate increases are proposed for neighborhood-serving commercial areas (Neighborhood Center).

The Harbor LA Plans focus on advancing environmental justice in these frontline communities that have endured long-standing industrial-residential land use conflicts. Note, there are two Environmental Protection Agency  superfund sites  in the Harbor Gateway plan area. The Plans seek to transition industrial land that is in close proximity to residential in the following manner:

• Hybrid Industrial: Create a Hybrid Industrial buffer zone between heavy industrial and residential that allows commercial, light industrial and in some cases limited residential/live-work.

• Compatible Industrial: Establish new zoning regulations that restrict uses and require compliance with design standards but maintain the industrial focus of the area.

• Commercial: Areas that are already built out with commercial, institutional and/or residential uses will change to a commercial land use.

• Residential: Areas that are already built out with residential uses will change to a residential land use.

• Lower Intensity Industrial: Areas where the land use and zoning is proposed to go from heavy industrial to light industrial uses.

Special zoning regulations are proposed for select areas identified as Character Districts in order to conserve their cultural and/or architectural character.

In addition to the proposed changes highlighted above, the update to the Plan Areas includes the following:

(Note: All proposed changes can be viewed on the interactive map below.)

The Harbor LA Plans seek to increase access and linkages to the community's open space amenities and look for opportunity sites for new open space, as well as increase public spaces where people can gather and recreate.

Harbor Gateway:  Presently, access to the small segment of the Dominguez Channel and adjacent bike path within Harbor Gateway is limited due to physical barriers and development patterns. The surrounding areas near Artesia Blvd. ending at 190th Street are proposed to transition from industrial to a regional center land use to promote diverse uses that serve a regional population and will improve access to the Dominguez Channel and bike path by incorporating open space, such as plazas, courtyards, patios, decks, pocket parks, viewing decks and terraces into designs of the sites.

Wilmington & Harbor City: The area south of Lomita and McCoy is proposed to transition from industrial to commercial and hybrid industrial land uses to encourage a mix of uses that will improve access and enjoyment of the Harbor City Greenway.

In addition, the foot of Avalon Boulevard is proposed to change from industrial to a Villages land use to encourage a mix of uses such as restaurants, retail and entertainment uses that will create a connection to the Avalon Gateway & Promenade project and enhance the community's link to the future Wilmington Waterfront Promenade.

The interactive map provides information on existing and proposed land use, height, FAR & density for every parcel in Wilmington, Harbor City and Harbor Gateway. These recommendations were informed through public input received since 2018.

The maps are available in PDF format at the following links:

 Harbor Gateway Map  

 Wilmington-Harbor City Map 

Click below for a tutorial on how to explore the map.

NOTE: The existing zoning of some properties may include Qualified Conditions (Qs) that affect permitted FAR, height and/or density and may differ from the existing base metrics provided on the map below. To research the zoning of your property please visit  ZIMAS .

Harbor LA Community Plans Update website:  Harbor LA Plans .

The proposed Harbor LA Community Plans are in the Adoption Phase. The steps to adoption are as follows:

 STEPS TO ADOPTION: 

Virtual Information Session & Public Hearing: City Planning hosted a Virtual Information Session & Public Hearing for the Harbor LA Community Plans Update on Thursday, November 9, 2023. The presentation and recording of the Information Session and the Public Hearing are available  here .

City Planning Commission (CPC): CPC recommended approval of the Proposed Plans on February 8, 2024. Please review the Staff Report, Exhibits, and Technical Modifications Memo located on the Department  website .

Planning and Land Use Management (PLUM) Committee: Mid 2024

City Planning Commission: Mid 2024