A gentrification battle in Boyle Heights over a proposed tax to clean streets

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Property owners in Boyle Heights’ industrial corridor, near the 6th Street Bridge, are proposing a plan to fund private security, street cleaning and landscaping, a move that could significantly change how the area is maintained.The proposed plan would cover an area stretching from 1st to 7th streets and between Mission Road, Clarence and Anderson streets where sound stages, film studios and warehouses sit alongside the public housing complex of Pico Gardens and a residential neighborhood near Dolores Mission Church.Property owners say the city has failed to adequately provide services to keep the area clean and their employees safe.

Meanwhile, some community advocates and nearby residents are wary of the area’s growing concentration of entertainment venues, just across the Los Angeles River from the Arts District, which have drawn crowds for electronic music festivals and special events such as Olivia Rodrigo’s album release pop-up.David DaCosta, of the 18-acre Ace*Mission Studios, is among those pushing for what’s known as a Business Improvement District, or BID, in the area that proponents refer to as the Boyle Heights Industrial Flats, which runs adjacent to the river.At a meeting at Dolores Mission Church in May, DaCosta touted the effort as a rare private-public partnership that should be cherished.“There’s a natural relationship between us all, a natural path for us all to want to work together,” he said.Not everyone is convinced.

The proposal comes as Boyle Heights continues to grapple with tensions over displacement and who benefits from development.Supporters see privately funded services as a solution to neglect and public safety.

Opponents say it could eventually lead to gentrification and over-policing.To Elizabeth Blaney, with Union De Vecinos, a local branch of the Los Angeles Tenants Union, the BID would “put control of public space in the hands o...