Bioscience Hub Community Engagement Report

LACDC Bioscience Hubs Community Engagement | 1

Community Development Commission Of The

County Of Los Angeles

Bioscience Hubs Community Engagement

Table of Contents

I. Executive Summary ......................................................................................................................... 2

II. Meetings with LAEDC and Board Offices .................................................................................. 5

III. Review of Existing Reports and Materials ................................................................................ 9

First District .................................................................................................................................. 9

Second District .......................................................................................................................... 11

Third District ............................................................................................................................... 16

Fourth District ............................................................................................................................ 17

Fifth District ................................................................................................................................ 19

IV. Stakeholder Engagement ............................................................................................................. 23

Health District Community Participation Strategy ........................................................... 24

MLK – Drew Bioscience Hub Roundtable Meeting Notes .............................................. 35

Harbor-UCLA Hub Stakeholder Engagement Notes ........................................................ 37

V. Summary of Recommendations ................................................................................................. 43


I. Executive Summary

On December 15, 2015, the Board of Supervisors directed the Community Development Commission of

the County of Los Angeles (CDC) to initiate a community outreach program on the County’s bioscience

industry sector initiative and provide recommendations based on the public comments received on the

types of community benefits that should be realized from the development of bioscience innovations hubs

involving County-owned properties. The Bioscience Hub(s) include the following:

1. LAC + USC Medical Center (First District)

2. MLK – Drew (Second District)

3. Harbor – UCLA (Second District)

4. UCLA Westside, includes LAX Northside (Fourth District)

5. Rancho Los Amigos (Fourth District)

6. City of Hope (Fifth District)

7. Olive View – UCLA Medical Center (Fifth District)

8. Honor Ranch (Fifth District) 1

Public benefits that could be considered include providing access to employment and training opportunities,

youth mentoring, small business and social enterprise participation, expanding medical care and public

health programs, support for local community-based organizations, ongoing community engagement

programs, increasing the supply of affordable housing, transportation improvements, and improvements

that address deficient local services and resources.

The CDC engaged Estolano LeSar Perez Advisors (ELP Advisors) to lead this effort. ELP Advisors

completed the following tasks:

Task 1: Meet with Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC) and Board Offices

ELP Advisors met with LAEDC to review the preliminary recommendations from their Bioscience

Implementation Plan, and discuss how engagement with key stakeholders might further inform LAEDC’s

findings. ELP Advisors then reached out to all five Supervisorial Board Offices to gain an understanding of

each Office’s priorities related to their respective Bioscience Hub(s). Due to the level of activity in their

respective districts, the First, Second, and Fourth Districts requested that ELP Advisors take on follow up

engagement tasks. The Third and Fifth Districts did not request further stakeholder engagement by ELP

Advisors.

Task 2: Review Existing Technical Reports and Materials

For each Bioscience Hub, ELP Advisors reviewed existing technical reports and materials to inform our

understanding of the area, its current conditions and any past or current planning efforts. ELP Advisors

produced briefs for each hub, attached to this report.

Task 3: Stakeholder Engagement

Based on the direction of the Board Offices, ELP Advisors engaged key stakeholders in each Bioscience

Hub that can serve as important partners in advancing the bioscience sector in each respective district.

First District: The First District asked ELP Advisors to meet with and interview a variety of

stakeholders in the LAC+USC Hub. These include key representatives from: LAC+USC Medical

Center, Department of Health Services, Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner, County

Probation Department, USC, Building Healthy Communities – Boyle Heights, and others. Based on

1 Not included in original scope, but of interest to the Fifth District.


their feedback, ELP Advisors worked with First District staff to design an ongoing engagement

strategy for the LAC+USC Hub that looks across diverse planning, investment, development and

service-delivery efforts in the area to frame a comprehensive approach to community health and

well-being. The engagement strategy is attached to this report.

Second District: The Second District asked ELP Advisors to convene key stakeholders from the

MLK-Drew Hub for a 90-minute roundtable discussion. The goal of the discussion was for

stakeholders to update one another on their work and discuss the various community benefits that

could come about from the development of a Bioscience Hub at MLK-Drew. The meeting was held

at Charles Drew University and participants included representatives from MLK Community

Hospital, Charles Drew University, Department of Health Services, Worker Education and

Resource Center (WERC), AECOM, LAEDC, CDC, MLK Community Development

Corporation, and others. ELP Advisors drafted a brief memo capturing their feedback and

recommending potential next steps.

The Second District also asked ELP Advisors to interview key stakeholders from the Harbor UCLA

hub. The goal of the interviews was to discuss the various community benefits that could come

about from the development of a Bioscience Hub at Harbor – UCLA. Interviewees included

representatives from: Harbor – UCLA Medical Center, LA BioMed, LA Gateway Chamber of

Commerce, Cal State University, Dominguez Hills, and LA Harbor Community College. ELP

Advisors developed meeting notes for each interview and created a list of recommendations based

on the feedback received.

Fourth District: The Fourth District asked ELP Advisors to schedule a meeting between Fourth

District staff and the Los Angeles Airport’s (LAX) Environmental and Land Use Planning

Department to discuss locating bioscience-related uses as part of the development of the LAX

Northside area.

Task 4: Recommendations

Based on the feedback received during the Stakeholder Engagement Process and consultations with the

Board Offices, ELP Advisors developed the following recommendations to facilitate and advance the growth

of each Bioscience Hub.

First District: An ongoing engagement vehicle is critical to focusing the goals and outcomes of the

LAC+USC Hub. This report recommends three distinct, yet interrelated engagement vehicles that

are crucial to the long-term success of the Hub:

o Public Sector Coordination: LA County Agencies

o Health District Partnership: LA County, USC, and local Community Based Organizations

and Stakeholders

o A public sector/University Partnership: LA County and USC

Second District: Stakeholders viewed the MLK-Drew Bioscience Hub as deeply connected to the

surrounding communities and should be dedicated to addressing health disparities. Stakeholders

saw value in an ongoing engagement vehicle in order to remain informed about each other’s work.

Furthermore, this report recommends further supporting the work of the MLK Health and Wellness

Development Corporation, specifically with predevelopment activities related to: 1) the Multi

Ambulatory Care Center (MACC) and 2) the redevelopment of the Augustus Hawkins Building.


Second District: As the Harbor-UCLA hub continues to grow and thrive, stakeholders saw

opportunities to: align workforce development programs to meet demand in the area, create

opportunities for student internships, develop contracting opportunities for small businesses, plan

for amenities and housing for Harbor-UCLA’s workforce, as well as seek operations funding for LA

BioMed’s future incubator. Furthermore, stakeholders noted the need to ensure that medical

research at Harbor-UCLA continues to be relevant to LA County’s health patient needs.

Third District: Third District staff stressed the importance of setting metrics to measure the

success of the bioscience hubs and ensure that County residents benefit from their development.

Fourth District: Based on the meeting between Fourth District staff and LAX’s Environmental and

Land Use Planning Department, this report recommends a follow up meeting with LAX’s Airport

Commercial Development Group in order to plot out next steps to attract a Master Developer to

build out research & development space in LAX Northside.

Fifth District: The Fifth District should continue to support the due diligence work for the Honor

Ranch site. The Fifth District may wish to consult with subject matter experts to determine the types

of bioscience companies that would be appropriate for the development, given the Supervisor’s

interest in attracting highly-skilled jobs.


II. Meetings with LAEDC and Board Offices

As part of our initial community engagement process, ELP Advisors met with the LAEDC and each of the

five Board Offices to understand their priorities around each respective bioscience hub. Below are the major

takeaways from each meeting:

a. LAEDC

As part of the initial community engagement process, ELP Advisors met with LAEDC to receive the

preliminary recommendations of their Bioscience Implementation Plan, and discuss how engagement with

key stakeholders might further inform LAEDC’s findings. The first meeting occurred on May 19, 2016.

On May 24, 2016, the second meeting was held and was comprised of LAEDC, LACDC, and CommonWeal.

In this meeting, Commonweal presented their Bioscience Dealmaker database, which showed the regional

firm-to-firm networks formed by serial entrepreneurs and investors in Los Angeles. Overall, the database

determined that serial entrepreneurs in Los Angeles are not connected to a larger network.

ELP Advisors and LAEDC remained in continuous contact throughout the length of the engagement in order

to ensure that recommendations for ongoing community engagement were captured in LAEDC’s final

report.

b. First District

The First District directed ELP Advisors to meet and interview various stakeholders (government agencies,

private sector, and community organizations) in the LAC+USC Hub. The First District sought to gain an

understanding of these entities’ past, current, and future planning efforts in and around the County USC

Health District Hub. In addition, the First District aimed to gain a sense of the types and breadth of health-

oriented and community-serving programs in the hub as well as the facilities and real estate that house

them. ELP Advisors conducted the following interviews:

Department of Health Services

o Dr. Hal Yee, Chief Medical Officer (July 20, 2016)

o Greg Polk, Chief Deputy, Administration and Capital Planning (July 19, 2016)

LAC +USC Medical Center

o Dan Castillo, Chief Executive Officer (August 30, 2016)

Los Angeles County Department of Public Works

o Massood Eftekhari, Deputy Director (July 27, 2016)

Los Angeles County Probation Department

o Dennis Carroll, Bureau Chief; Efrain Munoz, Administrative Deputy; Tanya Fields,

Probation Director; Scott Sanders, Consultant (July 12, 2016)

o Tour of Probation Facility (August 4, 2016)

Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner

o Elaine Palaiologos, Chief Deputy; Craig Harvey, Consultant (July 12, 2016)

Department of Mental Health

o (August 25, 2016)

University of Southern California

o Martha Escutia, Vice President, Government Relations; David Galaviz, Executive Director,

Government Relations; Zul Surani, Executive Director, Community Partnerships; Brian

League, Program Director, Capital Construction (August 15, 2016)

The Wellness Center

o Listening Session (June 22, 2016)


o Rosa Soto, Executive Director (October 6, 2016)

Building Healthy Communities, Boyle Heights (BHC)

o Joel Perez and Cesia Dominguez-Lopez, BHC Co-Coordinators (October 6, 2016)

Based on the feedback received at these meetings, ELP Advisors drafted an overall stakeholder

participation strategy to link the various ongoing efforts at the County USC Health District Hub. The strategy

looks beyond the recommendations of LAEDC’s Bioscience Implementation Plan, includes major objectives

of the LAC+USC Medical Center and USC Health Sciences Campus master plans, and incorporates goals

not just for the bioscience sector, but for overall health and community well-being in and around the County

USC Health District Hub.

ELP Advisors researched pre-existing models, in order to make recommendations for an ongoing

governance structure. The suggested framework includes the following:

Mission, Objectives, Metrics

Roles and Responsibilities of governance structure;

Proposed membership and roles;

Governance structure procedures, tracking protocol, and reporting mechanisms; as well as role in

process management in implementing Hub programs and projects.

A roadmap or work plan for the organization (through Year 1).

c. Second District

ELP Advisors met with David Riccitiello, Senior Deputy for Economic Development, and Charles Turner,

Assistant Deputy for Economic Development. The Second District was interested in soliciting stakeholder

feedback for the recommendations outlined in the LAEDC Bioscience Implementation Plan, as well as

recommendations for community benefits that could come about through the development of the MLK-Drew

and Harbor-UCLA bioscience hubs.

The MLK-Drew Roundtable took place on July 22, 2016. The stakeholders present at the MLK-Drew

meeting included:

Dr. Elaine Batchlor – CEO, MLK Hospital

Kelli Bernard – AECOM

Diane Factor – Worker Education & Resource Center (WERC), Health Care Workforce

Development Program (HCWDP)

Richard France – Estolano LeSar Perez Advisors

Pastor Delores Glass – Fellowship Baptist Church

Linda Griego – MLK Health and Wellness Community Development Corporation

Richard France – Estolano LeSar Perez Advisrs

Cynthia Guzman – Estolano LeSar Perez Advisors

Leah Hubbard – Estolano LeSar Perez Advisors

Chris Lopez – LACDC

Carl McLaney – Charles Drew University (CDU), Vice President for Finance & Chief Business

Officer

Cynthia Oliver – LA County Department of Health Services

Tamara Perry – Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC)

Dan Rosenfeld

Charles Turner – Assistant Deputy for Economic Development, Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas’

Office


Dr. Jay Vadgama – Director & Principal Investigator, CDU Division of Cancer Research & Training

Dr. Yong Wu - Assistant Professor, Division of Cancer Research & Training

Dr. Yanyuan Wu - Associate Professor, Division of Cancer Research & Training

ELP Advisors conducted a series of individual stakeholder interviews for Harbor-UCLA. Interviews

conducted are listed below:

Keith Hoffman, Vice President of Business Development and Technology Transfer, LA BioMed

(November 14, 2016)

Azar Kattan, Chief Operating Officer, Harbor-UCLA Medical Center (November 18, 2016)

Dr. Philip LaPolt, Dean, College of Natural and Behavioral Sciences, Cal State University

Dominguez Hills (November 21, 2016)

Priscilla Lopez, Deputy Dean, Workforce and Economic Development, LA Harbor College

(December 2, 2016)

David Meyer, President, LA BioMed (November 14, 2016)

Michael Moritz, Staff Research Associate, Division of Neonatology, LA BioMed (December 2, 2016)

Sandra Sanchez, Dean, Workforce and Economic Development, LA Harbor College (December 1,

2016)

Joanne Valle, CEO, LA Gateway Chamber of Commerce (November 14, 2016)

d. Third District

ELP Advisors met with Supervisor Kuehl’s staff on June 24, 2016. The meeting was comprised of Torie

Osborn (Principal Deputy), Elan Shultz (Senior Health Deputy), Molly Rysman (Housing and Homelessness

Deputy), and Angelica Ayala (Associate Health Deputy). Staff noted that the only Bioscience Hub in District

3, UCLA Westside, is comprised solely of University-owned land. Generally, staff stressed the importance

of setting metrics for the success of bioscience hubs to ensure that the County and its residents benefit

from development. Staff was also interested in companies that produce products or innovation that could

directly benefit County patients, particularly in regards to mental health needs. Staff requested no follow up

tasks of the consultant team.

e. Fourth District

ELP Advisors met with Nick Ippolito, (Assistant Chief of Staff), of Supervisor Don Knabe’s office on August

8, 2016. ELP Advisors shared a brief overview of the LAX Northside project, which sets aside has

approximately 1 million square feet of development potential for office and research uses. Staff expressed

a strong interest in creating a strategy to attract bioscience companies to the area. ELP Advisors

recommended setting up a meeting between Supervisor Knabe’s office and LAX’s Environmental and Land

Use Planning Department. A follow up meeting took place on August 8, 2016, with Lisa Trifiletti (LAWA),

Evelyn Quintanilla (LAWA), and Nick Ippolito (Fourth District). In it, LAX staff expressed strong support for

locating bioscience companies in the Northside area, and made recommendations for how to locate the

appropriate uses in the area.

f. Fifth District

ELP Advisors met with Edel Vizcarra (Planning and Public Works Deputy) on September 14, 2016. ELP

Advisors shared a brief overview of their scope of work and inquired on the Supervisor’s priorities for the

identified bioscience hubs in the District. Staff noted that Honor Ranch, located in Castaic is a high priority

for the Supervisor’s Office. Staff stated that the property is the largest continuous swath of County-owned

land. The Santa Clarita Valley Economic Development Corporation (SCVEDC) approached the Fifth District


with the idea of developing this land for bioscience uses. SCVEDC noted that industrial vacancy rates in

the Santa Clarita Valley are at 2 percent, indicating a high need for industrial product in the area. Once

developed, Honor Ranch will potentially provide upwards of 3-4 million square feet of space. The Fifth

District is interested in potentially pursuing a ground lease with a developer, and has allocated funds for

due diligence on the site.


III. Review of Existing Reports and Materials

This section summarizes the key planning documents relevant to the identified bioscience hubs in each of the Supervisorial Districts. The summaries provide context and background to inform future engagement efforts in the hubs.

First District

LAC + USC Bioscience Hub: Community Plans and Reports Summary

a. Introduction The LAC+USC Medical Center and the USC Health Sciences Campus are located in Northeast Los Angeles

adjacent to neighborhoods of Boyle Heights and Lincoln Heights. The campus is just north of the 10 freeway

and east of the 5 freeway, with a roughly 3-mile stretch of county medical facilities, Cal State LA and various

bioscience companies nearby. The area has long been identified as a potential center for biomedical and

bioscience research. Residents in the area are predominately Latino, and approximately 34 percent of

families had children living below the poverty level between 2008 and 2014, almost 10 percentage points

higher than the City of Los Angeles at 25 percent.

b. Area Technical Reports

2016 LAEDC Bioscience Implementation Plan LAEDC defines the LAC+USC as 75 acres, anchoring a 883-acre bioscience corridor. The corridor contains

Grifols, an international blood plasma products company, the future LA BioSpace incubator located on Cal

State LA’s campus, and an industrial area that could potentially support a bioscience use between the

campuses of LAC + USC and CSU LA. LAEDC defines this hub’s strengths as its research capabilities, a

tech transfer office, and the availability of land.

The report’s action items for LAC+USC include:

1. Convene three vision plan meetings with key stakeholders;

2. Develop a Biomedical Research Park on a county-owned opportunity site located at the LAC +

USC campus;

3. Form a P3 structure to relocate public facilities on the LAC + USC Hub;

4. Adaptively reuse prime real estate assets;

5. Create an Enhanced Infrastructure Finance District (EIFD) as a means of capturing tax increment

revenue to fund infrastructure improvements along the corridor.


2016 USC Health Science Campus Master Plan2 The first of several phases of the USC HSC Master Plan are underway. The project includes a 200-bed

hotel with conference space, ground-floor retail, and a sit-down restaurant; 157 units of student housing; a

114,000 square foot clinical building dedicated to cancer treatment; a 134,000 square foot research

incubator; and streetscape beautification.

The 25- to 30-year renewal process will focus on 5 critical areas:

1. Increase research and academic space by more than twofold;

2. Add 1,000,000+ square feet of inpatient and outpatient clinic space;

3. Continue strategic collaborations among all of USC’’s health science experts on both the main

campus and the Health Science Campus;

4. Foster additional creative partnerships among science & industry

5. Collaborate with Los Angeles County on Development of the Alcazar Yards.

The overall development capacity on USC land includes 1,888,000 GSF of existing buildings, and

3,993,000 GSF of new proposed buildings.

2013 LAC+USC Medical Center Campus Master Plan3

The LAC + USC Master Plan includes both the adaptive reuse of several buildings as well as new development for outpatient care, ambulatory surgery, office space, mixed-use retail, and child care. The proposed plan, to be implemented over a period of 25 years (2015-2040), includes approximately 375,000 square feet proposed for new outpatient buildings & office space, 330,000 square feet for a community center, retail, education, day care, and additional office space; 755,000 square feet for proposed new biotech research facilities, 130,000 square feet for workforce housing, and potentially 1,050,000 square feet for new medical services expansion.

2 USC Health Sciences Campus Master Plan. (2010, 2013). https://hscmasterplan.usc.edu/concept-plan/concept-plan-august-2010/. Received from LAC+USC Staff. 3 LAC + USC Medical Center Master Plan. (2013). Powerpoint provided by Los Angeles County District 1.

Credit: Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation

https://hscmasterplan.usc.edu/concept-plan/concept-plan-august-2010/


1999 Northeast Los Angeles Community Plan4 First adopted in 1979 and revised in 1999, this plan outlines residential, commercial, transportation, and recreation issues, opportunities, and recommendations for the communities of Northeast Los Angeles. The Community Plan notes that the area around the LAC+USC contains serious land use incompatibilities between industrial, commercial and residential use. The plan notes the need to revitalize existing commercial strips and address dangerous at-grade railroad crossings throughout the industrial area around the Hub.

c. Developments in progress/completed 2017-2018 LA BioSpace at Cal State LA The Rongxiang Xu Bioscience Innovation Center Scheduled to open during the 2017-2018 academic year. Backed by a generous gift from the Rongxiang Xu Foundation and a $3 multi-million dollar grant from LA County, LA BioSpace will include a building complex complete with fully equipped labs, lab space options, and meeting spaces for bioscience startups to launch on the campus of Cal State LA. 2016 Health Science Campus Master Plan Implementation Completed: Soto Street Building 2; San Pablo Parking Structure; 62,500-square-foot Eli and Edythe Broad CIRM Center for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research (Broad Center) Under Construction: Currie Residence Hall, Hyatt House Hotel (design stage), Streetscape Beautification Project, USC Stevens Institute for Neuroimaging and Informatics. The Norris Healthcare Consultation Center Three (HCC lll), which includes development of 92,700 square feet of medical clinic uses and 9,900 square feet of non-clinical uses, broke ground in 2013 and began construction in 2015.5

2013 LAC+USC Medical Center Campus Master Plan

The EIR for the project was certified by the Board of Supervisors in November, 2014. Since then, the

LAC/USC Medical Center Psychiatric Unit was converted and remodeled.

Second District

MLK-Drew Bioscience Hub: Community Plans and Reports Summary

a. Introduction The Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Hospital (MLKCH) and Charles Drew University (CDU), the anchors of the MLK-Drew Hub, are located in South Los Angeles, just below the 105 freeway, in the unincorporated community of Willowbrook. The 2010-2014 American Community Survey estimates the population at 20,897 residents, down from 35,983 during the 2010 Census. About 30% of families live below the poverty line, with most residents employed in production/transportation, sales/office, and service occupations. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Hospital opened in July 2015, eight years after the original MLK-Harbor Hospital was closed. District 2 Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas played an integral role in the redevelopment of the hospital. MLKCH is a state-of-the-art hospital with 131 beds, focusing on community healthcare for the 1.35 million residents of South Los Angeles. Charles Drew University, celebrating its 50th year, has led health disparity research in relation to three areas of focus which significantly affect South LA Planning Area 6 (SPA 6): cancer, cardio-metabolic diseases,

4 Los Angeles Department of City Planning. (1999). Northeast Los Angeles Community Plan. http://planning.lacity.org/complan/pdf/nlacptxt.pdf 5 Morino, D. (2015). Why is the ground shaking at USC’s Health Sciences Campus? USC News. https://news.usc.edu/74485/why-is-the-ground-shaking-at-usc-health-sciences-campus/


and HIV/AIDS. It is ranked in the Top 10% of all US institutions receiving federal funding, and the Top 3% of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) receiving federal funding. Its upcoming 20-25-year Master Plan proposes a strategy to increase its student population from 652 to 2000, including the addition of an undergraduate program.

b. Area Technical Reports 2012 MLK Medical Center Campus Master Plan 6 This plan attempts to translate County and community aspirations into implementation through physical improvements and health care reform, resulting in improved health outcomes. It includes design standards, branding, and development for the MLK Medical Campus. Italso encompasses vision planning for the surrounding Willowbrook MLK Wellness Community to the North (Including King-Drew Magnet and CDU). It suggests integrated health care facilities, mobility, food & nutrition, recreation and fitness, safety, education and research, economic opportunity, community, and environmental infrastructure systems. 2015 Willowbrook TOD Specific Plan Draft7 This plan is anticipated to facilitate development near the Willowbrook/Rosa Parks Station on the Metro Blue Line. The objectives include identifying possibilities for mixed use, increased housing opportunities, and retail uses, as well as improving active transportation linkages between the Willowbrook/Rosa Parks Station, Kenneth Hahn Plaza, MLK Medical Center, Drew University, future developments, and residential neighborhoods. The goals and policies serve as guidelines for decision-making and further activities, and encourage well-designed integration with the MLK Medical Center, CDU, and surrounding neighborhood. 2016 Charles Drew University Strategic Plan8 Rooted in the mission of health and wellness for all, the CDU Strategic Plan is an ambitious proposal of 8 strategic themes that include goals and objectives to rebrand and enhance the visibility of CDU, expand and improve campus infrastructure, maximize funding opportunities, and increase the number of undergraduate and graduate students to 2000 in the next 5 years through new and enriched academic and student life programming. 2016 LAEDC Bioscience Implementation Plan (Draft) LAEDC lists the MLK-Drew Hub’s strengths as Drew’s medical specialties integrated with local health issues, the availability of existing public space and land for new development and adaptive reuse on both campuses, and a recently completed Master Plan for MLKCH. LAEDC notest that there are no tech transfer offices and a limited number of existing bioscience companies in the area; however, bioscience nonprofits are showing interest in establishing lab space within the hub. The LAEDC report’s action items for MLK-Drew include:

1) Adaptively reuse buildings on the hub 2) Optimize ownership and land uses at the MLK-Drew Hub to facilitate the growth of the MLK campus

and capacity at CDU 3) Develop a state-of-the-art bioscience building at CDU 4) Develop a multi-tenant bioscience/mixed-use building that focuses on the MLK-Drew Hub’s Center

of Excellence

6 MLK Medical Center Campus Master Plan & The Willowbrook MLK Wellness Community Vision. (2012). http://ridley-thomas.lacounty.gov/PDFs/20120626_MLK%20Final%20Master%20Plan%20Deliverable%2004%20Low%20Res.pdf 7 LA County Department of Planning. (2015). Willowbrook TOD Specific Plan Draft – Octobe 2015. http://planning.lacounty.gov/assets/upl/project/20151029_draft-willowbrook-tod-specific-plan.pdf 8 Charles Drew University Strategic Plan 2016-2020. (2016). (20https://www.cdrewu.edu/assets/academics/file/CDUStrategicPlan_V4.pdf

http://ridley-thomas.lacounty.gov/PDFs/20120626_MLK%20Final%20Master%20Plan%20Deliverable%2004%20Low%20Res.pdf

http://ridley-thomas.lacounty.gov/PDFs/20120626_MLK%20Final%20Master%20Plan%20Deliverable%2004%20Low%20Res.pdf


5) Los Angeles County to redevelop the Kenneth Hahn Retail Center to increase amenities in the community

c. Developments in Progress/Completed 2016 LAEDC Bioscience Implementation Plan Martin Luther King Health & Wellness CDC has taken the first steps in assessing buildings on both the Drew and MLK Campuses for adaptive reuse and development, including ownership opportunities for increased growth & capacity. MLKCH and Drew University both have ideas for demolition, development, and adaptive reuse on their campuses, including MLKCH’s plan to lease space to primary care doctors and specialists in the MLK building outpatient arm, and Drew’s prospective plan to rehab the Interns and Residents building to support a larger undergraduate program. Additionally, Lab Launch has expressed interest in expanding its activities and leasing space at the MLK-Drew Campus. Willowbrook TOD Specific Plan Draft The most recent update on the Willowbrook TOD Specific Plan was a meeting between the Los Angeles County Department of Regional Planning and the Concerned Citizens of Willowbrook to solicit input on zoning in April of 2015. The community input up to that point included requests for maintaining the character of the neighborhood, limiting new developments to four stories, no development of mixed use south of 119th St, a preference for townhomes rather than apartments, and a concern for chain-link fences and canopies. The plan’s completion was anticipated for 2016. 2012 MLK Medical Center Campus Master Plan Together CDU, MLKCH, LAUSD King-Drew Medical Charter, and the Kenneth Hahn Shopping Center make up 42 acres of land. The previous Multi Ambulatory Care Center (MACC) building remains intact, as does the Interns and Residents building. S stakeholders have begun to explore the potential renovation of these structures instead of demolition. A feasibility study by MLK CDC identified uses for 85% of the MACC, including clinical and administrative utilization. Additionally, converting the Interns and Residents building into dorms would assist CDU in its undergraduate expansion. The Hawkins Mental Health Building is in



need of critical renovation if it is to be used for patient care. Further the YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles has expressed interest in operating a facility in the campus area for physical and occupational rehabilitation.

Second District Harbor-UCLA Medical Center Bioscience Hub: Community Plans and Reports Summary

a. Introduction The Harbor-UCLA Medical Center is located in an unincorporated area of Los Angeles County, with the City of Carson to its east and the City of Torrance to its west. The area is largely residential, with only small to medium commercial developments surrounding the site. The Harbor Transitway bus line which travels along the 110 Freeway is accessible from the site. About 20% of the local area labor force is in the manufacturing sector. The port and other large industrial and manufacturing enterprises are the main employers in the area.

b. Area Technical Reports 2016 LAEDC Bioscience Implementation Plan The Harbor-UCLA hub is anchored by the Harbor-UCLA Hospital and LA BioMed campuses. The planned build-out of 72 acres would contain about 2,150,000 square feet of developed floor area, creating an integration of research and clinical care. LA BioMed dedicates about $40 million of their $67 million budget to biomedical research. LA BioMed’s Master Plan envisions consolidating its campus into a research park and multitenant facility. LAEDC describes this hub as containing strong attributes, including factors like technology transfer, research, and availability of publicly owned land for development.

The LAEDC report recommends financing the construction of a new research and development facility for LA BioMed as a catalyst for the development of the County’s land. Action items include:

1) Finance the construction of a new research and development facility9 2) Finalize the Harbor-UCLA EIR by December 31, 2016 3) Phased relocation and demolition of current tenants of county-owned land 4) Develop a Bioscience Research Park on approximately 15 acres of county-owned land

9 An October 9, 2016 Motion by Supervisor Mark-Ridley Thomas directed $3 million dollars to LA BioMed for the construction of a bioscience incubator on LA BioMed’s campus using Second District Capital Improvement funds.



2015 LA County General Plan10 The LA County General Plan briefly touches upon the opportunity area of West Carson, noting that many portions of West Carson have undergone transition from a warehousing center serving the Port of LA, to a higher density residential community affected by the growth of Torrance and Carson. There are opportunities for transition from industrial to non-industrial uses, and redevelopment of the Medical Center to spur infill and transit activity. I-110/West Carson Station TOD SWOT Analysis 11 The Carson Station is a designated bus lane stop off of the 110 Freeway, just south of the Silver Line terminus. LA County Department of Regional Planning conducted a SWOT analysis of this station in 2013. It identifies the Harbor-UCLA medical facility as an anchor for development in the area (the campus is within the half-mile radius of the station). The station lacks pedestrian friendly and bicycle friendly infrastructure and poses safety concerns. The SWOT analysis also identifies an opportunity to better connect the station with the Medical Center, but notes that housing around the station is largely single-family, and not necessarily conducive to Transit Oriented Development. 2012 Harbor-UCLA Campus Master Plan 12 Harbor-UCLA is a teaching hospital, budgeted for 373 beds in 2011/2012 and operating more than 70 primary and specialty care clinics. The campus has been affiliated with LA BioMed for over 50 years. The Master Plan outlines a coherent physical landscape, including a new Hospital Tower as the focal point and center of campus, improved accessibility and amenities, and consolidation of the LA BioMed facilities, all by the year 2030. Most recently, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works invited proposals in summer 2016 to provide medical planning services for the Harbor-UCLA Medical Center Master Plan Implementation Project, with an estimated budget of $400,000. The Master Plan notes that with the presence of LA BioMed near a large and well-established hospital, the campus possesses many of the constituent elements needed to foster growth of a biomedical cluster; however, to date the combination of assets has resulted in relatively modest value capture in terms of the emergence of a strong, local hub or cluster of biomedical activity. With the buildout of the hospital, jobs on-site are estimated to increase by 1,500 (27%) with 1,174 at Harbor-UCLA and 205 at LA BioMed. Indirect and induced jobs spurred by tenant economic activity are estimated to grow at the same percentage rate in the County. The Master Plan includes greening the campus to make it more enjoyable and accessible for patients as well as staff.

10 Los Angeles County General Plan. (2015). http://planning.lacounty.gov/assets/upl/project/gp_final-general-plan.pdf 11 “SWOT” is the abbreviation for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats . 12 Campus Master Plan – County of Los Angeles Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. (2012). http://ridley-thomas.lacounty.gov/PDFs/20120630_HARBOR%20UCLA%20MASTER%20PLAN.pdf


Third District

UCLA Westside Bioscience Hub: Community Plans and Reports Summary 2016 LAEDC Bioscience Implementation Plan Minimum County action is needed at the UCLA-Westside hub as there is no County-owned land near the main campus. The report recommends UCLA’s tech transfer and real estate departments collaborate with secondary hubs to develop university related lab space for entrepreneurs graduating from their programs, employing a targeted marketing campaign. 2012-2022 UCLA Capital Financial Plan 13

Priorities include the Seismic Program, Residential Communities, and Sustainability.

36 current improvements/renovations/expansions/constructions, from the planning phase to post-

construction, in progress through May 2018.

2016 Greater LA VA Campus Draft Master Plan14

The Veterans Administration has plans to integrate new and repurposed development with existing built resources for a 21st century campus to serve Los Angeles’ veteran community, consisting of five development zones: Health Care, Care Coordination, Veteran Housing, Town Center, and Outer Ring.

1999 Westwood Community Plan15 The plan notes various residential, commercial, transportation, and recreation/facilities issues, opportunities, and recommendations. It is noted that any major changes will have to be modifications or adaptive reuses, as very little vacant space exists in Westwood.

13 University of California. (2012). Capital Financial Plan 2012-2022. http://www.ucop.edu/capital-planning/_files/capital/201222/uc-cfp-201222.pdf 14 VA Greater Los Angeles (2016). Veterans Affairs West Los Angeles Campus Draft Master Plan. http://www.losangeles.va.gov/masterplan/ 15 LA Department of City Planning. (1999). Westwood Community Plan. http://planning.lacity.org/complan/pdf/wwdcptxt.pdf

Credit: Los Angeles County

http://www.ucop.edu/capital-planning/_files/capital/201222/uc-cfp-201222.pdf

http://www.ucop.edu/capital-planning/_files/capital/201222/uc-cfp-201222.pdf


Since this plan, significant developments that have been completed include the Santa Monica Blvd Transit Parkway and reconstruction of the UCLA Medical Center (Reagan), as well as the plan to redevelop the Veterans Administration property located nearby.

Fourth District

Rancho Los Amigos Bioscience Hub: Community Plans and Reports Summary 2016 LAEDC Bioscience Implementation Plan Rancho Los Amigos (RLA) is one of the largest county-owned medical campuses in the region at 212 acres. There is a nearby cluster of medical instrument and supply manufacturers, as well as rehabilitation centers. The report’s action items for Rancho Los Amigos include:

1) Adaptively reuse selective buildings on North Campus for near-term occupancy

2) Develop a Specific Plan for the South Campus that provides enough flexibility to accommodate the

development specifications for medical devices and other bioscience manufacturing sectors




2015 Rancho Rising 202016 RLA National Rehabilitation Center is undergoing a $418 million renovation and beautification project to construct a new Wellness and Aquatic Therapy Center, new outpatient facilities, and inpatient expansion to improve seismic safety. The Wellness & Aquatic Therapy Center is scheduled to be completed in August of 2016, and the second phase of the construction (outpatient and building renovations) will be completed by December 2020. 2005 Downey General Plan17 This General Plan’s Economic Development section notes that a strength of the City of Downey includes the distance to employment centers like Downtown LA and Orange County. The greatest weakness cited was the closure of the Rockwell plant in 1999, which caused a significant loss of employment (30,000). The Plan briefly mentions Rancho Los Amigos as an additional sector for employment in the City’s economic strategy to increase the daytime population.

Fourth District LAX Northside Bioscience Hub: Community Plans and Reports Summary 2016 LAEDC Bioscience Implementation Plan The LAEDC report views the potential for a Hub on the north side of LAX as comparable to the Cornell Tech Campus being built on New York City’s Roosevelt Island. There, a partnership between Cornell University and the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology is developing an Applied Sciences Campus on 12 acres of city-owned land to transform the area into an innovation district. LAX Northside presents no relocation or zoning challenges and it is already envisioned for 2.3 million square feet of various uses, with approximately half of the square footage earmarked for office and research and development use. The report’s action item for LAX Northside is to erect a multi-phased mixed-use “Applied Research LA” development anchored by world-class educational institutions. 2015 LAX Northside Plan18

The LAX Northside Plan Update Project consists of 2,320,000 square feet of development, including a mix of employment, retail, restaurant, office, hotel, research and development, higher education, civic, airport support, recreation, and buffer uses. The final design guidelines and standards were approved in November 2015.

16 Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center. (2015). Rancho Rising 2020. http://file.lacounty.gov/SDSInter/dhs/227041_RanchoRising2020MapandTimeline4.9.15-v2.pdf 17 City of Downey. (2005). Vision 2025 Downey General Plan. http://www.downeyca.org/gov/cd/planning/general_plan_n_map/ 18 Los Angeles World Airports. (2015). LAX Northside Plan Update. http://www.lawa.org/GDZ/opportunity.aspx


2013 LAX Specific Plan and Amendment Study 19

The LAX Plan area consists of 3,900 acres, comprised of four general areas: the airfield, a landside airport access system, LAX Northside and the Los Angeles Airport/El Segundo Dunes. Interfaces located or planned within the Airport Landside area include the Central Terminal Area, Intermodal Transportation Facility (ITF), Consolidated Rental Car Facility (CONRAC), and Automated People Mover (APM).

2004 Westchester-Playa del Rey Community Plan 20

Outlined in this plan are residential, commercial, transportation, and recreation/facilities issues, opportunities, and recommendations. At the time, approximately 73% of the 2,381 net acres of residential zoning in the area was designated single-family residential.

Since the adoption of this Community Plan, the most significant development that is in the process of completion is Playa Vista. Playa Vista it includes multi- and single-family housing, as well as mixed use development, a shopping and entertainment area, and business parks housing largely tech-centered companies.

Fifth District

City of Hope Bioscience Hub: Community Plans and Reports Summary 2016 LAEDC Bioscience Implementation Plan An increase in patient care and research activities at the City of Hope led to the current Master Plan which includes a 150,000 square feet research facility in Monrovia, in addition to the 1.7 million gross sq. ft. of existing development. There are no immediate plans for an incubator on campus. LAEDC lists City of Hope’s strengths as a potential hub as its research, patient care, and expansion plans, and the opening of the new Gold Line station near the campus. LAEDC recommends the City of Duarte finalize the Specific Plan and EIR for the City of Hope Master Plan by 2017. (The City of Irwindale has discretionary approval authority over the portion of the project area within Irwindale.)

19 Los Angeles World Airports. (2013). Final LAX Specific Plan Amendment Study Report. http://www.lawa.org/uploadedFiles/SPAS/PDF/LAX%20SPAS%20Final%20SPAS%20Report%20Document%20Final%20CD-Web%20Version%2001%2030%202013.pdf 20 LA Department of City Planning. (2004). Westchester-Playa Del Rey Community Plan. http://planning.lacity.org/complan/pdf/WchstrCPTXT.pdf


2015 City of Hope Campus Plan Initial Study21 This plan seeks approval of the land use, zoning, greening, and development proposed for enhancement of the 116-acre campus (in which only less than ½ acre is not owned by City of Hope). Development square footage includes research, office, hospitality, assembly, warehouse and industrial, and housing space. It includes a pre-EIR checklist, and an analysis of potential environmental impacts. 2011 Duarte Economic Development Strategy22 The City of Hope National Medical Center is Duarte’s largest employer. This report notes that the City of Hope employed 3,551 people, or 38% of total employment in Duarte. The Strategy’s 3rd Objective for Creating a Business-Friendly Environment is to leverage the research and development activities related to the City of Hope for the commercialization of research, technology, and similar opportunities, through promoting the development of medical research space at the City of Hope, and exploring the possible creation of an incubator for researchers seeking to commercialize their work. With regard to land use, the report cited objectives of maintaining an adequate supply of jobs-creating land, as well as developing and rehabilitating land to meet strategic economic development objectives related to the City of Hope. Strategies included reserving land for research and development uses and creating mixed-use TOD surrounding the Gold Line. 2005 Duarte General Plan 202023

21 City of Duarte. (2015). City of Hope Campus Master Plan. http://cityofhopecampusplan.com/files/City_of_Hope_IS_10.12.15-final.pdf 22 City of Duarte. (2011). Economic Development Strategy 2011-2015. http://www.accessduarte.com/civicax/filebank/blobdload.aspx?BlobID=23080 23 City of Duarte. (2007). City of Duarte Comprehensive General Plan 2005-2020. http://www.accessduarte.com/dept/cd/planning/general_plan.htm


In the 2005 General Plan, the City of Hope facility is described as having more than 300 physicians and 2,500 employees. Additionally, the General Plan briefly cites the opportunity to expand the city’s biotech industry and attract a cluster of firms. Additional opportunities for bioscience-based use: Olive View Olive View-UCLA Medical Center is located in Sylmar, a semi-rural suburban community in the northeast San Fernando Valley at the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains. It is a predominately Latino, working class community of approximately 80,000 residents. In 1970 the former tuberculosis sanitarium in Sylmar was rebuilt as the Olive View Medical Center. Today, the hospital is the largest public facility in Sylmar, serving a large portion of the North San Fernando Valley and Antelope Valley.

Sylmar Community Plan24 This plan prepares for the area’s population growth by focusing on goals like increasing commercial land while maintaining the semi-rural suburban character, expanding recreational opportunities, enhancing distinct neighborhoods, districts, centers, and mixed-use areas, and preserving industrial areas for local economic development. It notes the opportunity for technology and research and development businesses. Approximately 64% of land use distribution is single- and multi-family residential, while only 3% is commercial and 8% industrial. UCLA Olive View Master Plan25 An Environmental Impact Report for the Master Plan is presently being prepared. It will be presented to and reviewed by the LA County Board of Supervisors when completed. There is no timeline for completion of the EIR available on the DHS website. Honor Ranch/Mann Biomedical Research Park 2016 Motion by Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich On July 2016, the LA County of Board of Supervisors approved a motion to initiate the first steps in exploring the potential of using 125 acres of County-owned land near Castaic to complement the nearby Mann Biomedical Research Park. 26 The Board engaged LACDC to provide project feasibility management for the Honor Ranch Development Plan, including geotechnical, environmental, design, entitlement, site surveys, etc. LACDC will also evaluate infrastructure upgrades and development opportunities that will provide a revenue share to the County and support its cluster strategy. 2016 LAEDC Bioscience Implementation Plan The 600,000+ square foot Mann Biomedical Research Park has a diverse set of tenants and a concentration of biotech and medical device firms. Recently purchased by a development company, there is the opportunity to expand the property and commercialize space. Also present at the Research Park is the Alfred Mann Foundation, which helps bridge medical research and technology production for the benefit of the public.

24 LA Department of City Planning. (2012). Sylmar Community Plan. http://planning.lacity.org/cpu/Sylmar/Draft/Draft_CommunityPlan.pdf 25 Olive View-UCLA Medical Center Master Plan. https://dhs.lacounty.gov/wps/portal/dhs/!ut/p/b0/04_Sj9CPykssy0xPLMnMz0vMAfGjzOLdDAwM3P2dgo0MwvwtDBydQ81MnAwsjQ2CzfQLsh0VAbc8LJI!/ 26 Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. (2016). Motion by Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich. July 12, 2016. http://file.lacounty.gov/SDSInter/bos/supdocs/105556.pdf.

http://file.lacounty.gov/SDSInter/bos/supdocs/105556.pdf


The LAEDC report’s action items for Honor Ranch include:

1) Department of Regional Planning to commission a Master Plan for the Honor Ranch site that would guide the development over the build-out period.

2) Expedite consumer-serving medical uses on the site to support “bench to bedside” applications of innovations on the existing Mann Biomedical Research Park.

3) Employ a public-private partnership (P3) financing structure to expedite infrastructure development on the entire Honor Ranch site.


IV. Stakeholder Engagement

This section contains the draft products of our stakeholder engagement work. They include the following:

First District: Health District Community Participation Strategy

Second District: MLK-Drew Stakeholder Engagement Meeting Notes

Second District: Harbor-UCLA Stakeholder Engagement Notes


Health District Community Participation Strategy Community Development Commission of Los Angeles County on behalf of the

First Supervisorial District

I. Document Purpose

Supervisor Hilda Solis’ office has asked Estolano LeSar Perez Advisors (ELP Advisors) to provide an

ongoing participation strategy for the First District’s LA County-USC Health District (District). This

engagement program will be comprised of key District stakeholders, including:

Los Angeles County Health Agency (including Departments of Health Services, Mental Health, and

Public Health)

LAC+USC Medical Center

Los Angeles County Chief Executive Office

Los Angeles County Department of Public Works

Los Angeles County Probation Department

Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner

University of Southern California (USC)

The Wellness Center

California Endowment’s Building Healthy Communities Boyle Heights

Others stakeholders, as identified

II. Background

The LA County-USC Health District is anchored by the LAC+USC Medical Center (Medical Center), one of

the largest public hospitals in the country. With its affiliations to the nearby Keck School of Medicine and

USC Health Sciences Campus as well as its diverse patient base, LAC+USC Medical Center is one of the

premier teaching hospitals in the nation. Several other County agencies have facilities in the District area,

including the Department of Public Works, Department of the Coroner/Medical Examiner, Probation

Department, and the Department of Public Social Services.

USC is in the midst of implementing their Health Sciences Campus Master Plan, which proposes to more

than double their research and academic space, and add 1 million square feet of inpatient and outpatient

clinic space. It also proposes a hotel, conference space, ground for retail and a sit-down restaurant.

Further, LA County’s LAC+USC Medical Center Campus Master Plan includes both the adaptive reuse of

several buildings as well as new development for outpatient care, ambulatory surgery, office space, mixed-

use retail, and child care. The proposed plan, includes approximately 375,000 square feet proposed for

new outpatient buildings & office space, 330,000 square feet for a community center, retail, education, day

care, and additional office space; 755,000 square feet for proposed new biotech research facilities, 130,000

square feet for workforce housing, and potentially 1,050,000 square feet for new medical services

expansion. Currently, numerous County-owned District facilities have fallen into disrepair or are

underutilized.

Meanwhile, some community members, led by the California Endowment’s Building Health Communities-

Boyle Heights, have expressed concern about the long-term impacts on the surrounding community that

may arise as a result of the development of the District, including gentrification, displacement, housing

affordability, and unlawful/abusive policing and criminalization. Further, as heard during a Listening Session

hosted by the Wellness Center on June 22, 2016, community members welcome ongoing dialogue with

USC and LA County regarding long-term community benefits for residents in the way of youth development,


educational pipelines, health care access for senior citizens, and long-term training and employment

opportunities.

LA County and USC have a long-standing affiliation agreement for joint operation of the Medical Center.

This affiliation agreement is currently up for renewal. LA County and USC have been in ongoing

conversations regarding their respective visions and plans for further developing the District. Some issues

have been raised that would affect any possible future development in the District, from having coordinated

security to parking and transportation to other shared infrastructure. Two sites in particular that have been

the focus of attention are the County of Los Angeles Public Works (DPW) Maintenance Yards located at

1525 and 2275 Alcazar Street. USC has proposed to locate a Biomedical Research Park in these spaces

near its Health Sciences Campus intending to position the District as a Hub within a growing regional

Bioscience industry.

These timely conversations create an opportunity to reframe the relationships within the District,

by and between USC, the County, and community stakeholders, in order to develop a partnership

focused on delivering high quality, cost-effective, and patient-centered care at LAC+USC Medical

Center, while promoting the health, wellness and economic well-being of communities connected

to the District.

An ongoing engagement vehicle is key to focusing the goals and outcomes of the LA County-USC Health

District generally as well as its potential function as a Bioscience Hub specifically. Three distinct, yet

interrelated engagement vehicles are crucial to the long term and multifaceted success of the District:

1. Public Sector Engagement: LA County Agencies

2. Health District Partnership: LA County Agencies | USC | CBOs and Stakeholders

3. Public Sector/University Partnership: LA County | USC

III. Stakeholder Engagement to Date

This section summarizes the independent community engagement efforts of two major stakeholders in and

around the LAC+USC Health District: USC and Boyle Heights BHC. Their efforts lay the groundwork for

sustainable district engagement process that promotes a comprehensive approach to health, wellness, and

economic well-being for the communities connected to the District.

a. Stakeholder Engagement: USC

Health Science Campus Master Plan

USC conducted outreach on Health Science Campus Master Plan between August 2013 and August 2015.

USC held approximately 38 meetings at local schools, recreation centers, churches, and on USC’s campus.

These initial meetings gathered feedback on the Master Plan. Since the construction phase, USC has

continued to work with local residents through Neighborhood Councils, nonprofits, and chambers by

providing information and addressing concerns about construction, including street closures, street traffic,

and noise. The University also has a web portal on the Health Sciences Campus Master Planning efforts,

including background information, a project summary, frequently asked questions, and community

engagement updates.27 The University maintains current construction information on the Communities

section of their website. 28

27 University of Southern California. Health Sciences Campus Master Planning: http://hscmasterplan.usc.edu/. 28 University of Southern California. HSC Construction Updates: https://communities.usc.edu/hsc-construction-updates/.

http://hscmasterplan.usc.edu/

https://communities.usc.edu/hsc-construction-updates/


Biotechnology

USC has carried out numerous stakeholder meetings since 2013 (over 90 as of May 2015) to discuss biotechnology, and the potential of the emerging industry in East Los Angeles. Stakeholders include Cal State LA, the Mayor’s Office, County Supervisorial Districts, LAEDC, SoCalBio, State elected officials, developers, and more. These meetings were meant introduce biotech as a concept, raise awareness of USC’s existing biotech/STEM programs, and build support around USC’s vision for a biotech park. USC has also developed a standalone webpage for its biotech efforts, with information on the industry, USC’s vision for biotech on the Eastside, and various resources. 29 On October 1, 2016, USC held a half-day educational and workforce development event called Preparing for the Biotech Decade. The bilingual event was meant to encourage East Los Angeles residents to pursue opportunities in STEM, and included workshops on K-12 educational success, job training opportunities, and research careers.

Community Partnerships There are also 31 health, health sciences, or biotechnology-related community programs managed by USC that range from job training, after-school programming, to community-based research, and more. The Keck School of Medicine, as well as other university departments and agencies, carry out many of these programs within the East Los Angeles communities in partnerships with local non-profits, educational institutions, and healthcare organizations.

b. Stakeholder Engagement: Building Healthy Communities

Building Healthy Communities, Boyle Heights (Boyle Heights BHC) is a ten-year, comprehensive

community initiative funded by the California Endowment. The mission of the Boyle Heights BHC is to

change the way Californians think about and support health in their communities. The Boyle Heights BHC

works within three distinct, but interrelated initiatives:

Health Happens with Prevention

Health Happens in Schools

Health Happens in Neighborhoods

These initiatives are bolstered by a network of approximately 26 local active grantees that support the

BHC’s mission and goals. Each initiative has a standing workgroup, chaired by a representative from a

grantee organization, who takes the lead on setting agendas and next steps. Various Steering Committees

and a Leadership Group (comprised of grantee Executive Directors) to vote on campaigns and provide

overall guidance to the effort.

Boyle Heights BHC is in year five of the ten-year initiative. Below are some of their successful outcomes:

Health Happens with Prevention

o In 2014, LA County created the My Health LA program and committed $61 million per year

to provide a no-cost health care program to uninsured individuals, regardless of

immigration status. In 2015, Boyle Heights BHC negotiated an agreement with DHS to

allow the Boyle Heights BHC Hub to conduct off-site enrollment into Medi-Cal and My

Health LA. Currently, enrollment is only permitted at clinics.

o In 2014, Boyle Heights BHC helped implement a Medical Legal Community Partnership at

the Wellness Center.

29 University of Southern California. Bringing Biotech to Los Angeles: https://biotech.usc.edu/.

https://biotech.usc.edu/


Health Happens in Schools

o In 2015, Boyle Heights BHC helped defeat an effort to host a charter school at Roosevelt

High School. The space is now being considered for a new student and community

wellness center.

o In 2014, LAUSD adopted the Good Food Procurement Resolution, which called for using

$100 million in district funds to support a regional food system.

o In 2014, the LAUSD and Los Angeles School Police Department approve the Equal

Protection Plan, a comprehensive school policy to decriminalize student discipline by

promoting restorative justice.

Health Happens in Neighborhoods

o In 2016, the Los Angeles City Council approved a motion authored by Councilman Jose

Huizar to direct City Staff to provide a comprehensive report on youth services investment

in the City of Los Angeles.

o In 2015, the Los Angeles City Council approved the Plan for a Health Los Angeles, which

integrates a health and wellness into the City’s General Plan.

IV. Public Sector Engagement: LA County Agencies

Interviews with County Agency representatives reveal that aside from usual coordination related to joint-

programming or service delivery, there is little ongoing communication among County Agencies regarding

their roles, needs or facilities in the District. In the course of interviews, agency representatives saw the

value of convening an engagement vehicle where the appropriate County Agency representatives meet to

communicate on ongoing issues and opportunities. Some of the District issues include:

Parking and transportation within and to the District is an ongoing problem for County and USC

employees, patients, and the community.

The County Agencies in the District are connected to the same steam plant located at LAC+USC

Medical Center. Agency representatives pointed to ongoing issues with the steam plant system,

including high cost and recurring leaks in the system.

Many County Agency facilities in the District are either underutilized (Probation) or too small

(Coroner) and are in need of substantial capital improvements.

Coroner/Medical Examiner: The Coroner’s Office runs their public administrative functions out of 1104 N.

Mission Road. 1104 N. Mission has a Historic Designation, which severely limits the ability to adequately

secure the facility in the event of an emergency. Furthermore, its current facilities are at capacity. In the

case of a major catastrophe, the Coroner’s current facilities are unable to keep up with increased demand.

Department of Health Services (DHS): Along with overseeing the LAC+USC Medical Center, DHS also

has jurisdiction over the historic General Hospital, as well as Women’s Hospital Building. DHS

representatives noted a need for a specialty care building on the campus for follow-up services. In addition,

they noted that they are looking at options to rehabilitate the historic General Hospital, and potentially use

a few floors for combined Health Agency offices (for DHS, Department of Public Health, and/or Department

of Mental Health). There is interest in exploring re-use and disposition of the historic General Hospital and

tear-down/rebuild of the Women’s Hospital.

Interviews with DHS staff indicate that the healthcare landscape has changed in recent years, with greater

emphasis on outpatient services and step-down level inpatient services that focus on improving access to

social work, housing, and other types of socio-economic insecurities. As such, the LAC+USC Medical

Center is in need of the following facilities in the long-term:


Outpatient primary care that is easily accessible to the public. Currently, outpatient services take

place toward the rear of the campus and are far removed from hospital parking facilities.

LAC+USC’s 25 operating rooms are at capacity due to the high volume of procedures. Additional

operating room capacity is needed, particularly in the form of an ambulatory surgery center, in order

to meet demand as well as meeting the training standards for medical students.

LAC+USC would greatly benefit from a facility with subacute recuperative care beds (beds for

patients recently discharged from a hospital, but still medically fragile and in need of care), thus

improving of flow of patients from the emergency department to inpatient beds.

LAC+USC would greatly benefit from additional acute psychiatric beds as well as a step-down

mental health unit. The services could be relocated from the Augustus Hawkins campus back to

LAC+USC’s main campus, resulting in a win-win for both USC’s Department of Psychiatry and

LAC+USC in terms of geography and improving flow.

Probation: The Central Juvenile Hall is located on a 22-acre lot, which also encompasses the Eastlake

Juvenile Courthouse. Currently, the Central Juvenile Hall houses approximately 200 individuals. Its original

capacity was closer to 1,000. Central Juvenile Hall plays an important coordinating role in the County’s

Probation system – all juveniles receive health care at LAC+USC Medical Center and process through

Central Juvenile Hall on the way to the hospital.

Many of the facilities comprising the Central Juvenile Hall are over 50 years old. The Eastlake Courthouse,

built in 1954, is in dire need of an upgrade or replacement. Johnson Fain is currently working on an Eastlake

Site Feasibility Study, which will assess current conditions of the infrastructure facilities and make

recommendations for a campus plan that will maximize the most efficient use of the site and streamline

service delivery. The State of California owns a portion of the Probation property. Thus, any potential

redevelopment or disposition of this property would require cooperation with the State.

Department of Public Works: The Department of Public Works operates two maintenance yards located

at 1525 and 2275 Alcazar Street. These lots serve as a central hub for the Department’s network of

maintenance and operations facilities. 1525 Alcazar contains general warehouse storage, an alternate

emergency operations center, and a geotechnical laboratory, among other functions. 2275 Alcazar contains

vehicle fleet maintenance, a fueling station, and equipment repair garages. Regardless of the outcome of

the Alcazar Lots discussions with USC, the facilities are in need of maintenance repairs and/or upgrades.

A brick building abutting Valley Boulevard is vacant, and the department has issues with transients breaking

into abandoned buildings and stealing copper wire. DPW is in need of direction about how to deal with

these issues while the discussions with USC continue.

Next Steps:

The L.A. County CEO’s office plays a convening role for this engagement. The CEO is convening the

appropriate Agency representatives (particularly those overseeing Facilities and Capital Improvements) to

keep each other apprised of activities, particularly if implementation of the LAC+USC Medical Center

Campus Master Plan or a new District development scheme commences. The meetings should address

the following:

Keep County Agencies apprised of each other’s activities.

Short, mid, and long term planning to optimize land and real estate assets in the District.

Creating a single point of contact regarding the Master Plan or future development plans lead by

L.A. County.


V. Health District Community Partnership

There is growing concern among local residents over the implementation of USC’s Health Sciences

Campus Master Plan. Rapid development in nearby Downtown Los Angeles compounds this concern, as

some Downtown residents find themselves priced out of Downtown Los Angeles and look to adjacent

neighborhoods for more affordable housing. The influx of new prospective residents into the communities

immediately surrounding the District (Boyle Heights, Eastlake, Lincoln Heights, El Sereno, East Los

Angeles) is a point of tension for long-term residents, who fear being priced out if the demand for housing

continues to outpace the available housing stock. Many residents view the development of USC’s Health

Science campus as contributing to that trend.

Further, as heard during a Listening Session hosted by the Wellness Center on June 22, 2016, many

stakeholders are open to an ongoing dialogue with USC regarding long-term community benefits for

residents in the way of youth development, educational pipelines, health care access for senior citizens,

and long-term training and employment opportunities. Stakeholders spoke of the importance of affordable

housing, displacement protections, and protections against unlawful-abusive policing and criminalization.

Stakeholders also raised concerns around health impacts and emphasized the importance of community

benefits. They are open to working with USC and others in developing tangible projects or programs that

directly address their needs and concerns and collectively manage change.

We recommend an ongoing engagement structure, similar to the one used by in District collaboration best

practices across the country, which drives the delivery of meaningful outcomes and sets the conditions for

sustainable collective impact.30

a. Engage a Third-Party to Convene and Moderate the Health District Community Partnership

We recommend immediately engaging a third-party consultant to oversee the creation of a Health District

Community Partnership (Partnership) and insure that all stakeholders’ needs are represented. Along with

establishing the organization, the consultant would be responsible for driving initiatives that will help

transform the LA County-USC Health District area into a thriving wellness district. The consultant should

moderate all stakeholder meetings and help drive productivity by providing administrative support in

advance of and after meetings. Many local stakeholder participants have limited resources to dedicate to

such an effort, so all administrative functions should be handled by a third party, if possible.

The County should explore the possibility of running the procurement through a local foundation or other

intermediary. Local stakeholders noted that public sector procurements are highly elaborate and time

intensive, which may dissuade would-be bidders from applying. If this is not legally possible, then an

appropriate County agency (such as the CEO’s office) should draft a Request for Proposals (RFP) for a

third-party consultant to launch and manage the Health District Community Partnership. We also

recommend the creation of a committee for the RFP to help select the third party, regardless of who runs

the procurement. The committee should be comprised of the appropriate County staff and key local

stakeholders.

The selected consultant should have a track record of managing diverse stakeholder groups, The selected

consultant must have a proven record of working with low income communities, as well as experience

working on health issues.

The functions of the third-party consultant can be as follows:

Guide the vision and strategy of the Partnership

Align existing efforts in the area

Establish shared measurement practices to document success

30 Collective Impact: A framework for facilitating and achieving change, using a structured approach that brings cross-sector organizations together in a collaborative way to focus on a common agenda and produce long-lasting change.


Build public will for the Partnership

Develop community leadership in the District

Advance policy that aligns with the Partnership’s goals

Mobilize and access funding

Develop a model for sustainable and meaningful community engagement

The County may wish to seek support of the philanthropic sector to support start-up costs for this endeavor,

such as California Community Foundation, the California Endowment, Surdna Foundation, the Robert

Wood Johnson Foundation, and others. In addition, funding for the Partnership should also include

resources for partner organizations or individuals who provide significant support to recruit and engage

residents.

b. Assemble Membership and Agree to Common Goal(s)

Once the third-party consultant has been selected, we recommend bringing together key District

stakeholders together for a Visioning Session to articulate the mission for the Health District Community

Partnership. The surrounding community has a robust network of community based organizations and

stakeholders to engage in this project, many of whom were present at the Wellness Center’s Listening

Session on June 2016. Potential members should include representatives from the private, public, non-

profit, and philanthropic sectors, such as:

University of Southern California

Representative from Supervisor Hilda Solis’ Office

Representatives from the LA County Health Agency

Representatives from the LA County Chief Executive Office

The Wellness Center

Building Healthy Communities – Boyle Heights

Representatives from local health organizations, such as Clinica Romero

Representatives from Local K-12 institutions

Representatives from workforce development organizations

Cal State University, Los Angeles

Neighborhood Council Representatives

City of Los Angeles

Local Area Youth Representative

Local Area Adult Representative

Others, as identified

Stakeholders should be brought together to discuss the following issues for the District:

What is our mission?

What is our geographic focus?

What are the problems we are trying to solve?

What is already being done?

What are the critical gaps? Do we agree to work collectively to achieve this mission?

As an example, stakeholders may consider the following mission statement:

The Health District Community Partnership’s goal is to transform the area around the LAC+USC Medical

Center and USC Health Sciences Campus into a thriving health and wellness district. This Partnership will

create this district by actively seeking and facilitating partnerships and projects in the following issue areas:

Economic stability


o Employment, Economic Opportunity, Workforce Development, Small Business

Opportunities

Education

Healthcare and Wellness

Built Environment

o Green and Open Space, Land Use, Bicycle/pedestrian mobility

Public Safety

o Safe Public Spaces, Safe Schools, Re-entry and re-integration issues

Arts & Cultural Competency

LGBTQ Issues

Others, as identified by stakeholders

c. Formation

Once the Partnership’s stakeholders collectively agree on a mission, the third-party consultant should build

out the supporting infrastructure of the organization. This can include, but is not limited to, the following

tasks:

Set a meeting calendar, and lead on all meeting logistics;

o We recommend that the Partnership meet in-person quarterly, with monthly phone calls if

necessary.

Aggregate and collect needed data that will help stakeholders make decisions;

Monitor and receive briefings on any relevant projects or policies that are relevant to the

Partnership’s work

o This would include updates from the appropriate staff on the progress of the LAC+USC

Medical Center Campus Master Plan and USC Health Sciences Campus Master Plan.

o The County should share any potential and/or upcoming development projects or ongoing

coordination on County-owned land. The County should work with the Partnership to

ensure that any transaction with any major developer includes meaningful community

input.

o USC should share details and aspirations for its future development plans, including

timelines, development schedules, traffic impacts, health impacts, anticipated community

benefits, etc. USC should also work closely with the Partnership to align their development

plans with community priorities, and discuss any potential overlooked impacts.

Manage internal communications to keep all stakeholders apprised of each other’s individual and

collective efforts;

Manage external communications to amplify the impact of the Partnership’s work;

Other tasks, as necessary.

The selected consultant must have the ability to focus the attention of stakeholders, and be able to skillfully

frame issues and solutions in the context of the Partnership’s mission and goals. The consultant should

also be adept at mediating conflict and disagreement among members. Language access is also essential

to engaging local residents. All communication and materials must be available in Spanish and Vietnamese

as a matter of course.

d. Develop a Workplan and Metrics for Success

Based on the feedback from the initial Visioning Session, the third-party consultant will draft a Workplan

that articulates the near, mid, and long term goals and actions for the first year or two of the organization.

The goals and actions may be categorized by issue area: economic stability, education, healthcare and

wellness, and the built environment, as outlined in the mission statement. The Partnership’s actions must

be informed by stakeholder’s understanding of the problem, existing work, as well as on any existing or

gathered data. In addition to programs and initiatives, the phased development of new capital projects from


healthcare facilities and offices to a potential Biomedical Research Park should be classified by issue

area(s) and included on the Workplan in order to provide for community participation and understanding of

the development process. Furthermore, the Partnership must agree on ways in which success will be

measured. Potential metrics can include: number of internships funded, number of local residents employed

in the Health District, and others. The Workplan must developed in consultation with key stakeholders in

order to ensure the Partnership efforts augment and/or complement, but do not duplicate, existing efforts

in the area.

Once completed, the Workplan should be periodically revisited to track the Partnership’s progress on their

goals. Stated actions or metrics should be adjusted if deemed necessary.

e. Fund Activity

Any successful stakeholder engagement effort is time intensive and requires financial resources to sustain

in the long term. Effectively framing the importance and sharing the success stories of the Health District

Community Partnership to potential funders is critical to ensuring that efforts are sustained over time.

VI. Public Sector/University Partnership: LA County | USC

Currently, there are two significant and ongoing discussions between USC and the County of Los Angeles.

One involves negotiations over the affiliation agreement for joint operation of the Medical Center. The

second relates to coordinated master plan implementation and envisioning new development scenarios.

While the County is currently seeking to upgrade, expand, or reposition several Departmental facilities,

USC has a particular interest in the plans for the two DPW maintenance yards because of their potential to

advance the District as a regional Bioscience Hub.

a. LAC + USC Medical Center

For the Medical Center, the LA County Department of Health Services is negotiating directly with Executives

at the Keck School of Medicine. However, in order for the Medical Center to deliver upon its mission of

providing high-quality, patient-centered care for Los Angeles County residents, it seeks to leverage the

expertise of USC faculty, professionals and students beyond just the School of Medicine.

The Medical Campus’ diverse population is an ideal testing ground to pilot new and innovative ways of

providing care that go beyond traditional medical treatment. Moreover, the Medical Center is home to

countless numbers of doctors, nurses, and various health professionals with whom to implement and test

new medical and clinical interventions that can improve health outcomes for patients.

Below are just some potential USC-based partners to include in the conversation, and potential projects on

which to collaborate:

USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism (Joint partnership to develop multi-

lingual, phone-based applications for patients to store documents and basic health information, test

results, and reminders for upcoming appointments or taking medication.)

USC School of Cinematic Arts (Joint partnership to develop various multi-lingual media pieces that

encourage LA County residents to adopt healthy practices: stop smoking, eat healthy foods,

exercise, etc.)

USC Sol Price School of Public Policy: (Joint partnership with hospital to address parking issues at

the Medical Center, and improve overall wayfinding and bicycle/pedestrian connections on

campus)

USC Roski School of Art and Design (Joint partnership to develop innovative designs for

prosthesis.)


USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work (Joint partnership to imagine new ways of

addressing social determinants of health)

USC Viterbi School of Engineering (Joint partnership to re-engineer certain process flows or the

use of hospital or clinic space, or to leverage recent work by the school in the areas of hospital

patient satisfaction surveys currently being used at Keck Hospital)

These potential partnerships can serve as renewed trust building projects between the County and USC

that also demonstrate the capacity for collaborative innovation and goodwill towards the Medical Center’s

patient population and the community at-large.

b. Opportunities for a Bioscience Hub

As the County, USC, and an engaged community weigh the opportunities and challenges posed by

significant further transformation within the District, the importance of clear communication, shared

expectations, and a common vision are key to balancing the related and dynamic potential of different

scales, phasing, and community benefits of each stage of District development. Promoting the regional

Bioscience industry is but one of several desirable outcomes that must factor into land use and operational

partnerships.

USC has expressed interest in two County of Los Angeles Public Works (DPW) Maintenance Yards located

at 1525 and 2275 Alcazar Street (Alcazar Lots). The County itself is committed to removing the current

blighted conditions and insuring that central maintenance operations are available to all LA County’s service

area. USC has long viewed these sites as an ideal location for their future Biomedical Research Park. USC

has provided limited detail on the project scope for the Biomedical Research Park at this time.

If such a project were to proceed, USC should consider locating research that directly aligns with LA

County’s most pressing health needs. Interviews with numerous Department of Health Services

representatives reveal an ongoing need for hardware, software, devices, and/or services that allow patients

and doctors and medical professionals to improve their health and healthcare delivery.

The Alcazar Lots currently serve as a central location for DPW’s network of maintenance and operations

activities throughout the County, and must be relocated in order for any development of these sites to occur.

An alternate site must at least meet the following criteria:

The site must be centrally located within Los Angeles County, ideally within close proximity of the

original location;

The site must be operationally equivalent to the original location, including adequate routes for

ingress and egress of DPW crews;

Additional criteria, as determined by L.A. County;

The County has identified several alternate locations, including the following:

USC-owned lot on the corner of Soto and Valley Boulevard: A study is needed to determine if the

lot is appropriate for DPW’s needs.

Site at or around Eastlake Court House: In November 2015, DPW commissioned Johnson Fain to

provide a Feasibility Study for the Eastlake Courthouse. The Eastlake Courthouse was built in 1954

and in need of upgrade or replacement. The study will assess current conditions of infrastructure

and facilities, and develop a campus and phasing plan that will allow for more efficient use of the

site, and determine if surplus land is available through the reconfiguration of the Eastlake

Courthouse and Central Juvenile Hall. Additional analysis may be needed to determine if surplus

land (if any) is appropriate for DPW’s needs.


Next Steps:

The potential development of a Biomedical Research Park within the LA County-USC Health District should

be placed in the larger context of developing a partnership with USC to deliver high quality, patient-centered

care at the hospital while promoting a comprehensive approach to health, wellness and economic well-

being of the communities connected to the District. Negotiation on the Alcazar Lots should not proceed

until other components of this engagement strategy have commenced and will not be finalized before all

components of this engagement strategy are in place. L.A. County should draft principles of partnership

with USC into a Memorandum of Understanding. These principles must include a commitment to supportive

participation in the Health District Community Partnership. Discussions with USC and LA County regarding

a potential Biomedical Research Park should include the following:

Establish a common vision and goals to guide development and coordination in the LA County-

USC Health District.

o Figure out concrete strategies to better coordinate the execution of both LAC+USC Medical

Center Campus Master Plan and USC HSC Master Plan.

L.A. County to present operational and facilities goals for the departments and agencies at the LA

County-USC Health District.

L.A. County to present goals for partnering with USC on operation of the hospital, better facilities

coordination and potential joint development opportunities.

USC to present its vision for the research and academic programming for the potential new

research facilities.

USC to provide its overall vision, including real estate and research programming for the proposed

research park, including the square footage dedicated to academic versus other types of uses, e.g.,

commercial, office, retail, sit-down restaurant, R&D, incubators, or other lab space.

o USC should also explain how the Biomedical Research Park will also include facilities that

will produce and/or support start-up companies that produce hardware, software, devices,

and/or services (including telehealth) that allow patients, doctors, and medical

professionals to improve their health and healthcare delivery.

USC to provide draft timeline and development schedule by phase.

USC to present any existing architectural renderings of the proposed new research park.

USC should present on the anticipated community benefits (in the short and long term) from the

Biomedical Research Park. These should include construction and permanent jobs, expanded

programming for local schools, including internships, scholarship programs and science

competitions. USC should also provide preliminary estimates on benefits to small businesses in

the immediate area (e.g. dry cleaners, mechanics, restaurants).

USC to present on traffic, parking and other impacts to the immediate area due to construction of

the Biomedical Research Park (during construction and in the long term).


MLK – Drew Bioscience Hub Roundtable Meeting Notes

Meeting Notes and Next Steps

July 22, 2016, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm Charles Drew University

Attendees:

• Dr. Elaine Batchlor – CEO, MLK Hospital • Kelli Bernard – AECOM • Diane Factor – Worker Education & Resource Center (WERC), Health Care Workforce

Development Program (HCWDP) • Richard France – Estolano LeSar Perez Advisors • Pastor Delores Glass – Fellowship Baptist Church • Linda Griego – MLK Health and Wellness Community Development Corporation • Cynthia Guzman – Estolano LeSar Perez Advisors • Leah Hubbard – Estolano LeSar Perez Advisors • Chris Lopez – LACDC • Carl McLaney – Charles Drew University (CDU), Vice President for Finance & Chief Business

Officer • Cynthia Oliver – LA County DHS • Tamara Perry – Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC) • Dan Rosenfeld • Charles Turner – Assistant Deputy for Economic Development, Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas’

Office • Dr. Jay Vadgama – Director & Principal Investigator, CDU Division of Cancer Research & Training • Dr. Yong Wu - Assistant Professor, Division of Cancer Research & Training • Dr. Yanyuan Wu - Associate Professor, Division of Cancer Research & Training

I. Stakeholder Updates

LAEDC Bioscience Implementation Plan

Tamara Perry of LAEDC presented a general summary of their Bioscience Implementation Plan. The

LAEDC Report suggests additional private and public investment is needed before the area can attract

expanding or established life science firms. However, the report is undergoing significant revision before it

is made public in September 2016.

Facility Use and Workforce Development

Together CDU, MLKCH, LAUSD, King-Drew Medical Charter, and the Kenneth Hahn Shopping Center make up 42 acres of land. Linda Griego with the Martin Luther King Health & Wellness CDC has taken the first steps in assessing buildings on both the Drew and MLK Campuses for adaptive reuse and development, including ownership opportunities for increased growth & capacity. MLKCH and Drew University both have ideas regarding demolition, development, and adaptive reuse on their campuses, including MLKCH’s plan to lease space to primary care doctors and specialists in the MLK building outpatient arm, and Drew’s prospective plan to rehab the Interns and Residents building to support a larger undergraduate program. The previous Multi Ambulatory Care Center (MACC) building remains intact, though the Master Plan suggests it be demolished, as does the Interns and Residents building. There was discussion between stakeholders about potential renovation instead of demolition, as a feasibility study by MLK CDC identified uses for 85% of the MACC, including clinical and administrative utilization. Additionally, converting the Interns and Residents building into dorms would assist CDU in its undergraduate expansion. The Hawkins Mental Health Building is in need of critical renovation if it is to be used for patient care. Together CDU, MLKCH, LAUSD King-Drew Medical Charter, and the Kenneth Hahn Shopping Center make up 42 acres


of land. The YMCA has expressed interest in a facility in the campus area, similar to the model in Koreatown. Diane Factor noted that WERC and other employment training programs struggle to find placements for

their workers with good employers that are economically stable. There needs to be more employer

commitment for job growth opportunities.

MLK Clinical Updates

Dr. Batchlor shared updates specifically from the MLK Campus, noting that the biggest issue for MLK right

now is a lack of providers in the community. They are attempting to recruit more doctors for additional

primary and specialty care to fill the 1700 physician deficit that the area faces. Assets to address this issue

include the MLK building outpatient arm and the UCLA pipeline with postgrad training and culturally aligned

physicians.

The synergy of a bioscience hub and clinical services will be a benefit to the hospital. MLK will run a

separate office building on the campus and lease space to specialists. They have already hired over 1,000

staff members, but they need more skilled workers, which they try to address in one manner through an in-

house training program for critical care nurses.

Charles Drew University

Dr. Carlisle shared updates, also referenced in the CDU Strategic Plan, that include goals and objectives

to rebrand and enhance the visibility of CDU, expand and improve campus infrastructure, maximize funding

opportunities, and increase the number of undergraduate and graduate students to 2000 in the next 5 years

through new and enriched academic and student life programming.

Dr. Vadgama of Charles Drew University sees the MLK-Drew area as a hub that addresses health

disparities, specifically within the community it exists in. Other hubs throughout the County are focused on

the market and profit, and are not connected to their communities.

CDU, celebrating its 50th year, has led health disparity research in relation to three areas of focus which

significantly affect South LA Planning Area 6 (SPA 6), including Cancer, Cardio-metabolic diseases, and

HIV/AIDS. It is ranked in the Top 10% of all US institutions receiving federal funding, and the Top 3% of

historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) receiving federal funding.

II. Areas for collaboration

It was apparent that different stakeholders were not aware of all the projects and developments that others

were involved in; however, in sharing these developments, stakeholders considered creative ways to

collaborate and implement new projects.

To address workforce development issues in the local community, tactics could include looking into the

local manufacturing sector to set up a pipeline for low-skilled workers to get trained starting even at the high

school and community college level, local hire requirements for construction, a culinary training program in

the hospital kitchen (similar to LAX program or LATTC), or training health care navigators for community

clinic work. Linda and Diane Factor to connect on this topic to discuss further.

The YMCA is interested in a facility on the campus, and Linda has been working with the Weingart

Foundation to potentially gain some financial support.

III. Other recommendations

We suggest an ongoing engagement process for all interested stakeholders in the district. This will provide

a space for making sure all stakeholders are up to date, as well as increased innovation and collaboration

surrounding campus growth, clinical needs, and workforce development.


Harbor - UCLA Hub Stakeholder Engagement Notes

I. David Meyer, President & CEO; Keith Hoffman, VP Business Development & Tech Transfer, LA BioMed

a. Current LA BioMed initiatives Construction of Research Building and Biotech Incubator on Campus: a four story, 80,000 square foot building. One floor would be dedicated entirely to incubator space. The project is partly funded by LA County - $3 million dedicated to bricks and mortar.

Incubator is set to open about two years from now, but the organization still plans on setting up the incubator in existing space. LA BioMed is trying to recruit people outside the organization, and is receiving inquiries from across the country.

LA BioMed is considering various staffing needs for the incubator: business development, grant writing, computing, space and care for research animals, clinical trials, etc.

Construction of Tech Park: The project will be approximately 15 acres, with a connection to Harbor-UCLA. EIR will go before LA County Board of Supervisors sometime in December. The project estimates 250,000 square foot build out. LA BioMed is working with SD 2 to solicit a developer. The developer would be anticipated to abide by County’s workforce standards (local hire, etc.).

The LAEDC report has generated various job creation estimates, for both construction and permanent jobs.

b. Workforce Development

LA BioMed operates an Office of Educational Opportunities, which is a high school internship program.

Students work at a lab at LA BioMed for two months. The program has ongoing partnerships with El Camino,

Harbor, Long Beach, and East Los Angeles Colleges.

Contractors are very good at hiring local – Hensel Phelps was the General Contractor on the Harbor UCLA

Emergency Replacement Program, and recruited local workers for construction.

There will be a need for lower level maintenance and operations jobs in the new research building. Incubator

tenants will also need various support services.

LA BioMed has no trouble recruiting into administration or labs.

LA BioMed Administrative staff include: Compliance, HR, Tech Transfer, grants, facilities, etc.

Scientific Staff – physicians, labs, and technicians, postdoctoral students.

There will be a need for lower level maintenance and operations jobs in the new research building. Incubator

tenants will also need various support services.

LA BioMed operates about 11 women and infant services clinics throughout Los Angeles. They are funded

through federal grants. Each center employs about 20 people each; about 240 total employees. There is a

great need for culturally competent, bilingual staff to fill certain positions.


c. Community Engagement

LA BioMed is deeply engaged in Health and Health Outcomes Services:

Current partnership with UCLA Health Services to ongoing research on bullying.

LA BioMed partners with Drew, Cedars Sinai, UCLA on various NIH-funded pursuits.

Much of their research is relevant to the surrounding community, such as depression, obesity, and other health outcomes.

d. Recommendations

LA BioMed is still in search of funding for ongoing incubator operations. County can play a role by supporting

and/or facilitating grants and opportunities for the incubator to meet its financial needs.

Seek opportunities to scale up and expand LA BioMed’s successful student internship programs to engage

more local students in the bioscience industry.

Continue communication between LA BioMed and County Health Agencies to ensure that LA BioMed

research continues to be timely and relevant to LA County’s health patient needs.

II. Dr. Philip LaPolt, Dean, College of Natural and Behavioral Sciences, Cal State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH)

a. CSUDH’s Role in Bioscience Community

CSUDH has a long history of partnerships with local institutions. The University has partnerships with LA

BioMed, MLK-Drew, and Harbor-UCLA.

Approximately 700 CSUDH students are majoring in the science fields. The University is keen on offering

their students exposure to entrepreneurship experience. CSUDH looks forward to partnering with LA

BioMed in their future incubator.

CSUDH is one of the lowest-funded CSU’s. Funds to provide work experience opportunities to students are

quite limited.

b. Workforce Development

Various local CSUs are working with Grifols on a Biomanufacturing Professional Certificate. Furthermore,

the University is developing a Master’s Degree in Biotechnology.

CSUDH students tend to stay local. Their graduates will comprise the future workforce of the LA County

bioscience hubs.

CSUDH is developing an MOU with Harbor College to develop a bridge program into bioscience fields.

There’s interest at CSUDH in a general entrepreneurship incubator, not specifically focused on bioscience.

c. Real Estate Opportunities


Dr. LaPolt identified a parcel of land next to the StubHub Center that is owned by the University. There may

be an opportunity to co-locate bioscience related uses on that site.

CSUDH recently announced the future Center for Science and Innovation. When completed, the Center

will be a modern instructional facility, providing state of the art science labs and classrooms supporting

innovations in science and math education and faculty research. A general contractor and architect has

been selected for this building.

CSUDH has a Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) facility, which is of interest to bioscience companies

who cannot afford to develop one in-house. The University is pursuing a partnership with Molecular Express

(company based in Compton) for shared use of NMR facility.

d. Recommendations

CSUDH welcomes the opportunity to partner with other organizations to provide workforce opportunities to

its 700 students.

Explore opportunities for start up/early stage companies to utilize specialized lab space at universities such

as CSUDH, and disseminate these opportunities via the appropriate channels.

III. Joanne Valle, CEO, LA Gateway Chamber of Commerce

The Chamber represents the Harbor City/Harbor Gateway business community. The Chamber has been

primarily focused on promoting international trade by helping members get import and export ready. There

are approximately 215 member businesses (which is just a small fraction of the total businesses in the

area).

Members typically come to the Chamber for help on international trade. They also help a lot of mom and

pop businesses on minimum wage issues.

The Chamber is generally excited about the upcoming real estate activity around the Harbor-UCLA hub.

They see it as a potential boon for the surrounding businesses.

The Chamber believes local schools have strong pipelines into the health fields – Narbonne H.S. has a

pipeline program to Harbor College.

The Chamber noted that the nearby Silver Line Station along Carson street can be better enhanced to

connect to Harbor-UCLA. Local shopping centers are also in need of a face lift.

a. Recommendations

The County should work with business community to create more contracting opportunities for local

businesses. Can the County or LAEDC quantify how many businesses around Harbor-UCLA are

biomedical/medical device related? How many local businesses are and/or can be local suppliers to Harbor-

UCLA or LA BioMed? The Chamber and other business partners are willing to help disseminate these

opportunities once available.

Demand for jobs at Harbor-UCLA may create a need for a medical pathway or hospitality pathway program

for local residents. Local educational institutions and workforce development providers may be interested

in developing a pathway for students in the health fields


IV. Azar Kattan, Chief Operating Officer, Harbor-UCLA Medical Center

Land on Harbor-UCLA is very well used and at capacity.

Hospital has received strong interest from the County to provide more homelessness services and

transitional housing. Much of the future development on the campus is aimed at bioscience research.

Any potential repeal of provisions of the Affordable Care Act could significantly affect services.

The hospital’s mission is to provide care for those that have no ability to get it elsewhere. Developing space

for research is important, but not core to the Hospital’s mission.

Other identified Hubs (Honor Ranch, Olive View, Rancho Los Amigos) have larger, open parcels of land or underutilized buildings (MLK-Drew) that may be more amenable to a bioscience hub.

a. Workforce Development

Providing health care professionals with competitive salaries has always been a challenge. The hospital is

old, not well configured, and has a difficult patient population.

Harbor-UCLA runs its own radiology technician program. The hospital also has partnerships with LA County

College of Nursing and Allied Health.

There’s no existing affiliation with the trades for plumbing/electrical, other blue collar jobs. The hospital will

defer to County policy on any local hire practices.

b. Recommendations

Ensure that research that occurs on LA County land aligns with LA County’s health needs. There is an

ongoing need for hardware, software, devices, and/or services that would allow doctors and medical

professionals to improve the delivery of care.

County should consider requiring research labs on County-owned land to set aside a number of spots for

training placements for qualified local students.

V. Sandra Sanchez, Dean, Economic & Workforce Development; Priscilla Lopez, Associate Dean, Economic & Workforce Development, Los Angeles Harbor College

Los Angeles Harbor College received a five-year, $6-million-dollar grant from the U.S. Department of

Education for programs supporting science, technology, engineering, math (STEM). The grants were only

available to college serving majority Latino populations.

A portion of the funding will be used for capital improvements in physics and chemistry labs.

The College also want to use the funding to better equip the college to receive National Science

Foundation (NSF) funding.

Harbor College works with a network of local high schools to identify students that are interested in STEM fields, and equip them with the tools and coursework to ensure their success.


a. Workforce Development

Measure CC, a $3.5 billion construction bond for the LA Community College District, passed in November.

With this money, Harbor College hopes to upgrade their Health Sciences Building. Currently, Harbor

College runs their Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA), Radiology, Sonography, Home Health Aide, and

Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) programs out of outdated facilities.

These occupations do not require a B.A., and pay competitive salaries.

Harbor College is working with the CSUs to ensure that those students who study in these fields

and wish to get a B.A. have the skills and ability to transfer to a 4-year college.

Overall, Harbor College wants to improve connections and pipelines to 4-year colleges across all

fields, not just STEM.

Harbor College also offers “Entry Level Fundamentals” courses to high school students in order to best

prepare them to college coursework.

Dean Sanchez is interested in building out a “Fundamentals” curriculum for high school students

interested in the medical fields. The College would need additional space to conduct these

trainings. The College already has partnerships with Harbor-UCLA and other area hospitals, who

often lend space for medical trainings.

Harbor College has a great relationship with Harbor-UCLA. Harbor-UCLA hires graduates of Harbor

College’s Associate’s Degree in Nursing Program (ADN). Harbor-UCLA provides these grads with great

experience that make them competitive in the market.

To Dean Sanchez’s knowledge, Harbor College does not have a current relationship with LA BioMed, but

is interested in developing one, particularly as the College builds out its STEM curriculum.

The Department of Education grant will allow them to hire a liaison who would develop relationships with

the local business community to provide internship opportunities for students.

The College already has successful intern partnerships with NASA and a few other local

manufacturers. They hold an annual business symposium where businesses get together at the

College and talk about their workforce needs.

Harbor College is currently working on how to formalize their job internship and recruitment process.

Dean Sanchez is interested in finding ways to development mentorship and externship

opportunities for students and faculty.

o Faculty would gain a lot of value from shadowing major employers and modifying curriculum offerings based on what skills employers actually need in the field.

b. Recommendations

Facilitate an introduction and support a partnership between LA Harbor College and LABioMed. Harbor

College is interested in pursuing partnerships for the following: internship placements for students,

mentorship and externships placements for students and faculty.

Facilitate a Town Hall meeting between workforce partners in the immediate area to ensure that workforce

education and training offerings are aligning with the demand in the area, particularly in light of their recent

Department of Education grant. The County can play the initial convening role, and perhaps interested

participants can continue convening independently in the long-term (if there is continued interest and

momentum).


VI. Michael Moritz, Staff Research Associate, Division of Neonatology, LA BioMed Harbor-UCLA has the potential to become a wellness district, with a thriving live-work environment.

a. LA BioMed

LA Biomed’s core facilities need to be centralized to maximize the ease and efficiency of research. Currently, facilities are scattered across former barracks and satellite buildings. Much of the equipment is in need of an upgrade. This will likely change after the implementation of the Master Plan. Currently, companies and individuals are paying competitive rents for sub-standard equipment. The facilities at LA BioMed should reflect the quality of the top-notch researchers and entrepreneurs that work there.

Researchers need to go to Westwood to access gene sequencing equipment, which is inconvenient for doing business.

The LA BioMed webpage does not provide clear information on what kind of equipment is available. LA BioMed should make more of an effort to market its amenities to potential tenants. The digital infrastructure on the campus is poor – researchers have a hard time getting on the internet. Furthermore, the campus intranet is wonky and out of date. There is a need for quality, healthy, affordable food options in and around the Harbor-UCLA hub, not just for LA BioMed staff, but for Harbor-UCLA patients. The area is mostly low-density residential, so there are limited options for quality housing. Many LA BioMed researchers report long commutes to work. Employees are concerned with safety when leaving work late at night. Parking is an ongoing issue.

b. Recommendations

Develop a webpage (prominently featured on the LA Biomed site) that describes their laboratory and

equipment offerings. Further, there is a need to aggregate information lab/equipment availability throughout

the County so start-up companies can easily find the type of space they need.

Principal Investigators and Researchers should be surveyed throughout the design and construction of the

Tech Park in order to ensure that the design reflects the needs of the LA BioMed community.

There should be a concerted effort to bring VC presence/interest to LA BioMed – either through increased

programming or partnerships with UCLA.

The County should identify and help facilitate opportunities for improved commercial and housing options

around Harbor-UCLA.


V. Summary of Recommendations

First District

Create an ongoing engagement vehicle to focus the goals and outcomes of the LA County-USC Health

District Hub. Three distinct, yet interrelated engagement vehicles are crucial to the long term success of

the District:

1. Public Sector Engagement: LA County Agencies

2. Health District Partnership: LA County Agencies | USC | CBOs and Stakeholders

3. Public Sector/University Partnership: LA County | USC

Public Sector Engagement: LA County Agencies: Interviews with County Agency representatives reveal

that aside from usual coordination related to joint- programming or service delivery, there is little ongoing

communication among County Agencies regarding their roles, needs or facilities in the District. In the course

of interviews, agency representatives saw the value of convening an engagement vehicle where the

appropriate County Agency representatives meet to communicate on ongoing issues and opportunities.

Some of the District issues include:

Parking and transportation within and to the District is an ongoing problem for County and USC

employees, patients, and the community.

The County Agencies in the District are connected to the same steam plant located at LAC+USC

Medical Center. Agency representatives pointed to ongoing issues with the steam plant system,

including high cost and recurring leaks in the system.

Many County Agency facilities in the District are either underutilized (Probation) or too small

(Coroner) and are in need of substantial capital improvements.

The L.A. County CEO’s office plays a convening role for this engagement. The CEO is convening the

appropriate Agency representatives (particularly those overseeing Facilities and Capital Improvements) to

keep each other apprised of activities, particularly if implementation of the LAC+USC Medical Center

Campus Master Plan or a new District development scheme commences.

Health District Partnership: LA County Agencies | USC | CBOs and Stakeholders: Community

stakeholders are open to dialogue with USC regarding long-term community benefits for residents in the

way of youth development, educational pipelines, health care access for senior citizens, and long-term

training and employment opportunities. They are open to working with USC and others in developing

tangible projects or programs that directly address their needs and concerns and collectively manage

change.

We recommend an ongoing engagement structure, similar to the one used by in District collaboration best

practices across the country, which drives the delivery of meaningful outcomes and sets the conditions for

sustainable collective impact. ELP Advisors researched pre-existing models, in order to make

recommendations for an ongoing governance structure. The suggested framework includes the following:

Mission, Objectives, Metrics

Roles and Responsibilities of governance structure;

Proposed membership and roles;

Governance structure procedures, tracking protocol, and reporting mechanisms; as well as role in

process management in implementing Hub programs and projects.

A roadmap or workplan for the organization (through Year 1).


Public Sector/University Partnership: LA County | USC: The development of a potential Biomedical

Research Park at the LAC + USC Hub should be placed in the larger context of developing a partnership

with USC to deliver high quality, patient-centered care at the hospital while promoting health, wellness and

the economic well-being of the communities surrounding the LAC +USC campus. Negotiation on the

Alcazar Lots should not proceed until other components of this engagement strategy are in place. Once

appropriate, LA County and USC should begin negotiations in earnest on the appropriate transaction and

terms for the site.

Second District

MLK-Drew

1. Convene an ongoing engagement vehicle, comprised of stakeholders present at the Roundtable

(and others) to remain apprised on each other’s activities. By periodically sharing information

stakeholders can find creative ways to leverage resources, collaborate, and implement new

projects.

2. Continue to support the efforts of the MLK Health and Wellness Development Corporation in

consolidating uses into the MAAC, tearing down part or all of the Augustus Hawkins Building, and

converting the Interns & Residents Building into housing for Charles Drew University Students.

3. Support MLK Health and Wellness Development Corporation’s idea of creating a non-profit

wellness hub in the area to address obesity and fresh food access. The County should support

MLK Health and Wellness CDC in approaching non-profits such as Community Health Councils,

and others that are interested in these issues.

4. The County should solicit the interest of a non-profit entities such as Lab Launch, who enables

scientists and entrepreneurs to develop their ideas in affordable, high quality lab space, to

potentially locate at MLK-Drew. A Lab Launch-type entity could potentially form a partnership or

Memorandum of Understanding with Charles Drew University to access their specialty lab space.

Harbor - UCLA

1. Continue to work with LA BioMed to identify funding for ongoing incubator operations. The County

of Los Angeles can play a role by supporting and/or facilitating grants and other opportunities for

the incubator to fill its funding gap.

2. Recommend that LABioMed develop a webpage (prominently featured on the LA Biomed site) that

describes their laboratory and equipment offerings. There is a need to develop such a tool for all

available bioscience facilities throughout the County as this type of information is poorly

disseminated and may contribute to companies eventually leaving LA County.

3. Principal Investigators/Researchers should be surveyed throughout the design and construction of

the Tech Park in order to ensure that the design reflects the needs of the LA BioMed community.

4. Ensure that research that occurs on LA County land aligns with LA County’s health needs. There

is an ongoing need for hardware, software, devices, and/or services that would allow doctors and

medical professionals to improve the delivery of care.


5. Seek opportunities to connect local educational institutions (LA BioMed, Cal State Dominguez Hills,

Harbor College) to scale up or expand opportunities for internships, externships, and mentorship.

LA BioMed already runs a successful internship program, and Harbor College recently received a

grant from the Department of Education for careers in STEM.

6. Facilitate a Town Hall meeting between workforce partners in the immediate area to ensure that

workforce education and training offerings are aligning with the future demand at Harbor-UCLA

area (and other healthcare institutions).

7. The County should work with business community around Harbor-UCLA to create more contracting

opportunities for local businesses as the hub grows. The Chamber and other business partners are

willing to help disseminate these opportunities once available.

8. The County should identify and help facilitate opportunities for improved commercial and housing

options around Harbor-UCLA.

Third District

1. County should ensure that their investments in the bioscience sector result in a net benefit to the

County and its residents.

2. LAEDC document should contain metrics by which the County can measure the success of its

investments.

3. Staff was interested in attracting and/or developing relationships with bioscience companies that

produce products or innovation that could directly benefit the County patients, particularly around

mental health needs.

Fourth District

1. County staff should convene a meeting with the LAX’s Commercial Development Group in order to

further discuss located bioscience related development the LAX Northside area. They should jointly

discuss the following items:

a. Releasing an RFP for a Master Developer (focused on R&D and Life Science uses)

b. Timeline for Release of RFP and Coordination of Activities

2. County leadership should send a strong unified message to LAX indicating their interest in the

project. County may wish to consider drafting a Motion indicating their interest in working with LAX

to create a bioscience hub at LAX Northside.

Fifth District

1. Continue to support the due diligence process at Honor Ranch: geotechnical, design,

environmental, site surveys, etc., and continue to look into various financing options to provide a

share of profit to the County.

2. Work with the County, SCVEDC, and the appropriate stakeholders in order to determine the

appropriate types of bioscience companies that would locate to the area.

Bioscience Hub Community Engagement Report

Documents

Transcript of Bioscience Hub Community Engagement Report