“Investing in Place gets into the weeds and explains things like no one else does.”

We hear this a lot, and it’s the best feedback we could get.

OUR VISION

Founded in 2015, Investing in Place is an award-winning, human-centered nonprofit organization that envisions Los Angeles as a city where inclusive, accessible public spaces foster well-being and improve quality of life.

We aim to reimagine how the City of LA invests in its sidewalks and streets, cultivating a shared understanding of the importance and many functions of the public realm.


WHAT WE DO

We follow the money and the policy so more people feel empowered to advocate for their own communities with a spirit of confidence and inclusion.


HOW WE DO IT

We work to take the mystery out of how public works and transportation money is spent and how decisions are made and then share that information to support inclusive and equitable decision-making.

Our Mission for 2022-2023

LA Needs a Plan

It’s nearly impossible to advocate for equitable investment in the most-neglected neighborhoods when there’s no guiding document and no budget process. What Los Angeles has instead is multiple departments planning one year at a time, in a process that’s a mystery.

As a result, the public is often in the dark about projects that would benefit their neighborhoods, and about what is being budgeted by policymakers. Improvements to the public right of way are ad hoc and subject to political whims—ignoring historical and present-day inequity.

In 2018, a FUSE Fellow identified the lack of a Capital Infrastructure Plan as a leading problem in Los Angeles’ management of public space. It’s 2022, and there’s still no plan.

Investing in Place is seeking funding to create the first City of Los Angeles Model Capital Infrastructure Plan. We will address this question:

What infrastructure investments should Los Angeles prioritize over the next decade, to make the biggest improvements for those who need it most?

Team Members

Jessica Meaney

Executive Director

Kim Perez

Communications Strategist

Advisory Board

Richard France

Estolano Advisors

Luis Gutierrez

Office of Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass

Madeline Brozen

UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies

Matt Horton

Accelerator for America, Milken Institute