Defining Neighborhoods in Los Angeles
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In a move that’s sure to create a lot of discussion and disagreement, the Los Angeles Times has embarked on a project to map out all of the communities in Los Angeles.
The Los Angeles Times is unveiling the new map of neighborhoods today on its website at www.latimes.com/mappingla. Years in the making, it is designed to be a tool that will allow reporters and editors to be consistent when describing neighborhoods in news stories in a city that sometimes seems to change the names like most people change socks.
The map has started with proposing neighborhood boundaries for 87 communities in Los Angeles. The editors at the Los Angeles Times are soliciting reader imnput on the boundaries. The mapping application has a tool where readers can mark up what they believe the correct boundaries are as well as leave written comments. This is probably the most comprehensive attempt to delineate neighborhood boundaries, something not even the City of Los Angeles has attempted to do. It will be interesting to see if some greater concensus can be achieved given the vocal disagreements many Los Angelenos have about what community they live in. A previous attempt to map out Los Angeles communities onto Google Maps started by blogger LA City Nerd is only partially complete.
Visit:
- Mapping L.A. Neighborhoods – Online Mapping of the Communities.
- L.A. Neighborhoods, You’re on the Map – Article by Bob Pool explaining the effort.
I’m not sure this is even possible without the city getting involved to make an official designation of contested areas. Even people I work with argue over what area is called what. The LA Times does have a better chance of getting a majority of them mapped out compared to the LA City Nerd blogger. The LA Times has a vested interest to help them report news correctly. I wish them luck and hope they have it 85% complete in the next 10 years.
James
Helinet Aviation
Los Angeles, CA