Downtown LA used to be nothing more than a business center. After 5 p.m., it turned into a ghost town.
But in 1999, the City Council passed the Adaptive Reuse Ordinance to incentivize developers to build residential units in historic and abandoned buildings in the area.
In the two decades since, DTLA has become a vibrant urban center with clubs, bars, and restaurants. But the region has been struggling amid a chronic homelessness crisis, recent protests, and the loss of tourism and workers due to the COVID-19 pandemic.