A former L.A. parking lot is becoming an experiment in rehabilitation

A block and a half away from a bleak-looking concrete jail in downtown Los Angeles, a former parking lot is being transformed into a new vision of what rehabilitation can look like. The project, called the Robert K. Ross Center for Hope and Healing just broke ground. It will include affordable apartments for low-income residents, including people reentering society after incarceration. It will have a center for learning and job training, a hub focused on mental and physical health, and another hub for community meetings. The whole project carefully considers trauma-informed design—how spaces can support people’s well-being, reduce stress, and foster a sense of safety. [Rendering: Courtesy Studio One Eleven] “For the people who are served and touched by this, we think it creates a different road to reduce recidivism and a much healthier pathway for these folks,” says Brenda Solorzano, CEO of The California Endowment, which is leading the project. The foundation, which focuses on health and racial equity in the state, gives out around $250 million in grants each year. But the organization realized that it could also make use of another asset: an empty lot next to its own offices in …

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