Mayor Bass responds to Pres. Trump’s claim about low-income housing project in Pacific Palisades fire zone

LOS ANGELES () — Mayor Karen Bass is setting the record straight after President Trump ordered his administration to reject what he said were plans to build low-income housing in the middle of Pacific Palisades.

The president, however, did not specify what project he was referring to.

Just days after President Trump signed an executive order with the aim to cut through bureaucratic red tape and speed up reconstruction in Altadena and the Palisades, Trump made an accusation at his cabinet meeting Thursday morning without evidence.

“They want to build a low-income housing project right in the middle of everything in Palisades, and I’m not going to allow it to happen. I’d like you to have that stopped and stopped immediately. No financing,” said President Trump.

Trump ordered U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to stop this project.

We reached out to our elected officials, including Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, to see if they knew what the president was talking about.

“We’re used to this. He says crazy stuff about lots of things. The city of Los Angeles is not pushing affordable or low-income housing. What we are pushing is the rebuilding of the Palisades,” Mayor Bass said.

Back in July, Governor Newsom committed $101 million to “accelerate the development of affordable multifamily rental housing” in the areas around the Palisades, Eaton and Hughes fires. This funding is meant for residents displaced by those fires.

The state of California does not issue housing permits, so in the Palisades, for example, those permits would come from Los Angeles County and the City of Los Angeles.

Mayor Bass also signed an executive order that bans duplex project applications in Pacific Palisades.

7 also checked with Los Angeles City Councilwoman Traci Park’s office, which said the city is unaware of any proposed projects.

Trump also continued to share the disproven point that the fires were created by L.A.’s leaders not allowing water to come from the Pacific Northwest. On that point, Bass told us someone needs to show the president a map.