USC development plan moves forward

From L.A. Now: The University of Southern California's massive redevelopment plan to replace a current shopping center and some residence halls with new housing, a hotel, shops and a public plaza, has gotten past an important hurdle. A Los Angeles city planning department’s draft environmental impact statement has declared that any significant effects on traffic, noise, population and other issues are expected to be successfully mitigated. The plan, called USC Village, calls for about 5,400 residence hall beds and 250 faculty housing units, along with 350,000 square feet in commercial and retail space and a hotel with up to 150 rooms in the area north of the main campus.