Los Angeles City Council District 9 Candidates Answer Questions Vital to Voters Age 50-plus

AARP

Published October 02, 2026

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AARP is committed to ensuring voters have the information they need to cast their ballot. That is why we are sharing how Los Angeles City Council District 9 Candidates plan to act on critical issues important to 50-plus voters if elected. These issues include age-friendly efforts, affordable and accessible housing, access to city resources, safe sidewalks, transportation and parks.

AARP has a proud history of nonpartisan voter engagement and does not endorse or oppose candidates or make contributions to political campaigns or candidates. All certified Los Angeles City Council District 9 Candidates were invited to participate in this questionnaire.

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Candidate responses are listed below in alphabetical order by last name and published exactly as submitted, without any edits or alterations.

AGE-FRIENDLY CITY

1. How will you support ongoing efforts to make our city more age-friendly and demonstrate your commitment to Purposeful Aging Los Angeles (PALA), the City and County of Los Angeles’ Age-Friendly Action Plan?

Estuardo Mazariegos – City of Los Angeles, City Council District 9 Candidate

Making Los Angeles truly age-friendly requires transforming our physical and social infrastructure to support aging in place with dignity. I am fully committed to the Purposeful Aging Los Angeles (PALA) Action Plan, and on the City Council, I will treat age-friendliness as a critical public health and environmental equity priority.

First, we must keep older adults stably housed. I will fight to cap rent increases under the Rent Stabilization Ordinance (RSO) at 3% annually, fully fund a Tenant Right to Counsel, and enforce the Tenant Anti-Harassment Ordinance to protect seniors from predatory displacement. Second, climate resilience is a critical safety issue for older adults. I will implement an Extreme Heat Action Plan to plant 10,000 shade trees, establish indoor heat protections to keep homes below 82 degrees, and build local climate resilience centers to provide safe, cooled spaces with clean air and charging stations during power outages and heatwaves.

Third, we must ensure safe, accessible public spaces. I will fight to overhaul the city's outdated sidewalk repair system, install shaded shelters and seating at every bus stop, and expand public restroom access near transit hubs. By directly addressing transit, climate heat, and housing security, we will build a city where older adults do not just survive, but actively thrive.

Jose Ugarte – City of Los Angeles, City Council District 9 Candidate

Actions speak louder than words, and it’s why so many of our older adults in District 9 are supporting my campaign. I began my career with the City as a Field Deputy, and when constituents called, day or night, I always picked up. Whether it was trash dumped onto their driveway, questions about street cleanings, or anything else, I made myself available because I understood that it’s not easy to ask for help, and residents’ quality of life is damaged when local government isn’t responsive to their needs.

I intend on implementing the City and County’s Age-Friendly Action Plan by working with the AARP, local partners, and most importantly, senior citizens, to guarantee that our efforts are effective. Older adults have perspectives that are gained from experiences that those working directly on the issue simply haven’t had. Any actions to make our city more age-friendly should be vetted by those it is meant to serve.

Our elderly residents have unique needs, and that's what the Age-Friendly Action Plan is all about. From infrastructure needs like accessible green spaces and transportation to hot meal programs and affordable housing, I also commit to continuing the CD 9 Senior Appreciation Luncheon, and so much more. At the end of the day, it’s about giving those who built our City the opportunity to age gracefully and to be cared for. This is a commitment that I don’t take lightly, but will honor, if given the trust of our seniors to serve them as Councilmember.

AFFORDABLE AND ACCESSIBLE HOUSING

2. Older adults are the fastest growing population experiencing homelessness. Given Los Angeles’ ongoing efforts to increase housing production and affordability, what further steps would you take to ensure older adults have access to affordable, accessible and safe housing?

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Estuardo Mazariegos – City of Los Angeles, City Council District 9 Candidate

Homelessness among older adults is a preventable tragedy and a profound housing policy failure. We must combine strong prevention tools with dedicated, community-controlled housing development.

To protect seniors before they lose their homes, I will expand the United to House LA (Measure ULA) Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP) to provide targeted prevention funds for older adults on fixed incomes. To increase production, I will leverage Measure ULA to finance permanently affordable social housing, coops, and community land trusts that take homes off the speculative market, while extending affordable covenants to 99 years. Furthermore, we must build diverse, affirming housing models tailored to older adults. This includes partnering with non-profits to build LGBTQ+ senior housing—modeled after the LA LGBT Center’s Triangle Square—to combat the high rates of discrimination and isolation senior same-sex couples face. We can also preserve and adapt historic landmarks, as the city successfully did with the Dunbar Hotel, to provide senior housing with integrated community spaces.

Finally, my council office will establish a dedicated, in-house Homeless Services Team. Rather than moving senior encampments from block to block, this team will coordinate with outreach workers and local health providers to navigate older adults into permanent supportive housing with on-site clinical care and case management.

Jose Ugarte – City of Los Angeles, City Council District 9 Candidate

This issue is one that I’ve been the most proud to work on. While housing costs have skyrocketed across the city, even doubling in some neighborhoods, costs in District 9 have remained relatively stable. This was by design. A hard line that we’ve drawn when developers submit projects for consideration is asking for affordable and low-income housing, including those set aside for seniors, veterans, formerly unhoused folks, foster youth transitioning out, and more. We want responsible development that fits the needs of the community, not high-rises that no one can afford.

In the past decade, we have approved and built thousands of units just like this, including hundreds of units specifically constructed as senior living communities. Angelenos deserve to age without fearing about whether or not they’ll have a roof over their heads or someone to care for them. This will also involve seamlessly transitioning the Coordinate Entry System to a future entity as the future of LAHSA remains uncertain, and we can’t risk stopping this necessary program that helps seniors who don’t have financial savings still receive Permanent Supportive Housing - preventing/reducing elderly homelessness.

Another important point to note is that collaboration with our local, state, and federal partners is so important. I will coordinate alongside our representatives at these levels to ensure our offices are responsive to older adults’ needs, whether it’s City resources and programming, EDD cases at the state level, accessing Social Security Benefits at the federal level, or the various financial resources from the County.

ACCESS TO CITY RESOURCES, SERVICES AND PROGRAMS

3. With the Department of Aging now consolidated into the Community Investment Department (CID), how will you ensure that older adults continue to have equitable access to services, resources, and programs that support their independence, health, and well-being?

Estuardo Mazariegos – City of Los Angeles, City Council District 9 Candidate

When City Hall consolidates departments, vulnerable residents are often the first to fall through bureaucratic cracks. To prevent this under the consolidated Community Investment Department (CID), we must eliminate administrative hurdles and meet our seniors where they are.

First, language and technology must not be barriers to access. With over 78% of District 9 residents being multilingual, I will establish a citywide Community Navigator Program. We will deploy multilingual navigators directly into our senior centers, housing complexes, and parks to act as trusted, in-person guides, helping older adults secure legal aid, healthcare, utility discounts, and municipal services.

Second, we must bring health resources directly into the community. I will partner with Los Angeles County to deploy mobile health units, pop-up wellness clinics, and free dental programs directly to neighborhoods where seniors face mobility challenges.

Finally, we will guarantee co-governance. I will create a standing People’s Council and localized senior advisory groups so older adults have a direct hand in advising CID programs and deciding how discretionary funds are spent in our district. Our seniors are the backbone of our neighborhoods; we will build an unbought, transparent council office that treats constituent services as a sacred trust, ensuring they receive the resources, respect, and care they deserve.

Jose Ugarte – City of Los Angeles, City Council District 9 Candidate

The consolidation of the Department of Aging, alongside three other departments, should allow for more resources to be dedicated to the enterprises of each of these former departments’ ambitions, especially empowering our elderly. Aligning these Departments into a singular hub allows resources to be shared more easily, whereas the four Departments previously shared little communication amongst each other, and those who needed help from multiple departments had to visit each one-by-one.

SAFE SIDEWALKS, TRANSPORATION AND PARKS

4. The ability for individuals to safely walk in their neighborhoods—to access essential services, public transit, and parks—is critical to both physical and mental health. What would you do to ensure that older adults can safely access sidewalks, public transportation, parks, and public spaces?

Estuardo Mazariegos – City of Los Angeles, City Council District 9 Candidate

District 9 sits on the city’s High Injury Network, leaving older adults and pedestrians at extreme risk. Ensuring they can safely walk, ride, and gather is both a safety and a health equity priority.

First, I will overhaul the city’s broken sidewalk system. We will replace passive complaint systems with proactive, neighborhood-by-neighborhood repairs, using tamper-resistant public utility boxes to prevent copper-wire theft that plunges senior walking paths into darkness. Second, I will fully implement Measure HLA. We will install self-enforcing roadway infrastructure like ADA-compliant curb ramps, high-visibility crosswalks, roundabouts, and bulb-outs to slow down traffic on deadly corridors like Vermont and Avalon.

Third, I will make public transit a comfortable option by installing shaded shelters, seating, and lighting at every bus stop, while expanding Metro Micro and eliminating bus fares. Fourth, our seniors deserve beautiful, well-maintained green spaces. I support doubling the city's park charter allocation to address the city’s $2.67 billion in deferred maintenance. To directly fund local park upkeep, clean public restrooms, and trash removal in CD9, I will levy a commercial concession/ticket surcharge on the mega-events hosted at district venues like BMO Stadium and the Coliseum. Mobility justice means designing a district for people, not cars.

Jose Ugarte – City of Los Angeles, City Council District 9 Candidate

This is an issue that I’m focused intently on, as my campaign is based on the promise of a Cleaner, Safer, and More Affordable South Central. One concern I’ve heard repeatedly from our senior citizens is the lack of sidewalk accessibility as a result of illegal dumping and encampments that prevent passage and even block bus stops. It’s why, on my first day in office, I will introduce a motion to expand 41.18 across my district to ban encampments nearby schools, daycares, senior housing, public parks, and other public spaces. Furthermore, I will also ban RV’s and campers across the District because they endanger our public health, safety, and are an eyesore for residents.

I also believe that we need to hire 1,500 more sworn officers for our city’s police force so that emergency calls are responded to in time. In the past decade, response times have increased up to half an hour for emergency calls due to understaffing, which can be the difference between life and death in a critical situation. My approach to public safety is that our officers need to focus on community policing, which starts with hiring officers who grew up in the same neighbors they oversee, those with college degrees, come from black-and-brown backgrounds, and more women on the force. By addressing understaffing, we also allow for enough officers to investigate cases of senior fraud and abuse so that we can hold accountable those taking advantage of our seniors.

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