Los Angeles prepares billions in climate and transit investments ahead of 2028 Olympics, with questions about lasting legacy

City and county leaders across the Los Angeles region gathered Tuesday and Wednesday at the Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator's Road to 2028 summit to assess how the region can leverage the Olympic Games to accelerate clean energy and transportation development. The overall tone was optimistic, according to Politico's reporting, as dozens of municipalities worked to secure hundreds of buses, plant trees and clean waterways before millions of visitors arrive in two years.

Community advocates at the summit raised concerns about whether the investments would outlast the Games. Cynthia Mitchell-Heard, CEO of the Los Angeles Urban League — which received $100,000 from the Olympic organizing committee for a workforce development program tied to the Altadena fire — said at the conference that failure to leave communities better off than before would represent a collective loss. Catherine Baltazar of Climate Resolve argued that infrastructure spending alone would not guarantee long-term progress in communities that have historically borne disproportionate climate burdens, and called for investment to continue after the Games conclude.

The region carries structural advantages over many past Olympic host cities, including sufficient existing venues to house every sporting event. But transit advocates said those advantages do not resolve deep budget deficits. Los Angeles' legislative delegation has failed in each of the past two years to secure a state budget boost for LA Metro, which faces a $2.3 billion deficit through 2030. Metrolink, the commuter rail serving six Southern California counties, has extended a 20 percent reduction in weekday service amid a $30 million deficit.