The General Manager of the Los Angeles Housing and Community Investment Department (HCIDLA), Rushmore Cervantes, has announced plans to step down from his position at the end of the month. 

Cervantes has led the department for over a decade and has presided over a turbulent era in the city that has seen the number of people experiencing homelessness grow uncontrollably despite historic successes in increasing the city's affordable housing supply. HCIDLA, according to a City of Los Angeles website, is tasked with the "creation of viable urban communities by promoting livable and prosperous communities through the development and preservation of decent, safe, affordable housing, neighborhood investment, and social services" In addition, the department works to inspect the city's 760,000 multifamily housing units to maintain building code compliance, administers the city's Rent Stabilization Ordinance, and oversees its first-time homeowner ship and home repair programs, among other efforts.

Under Cervantes's tenure, the city passed landmark proposals to increase the number of affordable housing units built across the city, including a $1.2 billion bond called Proposition HHH. It also suffered serious setbacks that include settling a $200 million lawsuit filed by tenants who complained about accessibility problems in the city's housing supply The Los Angeles Times reports. That controversy includes a 2019 agreement with the Trump administration aimed at building or retrofitting an additional 4,000 housing units for disabled residents. 

The Los Angeles Times reports that Assistant City Administrative Officer Yolanda Chavez will serve as the acting general manager for the department while Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti finds a suitable replacement via a national search.