Council bans new fast-food outlets in South L.A. (LA times)

A law that would bar fast-food restaurants from opening in South Los Angeles for at least a year sailed through the Los Angeles City Council on Tuesday.

The council approved the fast-food moratorium unanimously, despite complaints from representatives of McDonald’s, Carl’s Jr. and other companies, who said they were being unfairly targeted.

Councilwoman Jan Perry, who has pushed for a moratorium for six years, said the initiative would give the city time to craft measures to lure sit-down restaurants serving healthier food to a part of the city that desperately wants more of them.

“I believe this is a victory for the people of South and southeast Los Angeles, for them to have greater food options,” she said.

The ban covers a 32-square-mile area for one year, with two possible six-month extensions.

With the City Council coming down hard on taco trucks, is there anything you can eat in L.A. anymore?

And what exactly is classified as “fast food”? What sort of alternative dining options are they trying to promote, and what plans do they have in this regard?