West L.A. Development
Out Of Control?

April 1, 2006

The past year has brought news of many new, large development projects in Century City that will drastically increase traffic and decrease the quality of life.

Currently over 1500 high-end condominiums, 360,000 feet of retail space, and 250,000 feet of office space are being proposed for the Century City area.  In addition, existing vacant space plus new space being built yields another 3,000,000 feet of office space.  The combined impact of these development projects, if fully occupied, is approximately 50,000 new car trips per day.  While no single project will be the one that kills the Westside, residents have started wondering if anyone is minding the store and if a plan even exists to handle such development.

Development Map

The question is whether West L.A. can handle the increased load.  Residents will tell you that West L.A. cannot handle existing loads.  No one seems to be answering the questions that must be answered.  Specifically:  How will the Westside handle the increased traffic?  How will the local infrastructure of schools, police and fire handle the growth?  How will increased density from the several large projects and countless small projects impact quality of life?

Commercial Property Analysis
 

Traffic
Westside traffic is already at the level that profoundly impacts quality of life.  How did it reach this level when all large projects are supposed to be “mitigated to insignificance” via LADOT-approved traffic mitigation plans?  At a meeting last year a DOT representative admitted that traffic has not been mitigated to insignificance.  Residents have also been told that DOT has no master traffic plan to accommodate or predict traffic loads from development. 

Nevertheless, DOT continues to approve traffic studies from developers that provide traffic impacts from their projects that simply do not pass the smell test.  One example:  DOT’s acceptance of a traffic study that states that the proposed new JMB twin 47-story, 480 unit residential towers would create less traffic than the existing walk-up bank and little-used Century Club.

Simply put, the area suffers from both internal traffic congestion and clogged freeways.  Aside from there being no good route to the 10 freeway that does not impact homeowners, the 10 and the 405 are virtually non-functional during rush hours.

Often, homeowner associations work for years to secure traffic mitigations for their areas.  All too frequently the mitigations are too little and too late by the time they are installed.  In some instances, aspects of new development approved by the city reverses the traffic calming impacts of already-secured mitigations. 

A classic example is the new traffic signal that will be installed at the Fox Studios west gate on Pico Boulevard.  LADOT has been working with the Cheviot Hills Homeowner’s Association to reduce traffic on Motor Avenue by increasing the desirability of Pico/Overland as a route to the 10 freeway.  The placement of a new signal at the west gate will certainly reduce the throughput of Pico Boulevard, decrease the desirability of that major arterial as a path to the 10, and force more cars into Cheviot.  Of course, the new light may also impact the southern portion of 7260 as drivers seek to exit a jammed Pico Boulevard.

Public Services Not Keeping Up
Unfortunately, fire and police response times continue to suffer - response times and per-capita first-responder ratios are going in the wrong direction.  At the same time that development is at an all-time high, park space is meager at best and budgets are more than tight.  As an example, Westwood Recreation Center does not have a functional air conditioner and the pool was recently out of service for weeks due to heater issues. Schools are also facing increasing student loads and budgets that do not keep pace with demand.  Streets deteriorate and are not repaired.

One key issue is that developer fees, including school fees, are not spent in the areas in which they are generated.  Thus, the area impacted by the development sees only a small fraction of the “mitigation money” paid by the developer.

Increased Density
The currently proposed large condominium projects in Century City represent a roughly 4% increase in West L.A. residential population – all focused in the Century City area.  By way of comparison, the number of homes in all of Tract 7260, from Pico to Santa Monica, is around 1000 with 650 being single-family structures. 

While many Century City residents will likely make good use of the Century City Mall and new restaurants at 2000 Avenue of the Stars, those residents will also be on the streets.  With over 1500 condominiums being planned, traffic from residents alone represents an additional 12,000 trips per day.  Add in housekeepers, gardeners, trainers, assistants and other support staff, and that total will certainly go up.

It is important to note that while the large projects receive all of the attention, the “small” projects impact our neighborhoods just as much -  perhaps more.  The city department of building and safety reports that there were over 3000 multi-family dwellings built in the West L.A. area over the last two years – twice as many as the number of proposed condominiums in Century City. 

These numerous small projects impact traffic and increase density just as much as larger projects.  The various projects on Beverly Glen offer a prime example.  Lanes are blocked, turn visibility is impacted and construction vehicles block access to 7260.  Once the new buildings are occupied, more traffic will result. 

Construction Fatigue
The traffic, uncertainty, noise and pollution created by a series of projects, including the Santa Monica Boulevard Transit Parkway, has created a permanent set of “temporary construction impacts.”  In fact, with all projects taken into consideration, the Westside will have had over 14 years of major “temporary impacts.”

The end result of the string of major construction projects is a decreased quality of life for current residents.  The 2000 Avenue of the Stars project sent banging sounds through the area for months, and the St. Regis project will do the same, and it is much closer to Tract 7260.

The Santa Monica Boulevard Project has created massive traffic issues in West L.A., is a year over schedule and has created confusion and frustration.    This is also true of the 405 HOV lane project.

Who Is Minding The Store?
Normally, the person who is supposed to be minding the store is our councilperson.  Past council members, such as Mike Feuer, lobbied against large Century City development projects when the impact was thought to be too great.  Our current councilperson, Jack Weiss, has not materially addressed over-development in West L.A. nor has any plan to deal with the issue been presented.  His office did not submit any comments or questions with regard to the JMB project (480 condos) or the Related/St. Regis project (200 condos).  Further, Councilman Weiss has indicated that he stands in support of the Westfield project before speaking with any leaders of local homeowner groups[1].  While the staff at the council office meets frequently with homeowners, presidents of many prominent homeowner associations have been unable to get a meeting with Councilman Weiss to discuss issues of key importance to our area, including a comprehensive plan for development.

Thus, it appears that the effort to fight development is left to the homeowner associations.  The problem is that the homeowner associations do not have the staff, funding or political connections that the developers have.  For the developers, lobbying for large development projects is their job – their only job.  They hire scores of lawyers, experts and lobbyists – sometimes two lobbyists for every councilperson. 

 In contrast, homeowners have to squeeze in meetings on weekends, deplete treasuries for traffic engineers and legal fees, try to persuade city officials and handle day jobs all at the same time.

 Small projects present a similar problem.  Many projects pass by unnoticed due to their relatively small size.  Many projects are contested by homeowner associations when they require variances.  In a recent case, the Tract 7260 board challenged a project on Fox Hills that was seeking a height variance.  Despite the law clearly being on the board’s side, the variance was granted and our appeal was denied. 

Despite the handicaps, homeowner associations can point to several accomplishments.  They have reduced the size of projects, secured funding for major mitigations, and established penalties on developers when traffic generation exceeds estimates. 

Unfortunately, the pace of development has increased dramatically and homeowner association resources, both financial and human, are at a premium. 

This is why it is critical for all residents to support their local homeowner associations.  The dues are low and the benefits are high.  Also critical is that residents take the time to send a letter to elected officials on matters of importance.  The Tract7260.org site provides for automated opinion letters to be sent using an online form.

We encourage you to stay up to date on local development on the Tract 7260 web site at www.tract7260.org.

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Reprinted with permission from www.Tract7260.Org