Mark Ryavec Argues That the Neighborhood Council Took a Step That Will “Imperil Remaining One- And Two-Story Historic Structures”
By Mark Ryavec
On Tuesday, July 16, the Venice Neighborhood Council took a step that will imperil our remaining one- and two-story historic structures.
The Council’s Board approved an interim report of its Community Plan Committee that will relax development standards throughout Venice for lot consolidations for apartment and condo construction, allowing a return from 30 years ago of three-story stucco boxes that span over two lots (see photo below), and in some areas of Venice, over three lots.
If eventually adopted by the city of Los Angeles and the California Coastal Commission, this could lead to a rush by developers to demolish historic Craftsman (and the occasional Mediterranean style) houses and replace them with large, bleak, cube-like structures like the one pictured.
This monolith was built before former Councilwoman Ruth Galanter won approval of an Interim Control Ordinance (ICO), temporarily halting development, and later the Venice Local Coastal Specific Plan, its land-use and zoning plan, which was approved in January of 2004. In fact, this building was one of the triggers of resident anger over several instances of over-development under the previous zoning, which led to Galanter introducing the ICO. On the short two blocks of Rialto Avenue, in the Lost Canals District, this is the only lot consolidation, and the only building with parking in its front yard, due to the passage of the Specific Plan and its limits.
While the Galanter-era Specific Plan technically allowed such lot consolidations, it also set “development standards” that require that the first floor be habitable space, that is, not parking, which forced parking to be provided in a subterranean garage accessible only from the alley. The intent was to maintain the historical streetscape of the North Venice area, encompassing Venice’s picturesque walk streets, and the neighborhoods that previously hosted Abbot Kinney’s original canals, from the Windward Traffic Circle (initially a boat basis), east along Grand Boulevard, to Cabrillo, and back to Main Street by way Windward, Market and Horizon.
Since there is a high water table in this part of Venice, the costs of subterranean parking, which must be built like reverse swimming pools to keep ground water out, were prohibitively expensive. So, few if any projects utilizing lot consolidations were built in the North Venice subarea after adoption of the Specific Plan.
The VNC’s Community Plan Committee did not carry the development standards forward in their recent recommendations, which will give a green light to developers. The committee has also been deaf to pleas to limit lot consolidations to just underground parking garages, while maintaining two structures with required setbacks between them above ground, one on each lot.
This would preserve Venice’s charming streetscapes well into the future. (This is still a financial gain for developers because they can “gang up” the parking in just one garage and have only one up and one down ramp.)
In an interesting turn, the committee recommended no consolidation in the Canals and Venice Peninsula. It is unclear why those subareas warrant this consideration, while in the committee’s estimation the historic Lost Canals District and our charming walk streets don’t.
So, if you live in the walk streets or adjacent to the Windward Traffic Circle and don’t want a building like the one pictured built next door, email Board@veniceNC.org and tell them to drop the lot consolidations or limit them to below ground for parking purposes.
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Mark Ryavec is a 35-year resident of Venice, president of Venice Stakeholders Association, and a former community officer on the Venice Neighborhood Council
