Around the Corner

June gloom has begun ☁️

Are ED 1 project applications slowing down? Maybe a little. Applications have decreased by 25% from April, with the largest decrease in Pre-Application Reviews (PARs). In March, there were 50 PARs; in April, there were 70, compared to 28 this month.

May in Review 

LA City Council ADU Motions

• On May 29, Council passed a motion to study the effects of decreased parking from the conversion of garages into ADUs. Council directed Planning to explore design possibilities for parking integration and asked the City Attorney to assess the legal ramifications on tenant rights.

• On May 31, Council proposed a change to the Municipal Code to treat ADUs and FAR consistently and allow lots with existing ADUs to exclude their square footage from the maximum FAR when making changes to the property, maximizing the allowable housing footprint

City of LA Case Breakdown by Project Type:

• Categorical Exemption (CE): 48

• Executive Directive 1 (ED1): 28 (+28 Pre-Application Reviews, or PAR)

• Conditional Use Beverage-Alcohol (CUB) or Restaurant Beverage Program-Alcohol (RBPA): 22

• Transit-Oriented Communities (TOC): 2 (5 appeals)

• Appeals: 7

Highlighted Cases

City of LA

• 4942 Fulton Ave, AA-2024-3419-PM-HCA: Demolition of existing SFD and accessory structures and subdivision of lot into two lots (construction of two new SFDs and two new ADUs)

• 11950 Riverside Dr, DIR-2024-3313-SPPC-HCA: Construction of a 4-unit, 36-foot, multi-family building in the Valley Village Specific Plan and the R3-1 Zone

• 6832 S Esplanade, DIR-2024-2964-CDP-MEL-HCA: Construction of 3-story, 3-unit multifamily building over ground level garage with elevator and roof deck with two side yard retaining walls in Playa Del Rey

• 1114 N Heliotrope Dr, DIR-2021-1238-TOC-SPP-HCA-1A: Appeal of approval of two TOC projects, with the appellant arguing that the two projects are one development split in half to evade environmental analysis and site plan review

• 1403 Innes Pl, DIR-2024-2956-CDP-MEL-HCA: Conversion of an attached garage into an ADU (581 sf) for an existing 8-unit building

• 1459 Hi Point St, DIR-2023-4996-TOC-HCA-1A: Appeal of new 5-story 20-unit multi-family TOC building (2 ELI units), arguing that project does not qualify for Tier 3 TOC incentives as the proposed bus lines have been discontinued and does not qualify for Q Conditions given lack of proposed open space

City of Santa Monica

• 2122 Navy St, 24ENT-0097: Sb 9 application for a lot split subdivision for an existing front parcel with a residential unit (resided by the homeowner), while the new lot created at the rear of the property has no current plans for development at this time

• 1550 Lincoln Blvd, 24ENT-0087: Zoning Compliance Letter request for a mixed-use building

City of Pasadena

• 360 San Palo Pl, PPC2024-00001: PPC for SB 9 Urban Lot Split with new two-story SFR and attached ADU above a new attached two-car garage

• 228 S Mentor Ave, DHP2024-00115: Application to demolish existing SFD to build 9-unit condominium development with subterranean parking

Culver City

• 4396 Vinton Ave, P2024-0113: Address assignment for converted ADU (b23-0812)

• 9300 Culver Blvd, P2024-0112: Zoning Conformance Letter for Pop's Bagels

The Week Ahead

June 4 | LA Planning and Land Use Mgmt Committee

• 2662-2668 South Barrington Ave, CPC-2023-4250-DB-HCA-1A: Recommendation to deny appeal and approve Density Bonus for a housing development project consisting of 21 dwelling units (3 VLI units) with the following On-Menu Incentives: a) increase in FAR to 3.54:1 in lieu of 3:1 FAR in the R3-1 Zone; and, b) 20% side yard setback reduction to allow a side yard setback of six feet and five inches in lieu of the otherwise required eight-feet in the R3-1 Zone

• 7315-7321 West Pyramid Pl, ZA-2021-10466-ZAD-DRB-SPP-MSP-1A: CEQA Appeal filed by Angelenos for Trees regarding determination in approving a CE as the environmental clearance for the construction, use, and maintenance of a new 3,765 sf, three-story SFD with an attached 380 sf street level, two-car garage, pool, and spa on a lot fronting on a Substandard Hillside Limited Street, alongside associated grading

June 5 | West LA Area Planning Commission

• 148 North Chautauqua Blvd, APCW-2022-3115-DRB-SPP-SPE-CDP-ZAA-MEL: Coastal development permit and major project permit comp. w/ DRB approval for demolition of existing unpermitted structures and the construction of a new two-story mixed-use structure consisting of a covered parking lot on the ground level, 1,415 sf of office use on the level below, and two dwelling units on the lowermost level. The site is a vacant downward sloping, hillside lot in the Pacific Palisades Commercial Village and Neighborhoods Specific Plan, Neighborhood Area A.