[The following article was originally printed in the Sherman Oaks Sun's 12/30/05-1/12/06 issue.]
Progress Made in Chase Knolls Preservation and Development Issue
by Amy Lyons
A preliminary decision was
reached last week about the
future of the historic Chase
Knolls Garden Apartments in Sherman
Oaks. At a lengthy City Planning
Commission hearing on December
15, held at the Marvin Braude San
Fernando Valley Constituent Service
Center in Van Nuys, it was deemed
that four buildings will be permitted
as two-story buildings, not three-story as planned.
Addressed was an appeal to permit
a two-parcel subdivision for the
construction of 141 apartments in six
three-story buildings with 546 parking
spaces on a nearly 14-acre site, located
at 13401 Riverside Drive, east of Fulton
Avenue. The project also includes
additional amenities, such as a pool
and a gym. Buildings numbered one
through three will adhere to height
limit, as will building number six on
the eastern edge of the property.
The existing historic 260 apartment
units are to be retained; eleven are
proposed to be expanded with additional bathrooms and bedrooms. Units
will continue to be subject to applicable
rent control regulations under the current
provisions of the project.
Height, density, traffic problems and
tree demolition were noted as problems
with the project in this follow-up to
a September hearing, when a decision
was made in favor of TransAction Development,
the company that previously
pursued the development of the similar
Lincoln Place complex in Venice, which
is now proposing the 141 unit addition to
Chase Knolls.
City Planner Maya E. Zaitsevsky drew
up the appeal staff report, which recommended
that the decision of the Advisory
Agency be sustained and the appeal
be denied. Outlining the proposed project,
she pointed out it was “subject to an
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) due
to the historic nature of the site.”
Land Use Attorney Allan Abshez focused
on what he perceived as the benefits
of development. "This project keeps
the apartments in place, keeps the rent
control in place and keeps the existing
tenants in place. This is a project that
preserves an historic property that was
once proposed for demolition," he said,
referring to the proposed demolition
of Chase Knolls by Legacy Partners in
2000, in another instance of preservation
controversy for the Sherman Oaks
garden-style apartment complex.
Susan Jagiello, an 18-year resident
of Chase Knolls, spoke on behalf of the
Chase Knolls Residents and Neighbors
Association, and said that most residents
of Chase Knolls agree that the
open space of the property could be
used to ease the housing crisis in the
city, but that the proposal at hand was
not a good one. "We very firmly believe
that this plan from TransAction is not
the best way to both provide for housing
and respect the integrity of an historic
monument."
Citing the "big box" style of the six
proposed buildings, Jagiello stated that
the new buildings will detract from the
garden city experience (the existing
buildings are two stories in height). "The
decision of the National Park Service
was made in Washington D.C….we are
really concerned that there is no actual
opportunity for local input if that decision
is given so much credence."
Ken Bernstein, Director of Preservation
Issues for the Los Angeles Conservancy,
followed Jagiello. "We are trying
to facilitate a solution here that allows
the provision of additional housing, but
to do so in a way that preserves one of
the most significant residential environments
in the San Fernando Valley."
Dale Thrush, Staff Deputy to Councilmember
Wendy Greuel, presented
on her behalf. "Like virtually everyone
who has spoken here this morning, I
think that the Council office is in agreement
that something is going to be built
at Chase Knolls. We have met with the community on numerous occasions
and have had several meetings with the
developer and property owner. We had
one meeting with the appellant group
and the property owner…the appellant
group’s proposal was 20 to 30 new
units, the property owner said that was
not feasible and encouraged a second
meeting. It is highly likely that the environmental
clearance will be appealed
to City Council, however the rules do
not allow for the parcel map to be appealed.
The problem that the Council
office sees is that the environmental
clearance includes a finding on the
consistency issue that is troubled," said
Thrush, noting the Cultural Heritage
Commission and its ability to weigh
in on the consistency issue should be
preserved. Thrush also noted that the
density on the new lot needs to be addressed
directly in the staff report.
###
Article citation:
Lyons, Amy. "Progress Made in Chase Knolls Preservation and Development Issue." Sherman Oaks Sun (Dec. 2005-Jan. 2006): 1-7.
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