LAND USE BATTLEFIELDS - On March 22, the South Valley Area Planning Commission supported our appeal to stop the demolition of five homes and the building of a nearly 75,000 sf. eldercare facility in the heart of our RA-1k area.
David Garfinkle, President of Tarzana Property Owners Association and myself, the Chair of Tarzana Residents Against Poorly Planned Development made our case, with the help of Supreme Court case law and one well timed fire truck siren disrupting the proceedings as I was giving my presentation.
It's moments like these, just like in the movies, opportunities present themselves, and speak to the matter better than words.
Drowning out all of our intentions to carry on, the siren won the battle and forced us to relent. So I invited the commissioners to my future back yard, and thanked God for his intervention. I had to laugh despite the gravity of the situation. They laughed too, but knowing the truth of that moment.
Another wonderful intervention came in the form of Doug Mensman, the Chief Planning Deputy for Councilman Dennis Zine, who emphasized how committed Councilman Dennis Zine was to protecting low density and how he has repeatedly stated that the five legal findings could not be made to approve the elder care facility.
It was standing room only, with an abundance of graphs, photos, speeches, petitions, suits and even a PR firm. For 5 hours, the community, the activists, and the applicants each made their case. But the siren told the undeniable truth about the impact. The unanimous support of our appeal was proof that the no matter how flawed the decision making process can be from the bottom and up, zoning law
and its protection is highly prized.
Zoning law has historically kept the playing field fair, keeping use and physical limitations in harmony and assuring equal reciprocal protections. Currently a trend to exploit land to its highest intensity and economic gain has set our beloved city back.
Even now as the Community Care Facility Ordinance attempts to address several problems, it falls short of achieving any goal, because it erodes zoning law protection and can not address the multifaceted forms of family, uses, and needs.
We cannot expect City Hall to make informed and rational decisions if they are abandoning prior rational decision making for expediency and temporary relief. Cases in point: updated General Plan Elements, and infrastructure assessment with reasonable maintenance. You must meet this mandated requirement regardless of the economy. Why pay city planners to create projections, but not pay them to assess the accuracy of these projections and alter their course accordingly?
You cannot erode middle class neighborhoods, and believe you are making a viable and desirable city. Turning our neighborhoods into land use battle fields, is proof of the failure of our planning process which is tied to the whims of political agendas, connections, ZA interpretations
and short sighted solutions.
I am currently working with a group of activists to establish a new coalition of HOA's, activists, and agricultural residents to counter the attacks on our communities. Our collective will to protect and preserve our communities will establish a strong voter block, and a financial resource to
further our cause.
(Lisa Cerda is a community activist, Chair of Tarzana Residents Against Poorly Planned Development, and former Tarzana Neighborhood Council board member.) –cw
Tags: Tarzana, Land Use, South Valley, Planning Commission, Area Planning Commission, Los Angeles, Planning Process
CityWatch
Vol 10 Issue 27
Pub: Apr 3, 2012