Bluffs: Environmental Protection Measure

Your article (“Key Hearing Nears on Bluff Protection Plan,” Aug. 25), which included a photograph showing mansion-size housing above the Ballona Wetlands, misses the main opposition points to this pending ordinance. First of all, the vast majority of lots in the Specific Plan area have been developed. The area bounded by Pershing on the east, Culver on the north, Vista del Mar on the west and the Airport property to the south is already chockablock with housing. This area does not drain into the wetlands, is separated by strip commercial developments from the wetlands, does not have any parks or public vista points, and the fact that some one may want to add to their existing home will have no impact on the wetlands or on “animal movement and hawk flight” . . . or . . . “the burrowing owl and the last strip of coastal sage in the region.”

Secondly, the ordinance is labeled as a “Protection Plan” and has a whole series of motherhood-type purposes that no one would argue with. The problem is when you peel off the facade and look at what type of development would be approved by the city, the opposite is true. The plan has no limitations on the amount of grading, but has strict requirements on building height, setbacks and lot coverage.

What does this cause given high land cost? Any property owner will want to grade to the maximum extent whatever lot area is left after the imposition of all of these restrictions. The result: more not less grading of the bluffs will occur. For anyone wishing to remodel, a homeowner is confronted with a more daunting array of requirements.

While most of these homes met the city’s building codes when they were built 40 years ago, they would need to be upgraded to meet current geo-technical and seismic requirements. In order to build within the perimeters of an existing structure (either by building up or by building under) as has been advocated, shoring up of the existing home and reconstruction of the foundation of the house would be required.

In many instances, the result of all of this work and expense would yield a very small additional square footage with limited usability. An ill-conceived concept that wouldn’t “pencil out” for most homeowners and would again cause more, not less grading of the hillside. With the lack of restrictions on the amount of grading and need for even more retaining wall and foundation work, we will unfortunately also probably see more not less construction-related accidents resulting from the adoption of this ordinance.

What is the end result of the “Bluffs Protection Plan”? More not less of the bluffs will be graded, the bluffs will be destabilized, construction costs will escalate and the addition of a simple bath or family room will become prohibitive and construction-related accidents will increase. That is why this ordinance should be rejected by the City Council or substantially rewritten.

JIM HINZDEL Environmental Planner and Member of the Westchester/Playa del Rey Community Planning Advisory Committee