Council OKs home addition

Lolita Harper and Deirdre Newman

Welcome to the Eastside story: an epic tale of harmony and

compatibility and the possible integration of two-story home remodels

with more modest, single-story ranch houses.

The story had a happy ending Monday for one resident as he

overcame opposition and convinced the majority of the City Council

that remodels can be compatible with their single-story neighbors.

Council members voted 4 to 0, with Mayor Karen Robinson absent, to

allow Steven Dewan, who owns the Broadway home in question, to

refashion the existing 1,200-square-foot, single-story house into a

2,143-square-foot, two-story home, to accommodate his growing family.

The decision represents a victory for property owners’ rights, and

for other young families who will be considering expanding their

homes in the future.

“I have twins and will want a bigger house too,” said neighbor

Jeff Zahedi. “What Dewan has done is follow every rule you’ve [the

city] given him, and you’ve made him jump through hoops

unnecessarily.”

Dewan brought his gang of Eastside property owners who

overwhelmingly supported his plans and implored the council to

approve the project. The second-story posse said the remodel

maintained the character of the neighborhood and served as an

improvement to the area.

“This modest addition would be in character with the street, and

would be a gift to the community,” said Ernie Doyle.

Opponents fought vigorously to convince city leaders that the

Dewans’ home was much too large for the humble neighborhood.

“We have to put a stop to these [expansions],” said Lance English.

“These are bastardizations not mansionizations, it looks like a

two-story mobile home.”

Dewan’s initial remodel request had been denied by city Zoning

Administrator Perry Valantine. That denial was appealed by Councilman

Gary Monahan and given to the Planning Commission to rule on Dec. 30.

Planning commissioners gave a glowing recommendation to the designs

during the special meeting held during the holiday break.

But Steel appealed that decision, bringing the frequent clash

between two-story and one-story homes before the council again.

Councilwoman Libby Cowan, said the approval was not an easy

decision, but her struggle was facilitated by the knowledge that a

suggested zoning change, that would make uniform all the second-story

additions in that housing tract, is being considered in the near

future.

“That’s an opportunity to continue the conversation,” Cowan said.

“This whole neighborhood has struggled with compatibility since the

beginning of time.”

* LOLITA HARPER may be reached at (949) 574-4275 or by e-mail at

lolita.harper@latimes.com. DEIRDRE NEWMAN may be reached at (949)

574-4221 or by e-mail at deirdre.newman@latimes.com.