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May 26, 2005
Family Gets Okay To Develop Temple Lot
By Steve Irsay
Grunion
Gazette
The city Planning Commission gave a family the go-ahead to
build their oceanfront "dream home" over the objections of
some Bluff Park residents who see the large project as a
nightmare for historic preservation.
The commission last Thursday approved by a 4-3 vote an
application to build a 6,200-square-foot main home and two
2,500-square-foot town houses on a long-vacant double lot on
the northwest corner of Temple Avenue and Ocean Boulevard.
The decision followed more than a year of public meetings,
plan revisions and tense debate.
The next step is to apply for building permits. The Makineni
family, the owners of the property, hope to break ground as
soon as possible, said Mike Murchison, a consultant who has
represented the family. He added that they were elated by
the approval.
"They spent the last year-and-a-half going through this
process with the city and community, and they will finally
have the opportunity to build their ! dream home," he said.
Many Bluff Park residents have opposed the project, arguing
it is inappropriate in size and style for the surrounding
historic district. Elizabeth Kuehne, who filed a challenge
to the application, called the approval disappointing.
"I think the hope was that the Planning Commission would
have followed the applicable law," she said. "It's a
requirement that they make their decision based on accurate
findings, and it's our belief that that was not done."
The family has argued that the city ordinance that regulates
historic districts is subjective and that the project has
been modified more than 70 times to address community
concerns.
Roger Kurath, the architect who designed the homes, said
changes to the plans included scaling the main building down
from a peak height of 33 feet to 27 feet, and giving all the
buildings a mix of heights and volumes so the homes won't
destroy sight lines or be too massive.
"We had to be v! ery careful that the buildings do blend
in," he said. "I think we were successful with creating an
ensemble of different volumes and different heights."
Kurath added that the overall design is based on the work of
famed architect Irving Gill, known for his work in the early
20th Century that modernized the California mission style.
The home at 2749 E. Ocean Blvd., adjacent to the Makineni
site, is a 3,660-square-foot Gill home.
Opponents of the project have exhausted their appeal options
within the city and may turn to litigation to halt
construction. Kuehne would not comment on whether or not
there are any specific legal plans at this time.
The project site, located at 2767 E. Ocean Blvd., is in the
heart of the Bluff Park Historic District, one of 16 such
neighborhoods in the city. Each one is protected by an
ordinance calling for any exterior changes - from a new coat
of paint to a total remodel - to conform to certain size and
style guidelines.
The city's Cultural Heritage Commission, a 15-member group
of histor! ians, architects and others, must approve any
changes to historic buildings by granting a Certificate of
Appropriateness.
The family's first application for the certificate was
denied in November 2004. The family appealed the decision to
the Planning Commission, but a tie vote upheld the
rejection.
In March 2005, the applicants submitted a revised plan to
the Cultural Heritage Commission, which approved it, sending
the matter back to the Planning Commission for the decisive
vote.
Murchison said that the Makinenis have been in touch with
attorneys in the event of a lawsuit filed to block the
project. He added that he believes the opposition to the
project has been premature.
"The community is better served to wait and see what the
house looks like," he said. "I think they are going to find
that, at the end of the day, the Makinenis are tremendous
neighbors."
Which may be the exact fear of residents like Kuehne, who
argued that approval of t! his project represents an overall
disregard for size and style limitat ions protecting all
historic neighborhoods.
"It seems from the actions that were approved by the
Planning Commission and city staff that historic
preservation is not a concern they have," she said.
Copyright, 2005, Gazette Newspapers (Long Beach, CA) |
