Santa Monica

The Planning Commission has voted to rezone six parcels on the north side of Wilshire Boulevard, from Centinela Avenue to Franklin Street, to change the allowable use from surface parking lots to residential housing. The change, which came at the urging of several residents, requires City Council approval.

The action came in response to an application by Jean and Tugrul Uke to demolish a duplex on one of the lots to make way for a parking lot to serve Uncle John’s Pancake House restaurant, on land the Ukes also own.

About 31 property owners, mostly residents, applied for the zone change because they feared that the remaining parcels, which are next to commercial lots fronting Wilshire Boulevard, would be developed for a commercial use and encroach on the residential neighborhood.

At the meeting, property owners and representatives of the Ukes criticized the zone change, claiming that the land-use element had already considered the use of the Wilshire property.

Residents said they were concerned that their neighborhood would be destroyed by traffic and congestion caused by development in the area.

The Ukes have already received permission from the Architectural Review Board and the Rent Control Board for the parking lot project and representatives claimed that the Ukes were the target of the zone change.

Commissioner Derek Shearer has requested an opinion from the city attorney on whether city law permits the Ukes to remove a residential building to construct a parking lot. The Ukes’ proposal for the land is scheduled to come up at the July 1 Planning Commission meeting.