Zoning Appeals Board’s Vote Blocks Encino Movie Complex

Homeowners attempting to block construction of three movie complexes in Encino won their first battle Tuesday as Los Angeles officials voted against allowing a five-screen theater at the northeast corner of Ventura Boulevard and Gaviota Avenue.

The city’s Board of Zoning Appeals had voted 2 to 1 against the project March 28 but needed a third vote to defeat the proposed Mann Theaters development.

The necessary vote came Tuesday when board member Joe Mandel sided with BZA President Nikolas Patsaouras and member James D. Leewong in opposing the theaters.

Developer Jason Heltzer will have 15 days to appeal the vote to the City Council after the board ruling is formally issued, said board secretary Terry Speth.

Heltzer could not be reached for comment. But he has looked to the 1,500-seat theater complex as the centerpiece for his proposed $22-million “Encino Marketplace” project.

Other developers are planning a 1,600-seat complex on the north side of Ventura east of Encino Avenue and an 1,800-seat complex north of Ventura east of Hayvenhurst Avenue.

“We’re delighted,” said Gerald A. Silver, president of Homeowners of Encino. “This will set a model in terms of community opposition to the other two theater proposals.”