Local News in Brief : Plan to Cut Number of Apartments Defeated

A zoning proposal to cut in half the number of apartments that could be built in the city was defeated Tuesday by the Glendale City Council.

The zoning proposal, introduced by Councilman Carl Raggio, was offered as a temporary solution while council members find a formula to limit the city’s population to 200,000, as recommended by its General Plan.

The proposal received three votes, one short of the four required. Councilmen Dick Jutras and Larry Zarian opposed the proposal, which they said was too drastic and likely to make Glendale property unaffordable for young people.

After failing to approve the zoning revisions, the council once again postponed action on an apartment building moratorium. The council for the 10th time postponed acting on an ordinance that would end the building freeze and improve design standards in apartments, condominiums and townhouses.

Council members have said they will not lift the moratorium until temporary zoning restrictions are agreed upon.

“We trusted developers once and they raped the city,” said Mayor Jerold Milner, referring to the city’s 1986 zoning changes.

That year, he said, the number of building permit applications more than tripled while the council studied zoning restrictions. “We will not make the same mistake again,” he said.