The Carwash Ebbs and Flows : Wachs Calls for Environmental Impact Report in Effort to Put Brakes on Development

It’s back.

It looked for a while as if The Great Studio City Carwash Controversy had washed away.

But Los Angeles City Councilman Joel Wachs on Friday introduced a motion in the City Council that would buy more time for residents who have been unsuccessful in their battle to preserve the carwash at Ventura and Laurel Canyon boulevards by having it declared a cultural monument.

Wachs said developer Ira Smedra--who wants to tear down the 28-year-old carwash, along with the adjoining Unocal gas station and Tiny Naylor’s restaurant, to make room for a mini-mall--should be ordered to make an environmental impact report. Wachs said the project would have a substantial impact on traffic in the area and would harm the community.

The environmental impact report could delay Smedra’s plan from six months to a year, Wachs said, as well as force him to consider alternative uses for the property.

In addition, residents who want to save the carwash proposed that the city take over the corner and build a 250-space parking structure to serve neighboring Ventura Boulevard businesses. Their representatives said the city could build the structure with money collected from parking meters in Studio City.

The save-the-carwash faction has scheduled a news conference Monday to describe the proposal.

Smedra could not be reached for comment.

The new measures to block the deplans came less than two weeks after the city’s Cultural Heritage Commission refused to designate the carwash a cultural monument, clearing the way for Smedra to remove the three structures within 90 days and build the $15-million, 53,000-square-foot mall.

The operators of the carwash, gas station and restaurant have already been advising their employees to look for other jobs.

Wachs conceded that his motion to require an environmental impact report was a delaying tactic. “There’s no question this will buy time and force the developer to look at alternatives for use of that property,” he said. “That development would cause a lot of problems. . . . Given how strongly the community feels about this, it pays to look at options. . . .”

Wachs said he hoped for council action by Tuesday.

Jack McGrath, organizer of the cultural landmark campaign, commended Wachs. “I’m glad he’s taking steps to keep the character of this area intact,” he said.

He added that the proposed parking lot was also a viable option. He said the lot, which could cost about $8.3 million, would be financed by increasing the rates on parking meters and lengthening the hours when meter payments are required.