Encino Complex Approved; Theater Deleted From Plan

The Los Angeles City Council approved a controversial development on Ventura Boulevard in Encino on Wednesday, but unanimously stripped from the plan a five-screen movie theater opposed by neighbors.

Heltzer Enterprises plans to build 70,000 square feet of commercial space--primarily retail stores and restaurants--in the 15900 block of Ventura Boulevard.

The decision to delete the theater cooled the protests of neighbors who feared the theaters would cause excessive late-night traffic.

“Based on the information we have this morning, we are totally in accord. . . . We thought it was an obvious attempt to make Ventura Boulevard a movie capital of the world,” said Jack S. Hurwitz, who lives closest to the project, on Gaviota Avenue.

However, another Gaviota Avenue resident, Kenneth Millman, said he still objected to the construction of a parking garage on a lot zoned for residences. The council approved the garage after a spokeswoman for Heltzer Enterprises said the land already is being used as a parking lot and the developer wants only to add a second level underground.

By denying the theater, the council followed the lead of its Planning and Environment Committee, which in June barred the theater and attached a long list of strict conditions to the project’s approval.

The council also approved those conditions, which are intended to reduce the impact of the development on surrounding residences. They include a ban on fast-food restaurants and nightclubs; restrictions concerning lighting, landscaping and fence height, and guidelines to prevent the construction’s making traffic worse on Ventura Boulevard.

At the June committee meeting, Heltzer spokeswoman Gail Gordon had asked for more time to develop plans for a smaller theater, but she did not repeat that unsuccessful plea to the council Wednesday.