Plans for Growth in San Pedro Stir Heated Debate : Revisions Sought in Provision Banning Demolition of Several Hundred Properties

At a fiery hearing before the Los Angeles Planning Commission Thursday, an aide to Councilwoman Joan Milke Flores suggested that a controversial provision banning the demolition of several hundred properties be stricken from a proposed ordinance that would control growth in San Pedro.

Flores aide Mario Juravich suggested that a list of the properties, drawn up by the San Pedro Bay Historical Society, be sent back to a 25-member citizens advisory committee for further review and possible inclusion in the ordinance at a later date.

There was no objection from commissioners--who wound up delaying action on the ordinance until next week because of a lack of a quorum--or from the historical society, whose president acknowledged the list was drafted in haste because of time constraints.

“I knew from the reaction--there were so many objections--that we would have to revise it and this gives us a chance,” society President Flora Baker said. “I’m glad to get this done in a proper way.”

More than a few residents spoke out against the list Thursday. Resident Tony Marino called it “historical garbage,” and resident George Ash called it the product of the “hysterical society.”

The list was one of a variety of issues that came up at a lengthy, and often heated, public hearing on the interim control ordinance, which is intended to control apartment and condominium development in San Pedro for at least a year while the advisory committee considers permanent regulations.

About 150 residents jammed the hearing room in the Los Angeles Harbor Department’s headquarters to air their views on two versions of the proposed ordinance, one drafted by the advisory committee and Flores and the other submitted by hearing examiner Michael Davies of the Planning Department staff.

Opinion appeared to be evenly divided between those who favor having an ordinance and those who are against it. Among those who favor an ordinance, opinion seemed weighted toward the Flores plan, which the councilwoman asserts would do a better job of protecting San Pedro’s single-family neighborhoods from apartment development.

The two plans differ in their approach to controlling density. The Davies plan ties density to the zoning. In areas zoned RD2, which permits one apartment for every 2,000 square feet of lot space, it would allow duplexes only. In areas zoned RD1.5, which permits one apartment for each 1,500 square feet of lots space, it would allow development under the more restrictive RD2 zone.

The Flores plan is more complex. It ties density to lot size and to the existing development in the neighborhood.

Under the Flores plan, on lots 6,000 square feet or larger, developers could build one apartment for every 2,000 square feet of lot space. For smaller lots, developers could build apartments only on blocks where less than half the housing stock is composed of single-family homes and duplexes. No apartments would be allowed on blocks where more than half the residences were single-family or duplexes.

That provision--commonly called the “50/50 provision”--is the cornerstone of the Flores ordinance, and the councilwoman and her committee believe it is essential to preserving single-family neighborhoods in San Pedro.

Even Marino, a vocal member of the Flores committee who is known for his pro-development views, said he favored the Flores plan. “We put in a lotta, lotta work and it wasn’t easy,” he said. “We have diverse opinions on this.”

Effective Dates Differ

There was also considerable controversy over the date the proposed ordinance would become effective. The Davies plan carries an effective date of June 6, and the Flores plan carries a July 1 effective date.

But at Thursday’s hearing, Commission President William Luddy hinted that both these dates may be moot, because the commission generally requires that an ordinance become effective on the day it is adopted. However, Luddy noted that it is the City Council, which also must approve the ordinance, that will have the final word.

Tempers frequently ran high at Thursday’s hearing, with residents shouting across the room at one another on occasion. One man went so far as to say the interim control ordinance “borders on communism.”

Declared another: “I’ve invested a lot of money here, and I didn’t even get kissed.”

Quorum Lost

Emotions also flared when Luddy announced that another commissioner, William Christopher, would have to leave the hearing--thus leaving the commission without a quorum.

Luddy asked the crowd if it wanted to continue the public hearing, or delay it until next week, when the commission meets in Van Nuys. The commission does not meet again in San Pedro until Nov. 30.

“Most of us took the day off for this!” one member of the audience shouted.

“Why don’t you go ahead and vote?” yelled another, to which Luddy tartly replied, “We don’t have all the information.”

But the commission president was relaxed and jovial after the three-hour hearing. “One of the reasons I like coming down to San Pedro is that there is always an interesting crowd on these things,” he remarked to the audience. “In other communities, people come in and say ‘This would be nice, that would be nice.’ I’ve never seen anything like that here. It’s pretty hard-nosed.”

FLORES VS. DAVIES PLANS Here are comparisons between the proposed interim control ordinance --which would temporarily limit apartment and condominium construction in San Pedro--submitted by a citizens committee and Los Angeles Councilwoman Joan Milke Flores, and one drafted by Michael Davies, Los Angeles Planning Department hearing examiner.

Flores Plan Davies Plan Duration In effect for a year Same Number of New apartment buildings Same units may contain no more than four units. Alleys Alleys may not be Same included when a developer is calculating the size of his lot. Density Tied to lot size: Tied to the zoning code: Lots of 6,000 square Areas now zoned RD2 feet or more: one unit (1 apartment unit per allowed for every 2,000 2,000 square feet): square feet of lot space. duplexes allowed. Lots under 6,000 Areas now zoned square feet (and only on RD1.5 (1 apartment per blocks where 1,500 square feet): single-family homes and develop under the more duplexes make up less restrictive RD2 zone--or than half the housing a duplex on the standard stock): one apartment for 5,000-square-foot lot. every 1,500 square feet of lot space--or three units on a typical San Pedro lot.