Both Sides Agree--They Dislike Growth Plan

Homeowners and studio executives alike said Wednesday they are dissatisfied with the Burbank City Council’s recommendations for growth controls in the city’s Media District, the most controversial of which is a 15-story height limit on construction.

The council’s recommendations will be used to revise a proposed Media District Specific Plan that, when completed, will guide development of the 1.2-square-mile area in the southwest corner of Burbank.

Some homeowners complained Wednesday that the proposed restrictions do not go far enough in protecting their neighborhoods, which they say are already overrun with traffic, noise and pollution caused by overdevelopment. But film studio executives maintain that their operations are important to the city’s economic future and that they should be given more flexibility to expand.

“A 15-story building is still a high-rise,” said Michael Scandiffio, a member of the Burbank Rancho Homeowners. “The City Council is trying to force something down our throats that we don’t want.”

Carolyn Berlin, a member of the Verdugo-Magnolia Homeowners Assn., also was disappointed with the council’s proposed height restriction.

“I feel they have no regard for people who live here,” Berlin said. “It’s like we should all move out so they can develop the entire city.”

Jack O’Neill, vice president of real estate for NBC, said the height restriction is the studio’s main concern. NBC, in partnership with Cushman Investment and Development Corp., has proposed constructing a 21-story tower and a 17-story tower on a triangular parcel bounded by Olive Avenue, California Street and the Ventura Freeway.

“We’re willing to come down to 20 stories,” O’Neill said. “I know that there are going to have to be compromises made, but I would hope that they will not be so severe as to not allow the project to go forward.”

He said the five-story limit sought by the homeowners was unreasonable. “There has to be a midpoint somewhere,” he said.

Council members said they would favor allowing media-related businesses flexibility on the 15-story height limit.

A majority of the council also agreed that the major studios in the district should not have to apply for a conditional-use permit--a lengthy process that requires a public hearing--for buildings up to 125 feet tall. Such buildings would be between 10 and 12 stories.

The council recommended other restrictions, including requiring buildings of between 25 and 50 feet to be at least 25 feet away from residential neighborhoods. Buildings of between 50 and 150 feet high would be required to be at least 35 feet away from such a neighborhood, under the recommendations.

Developers, however, could apply for conditional-use permits for projects that exceeded the recommended limits if they thought the projects warranted further consideration.

Despite the opposition, Councilman Thomas E. Flavin defended the council’s recommendations. “I thought the council made an honest effort to balance the differing viewpoints on both sides,” Flavin said. “Of course, not everyone is going to be 100% satisfied.”

Flavin said further modifications might be necessary before a final growth-control plan for the Media District is drafted. After the plan is revised, an environmental impact report will be prepared and more public hearings scheduled.