P.V. Estates OKs Plan for Its Biggest House Yet

It’s getting harder and harder to keep up with the Joneses in Palos Verdes Estates.

Council members Tuesday gave the go-ahead to businessman Tei-Fu Chen to build a controversial 28,000-square-foot mansion high in the city’s hills on Via Visalia. The house, by far the largest ever built in the community, has been criticized by some residents who contend that it is simply too big for a city that prides itself on maintaining open space and a rural ambience.

The council, by a 4-1 vote, said it could not turn down the proposal because it meets the conditions of the city’s 2-year-old neighborhood compatibility ordinance.

The ordinance, which some city officials have admitted is vaguely worded and therefore open to wide interpretation, requires new or remodeled structures to be compatible with existing homes in terms of square footage and design.

“I don’t think it’s incompatible,” Councilman James Nyman said of the proposed mansion. “It’s a huge house on a huge lot.”

Said Councilman Edward Ritscher: “With what we have now, we don’t have much of a choice.”

Mayor Ruth Gralow disagreed, urging her colleagues to vote against the mansion. Houses in the neighborhood now range in size from 3,400 to about 19,000 square feet, she said.

The 19,000-square-foot house, presently the largest in the city, has been dubbed the “Visalia Sheraton” by neighbors.

“I don’t see how 28,000 is comparable,” said Gralow, who cast the lone vote against the mansion. “If this project goes, the message is ‘Go for the gross.’ It’s a very sad day for this community if this project is approved. I don’t know how we’re going to sleep at night. I really beg you to reconsider.”

Chen had originally proposed a 30,000-square-foot home. However, he downsized the mansion by 2,000 square feet after the outcry by some residents that the home was too big.

Chen did not attend the council meeting. In an earlier interview, however, he defended his plans, saying the mansion represented his family’s “dream home.”

Chen’s architect, George Shaw, said at the council meeting he did not know when construction could start.

To make way for the new mansion, Chen will demolish a 6,000-square-foot Mediterranean-style mansion once owned by fitness queen Gloria Marshall. Chen paid $4.6 million for the house about seven months ago. It had recently been remodeled.