Santa Monica : City Extends Moratorium

The City Council voted to extend a nearly yearlong moratorium on development of large commercial structures for an additional 10 1/2 months to give the city staff more time to come up with more stringent permanent standards for such development.

Last May, the council directed its staff to draft zoning ordinances that would better control what some people complained was rapid commercial development.

Exempt from the moratorium are several sections of the city, including the Third Street Promenade area and the areas suitable for development of medical offices and related facilities in the neighborhoods surrounding Santa Monica and St. John’s hospitals.

The Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce sent a letter to the council protesting the extension of the moratorium. Chamber of Commerce representative Ken Kutcher said: “I can see no visible evidence of any progress.”