Ventura Blvd. Merchants Divided on Road-Tax Plan

Several property owners and merchants along Ventura Boulevard gave mixed reviews Tuesday to a proposal that could require all commercial property owners to pay a special street-improvements tax to alleviate traffic congestion along the busy street.

Originally, Los Angeles city planners had recommended that developers of projects along the boulevard pay for improvements designed to reduce traffic. But on Monday, planners released a revised version of the specific plan that called on all property owners to share the cost of the improvements.

Peter Austin, a financial consultant who heads a group of small business owners, said many property owners would resist such an assessment fee because much of the traffic is caused by motorists who are not doing business on Ventura Boulevard.

“It’s not fair to assess property owners to widen the street so that long-distance commuters can use it to get over the hill into Los Angeles,” Austin said.

Ranee Spina, the manager of a Studio City clothing store called Urban Art, said the fee would result in higher rents, which would force her to raise her prices.

But other business owners felt the fee was needed. “We need to have a program like this, because without it, the streets will be gridlocked,” said Bill Hirsty, the owner of Studio City Volvo and Studio City Saab. “I was upset about it at first, but we’ve got to do it for everyone in the Valley.”

Benjamin Reznik, the owner of an office building in Encino and an attorney for several developers, said he supported the assessment district.

“I approve of it, but whether it’s politically feasible is another matter,” Reznik said. “However, as a property owner, I think it’s only fair that those of us who are here and helped create this traffic should pay to make the street run smoother.”

The concept of imposing developer fees on new projects--which the Planning Department originally proposed as part of an overall plan to control growth along Ventura Boulevard--had to be sharply revised because the department would have faced legal challenges, officials said. The city attorney’s office had warned that developers could only be assessed fees to mitigate traffic problems directly related to their projects.

The revised plan is scheduled to be reviewed by the city’s Planning Commission on Thursday. The plan faces final approval by the City Council as well. Setting up an assessment district would require a two-thirds vote of the 15-member City Council. That action, however, could be blocked by a majority of the affected property owners.

Projects to prevent gridlock on Ventura Boulevard would include widening 30 intersections to permit right- and left-turn lanes and installing a computerized traffic signal system.