Guidelines Proposed in Inglewood to Limit Apartments, Condos

Inglewood officials unveiled proposals Tuesday aimed at restricting the proliferation of apartments and condominiums and discouraging the construction of small motels.

The measures stem from concerns among residents and council members that multi-unit structures are causing congestion in residential neighborhoods and that motels have become a haven for prostitutes and drug dealers.

The proposed zoning and building standards would increase the required front, back and side yard space for apartment buildings, and it would encourage developers to build on two or more lots instead of crowding apartments on one lot. The proposals also recommend that the city identify certain neighborhoods that currently allow multi-unit dwellings and downzone them to allow only single-family homes.

“This will help to slow down the building,” said Councilman Anthony Scardenzan, whose district has the highest concentration of apartments and condominiums. “It’s better than what we had before.”

To discourage small motels--such as those that line Century Boulevard, Imperial Highway and La Brea Avenue--city officials proposed setting a 50-room minimum on all future motels and increasing the required size of rooms and lobbies.

The City Council referred both sets of recommendations to the Planning Commission, which will hold public hearings and develop specific guidelines for the proposals before returning them to the council for final approval.

Last year, the council approved two moratoriums that froze construction of apartments, condominiums and small motels in most of the city, giving the staff time to develop the recommendations. The moratoriums are still in effect.

The recommendations for apartments and condominiums would also establish minimum sizes for patios and balconies, require all bedrooms to be a minimum of 100 square feet and require subterranean parking spaces to be at least half a story below grade.

City officials said the measures would increase the quality of future multi-unit structures and help prevent developers from replacing single-family units with apartments and condominiums.

The city also recommended that all new motels should have landscaped areas such as patios, playgrounds or swimming pools, and that they include a unit for the manager.

The recommendations also say that no room should be rented more than once a day and that no person should occupy a room for more than 120 days. Those measures are aimed at preventing prostitutes from renting for short periods of time and residents from turning motel rooms into long-term apartments.