City Plans to Extend Ban on New Housing

Glendale City Council members said Tuesday that they plan to extend the city’s moratorium on new apartment and condominium construction because they have not yet agreed on a series of new growth-control measures.

The current building freeze expires Nov. 9, and council members said they must act on an extension ordinance in the next few weeks because it would not become effective until 30 days after its adoption.

Councilman Jerold Milner asked the city staff to bring the council an extension measure for introduction at Tuesday’s meeting. “We can’t afford to just let the moratorium expire,” he said Wednesday.

The council halted apartment and condominium construction in September, 1988, contending that a building boom had led to parking problems, traffic congestion and overcrowded parks and schools. Developers successfully challenged the moratorium in court, but the council in October, 1989, adopted a new development freeze that remains in effect.

To avoid the need for several short-term extensions, Milner suggested June 1 as the moratorium’s new expiration date. But he said he is optimistic that the council will adopt growth-control measures and lift the moratorium before the end of the year.

In recent weeks, council members have been conducting a final review of a downzoning plan, which would reduce the number of units that could be built on each lot, and a building cap, which would limit the number of building permits issued annually for new housing.