Church Sanctuary OKd in Compromise Proposal That Eliminates School

The Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday approved a compromise plan under which the West Valley Christian Church will be allowed to build a 745-seat sanctuary in West Hills.

Neighbors grumbled that Los Angeles City Councilwoman Joy Picus was no help in their efforts to prevent the church from adding a school to the site.

By a unanimous vote, the council approved construction of the sanctuary on a 5.8-acre site at 8138 Woodlake Ave. after Picus, who represents the area, said the project would be “in balance with the neighborhood and an asset to the community.”

The Rev. Glenn Kirby, pastor of the West Valley Christian Church, said he was pleased that the council had overturned a ruling last September by the Board of Zoning Appeals that rejected the church’s entire application.

Deleted from the project approved Wednesday was an church proposal to build a school on the same site for 700 students, from kindergarten to senior year of high school. Approval was given however for a 150-student preschool.

Kirby agreed to sign a promise that the church will never operate an elementary and high school on the site.

Linda Rice, president of the West Hills Neighborhood Assn., said removal of the school element was an important victory for local residents. But Rice and others claimed Picus had pressed homeowners to accept at least a 350-student school at the site. Rice said the compromise was adopted because homeowners were adamant.

“If we’d accepted her compromises, we’d be feeling entirely different today,” Rice said.

“What we got was despite Picus, not because of her,” added Rhona Feldman, one of two dozen residents from the homeowners group attending Wednesday’s hearing.

Rice and others from the group predicted Picus’ performance on the church issue will hurt her with local voters as she seeks reelection April 20 to a fifth term.

Picus aide Jim Dawson insisted she was instrumental in forging the compromise, denying she urged West Hills residents to accept a school.

In September, the church’s representative had told the city’s Board of Zoning Appeals that it would not be economically feasible to have the church and school on separate sites. However, Kirby said Wednesday that the school has leased the Enadia Way and Highlander Park elementary schools in West Hills from the Los Angeles Unified School District to house its school operations.