STUDIO CITY : Group Vows More Pressure on Mini-Mall

The president of a Studio City residents association said Wednesday his group would continue to put pressure on the developer of a local mini-mall until he delivers on a promise to make traffic improvements to the congested intersection where the mall recently opened.

“We’ve really drawn a line in the sand,” said Tony Lucente, president of the Studio City Residents Assn. “We’ve had it with bureaucrats and developers who ignore the rules and think they can get away with it.”

On Tuesday, about 50 residents picketed the mall at Ventura and Laurel Canyon boulevards, distributing fliers blaming the developer and the city for what they said would result in “total gridlock” at the intersection. Lucente said the group would hold a similar demonstration at this weekend’s grand opening of the mall’s sole occupant, The Good Guys electronic store.

Residents and politicians expressed anger last week after The Good Guys, and the mall itself were issued 90-day temporary permits of occupancy even though the developer has yet to keep a promise to install additional lanes in northbound Laurel Canyon Boulevard to ease increased traffic created by mall patrons.

The city has since ruled that no more temporary permits will be issued to would-be occupants of the mall until work on the traffic improvements has begun, said Tom Henry, planning deputy for Los Angeles City Councilman Joel Wachs.

Ira Handelman, a spokesman for the developer, said The Arba Group is committed to making the improvements, and is working “diligently” to get plans approved. He said the company has provided the city with a $165,000 cashier’s check as a down payment, and blamed delays in construction on circumstances “beyond the control” of the developer.

But Genny Incaudo, a member of the Studio City Residents Assn. and a protest organizer, said she believes the developer never intended to make the improvements: “He sought support from our organization, and now what? I feel that he used us and he’s just playing with us.”