NORTH HOLLYWOOD : Halfway House Plan Dropped for Building

Responding to community pressure, a North Hollywood property owner said Monday that he will scrap a controversial plan to convert part of a homeless shelter into a halfway house for parolees and teens.

“I just don’t want the hassle,” said the owner of a low-cost apartment building that also serves as a homeless shelter on Laurel Canyon Boulevard.

Members of the community, the owner said, “are getting too excited” about something that was just meant to be a public service.

“We had agreed to make a certain amount of room available to parolees,” said the owner who spoke on condition of anonymity. “Now we won’t.”

Neighbors of the 25-bed complex objected to a plan to house and provide job training for the parolees. In addition, counseling and other services would be provided to teen-agers referred by the county Probation Department.

The owner said parolees have lived in the complex before, but leaders of the California Laurel Homeowners Assn. said they were concerned that the building was not zoned for such use.

Tom Henry, planning deputy for City Councilman Joel Wachs, said he would ask for an investigation into the appropriate use for the property.

If necessary, he said, a public hearing would be held.

The controversial plan was the brainchild of Claudia Ryan, a private contractor who has worked with parolees and manages the building, and Karl Rytlewski, who operates Van Nuys-based Project GANG, or Group Against Narcotics and Guns.

Ryan said she would abide by the owner’s decision. “I’m going to continue to manage the property for the owner as he wishes,” she said.

Julee Sokol, president of the homeowner group, declared the decision a victory.

“I’m very happy that he’s decided to cancel his plans due to the fact that we never did get a public hearing,” said Sokol, who represents 105 families in the group.