Forum Widens for Home-Based Firms

A proposed Los Angeles city ordinance that would make business owners more “at home” in Los Angeles is the subject of a public workshop to be held Saturday in Universal City.

The ordinance would legalize home-based businesses, which are outlawed under current city zoning codes. The only professionals allowed to work at home under the existing law are doctors, dentists and ministers.

The purpose of the workshop is to bring together all parties interested in the matter to tackle issues raised by the proposed ordinance, which has been criticized both by home-business owners and homeowner associations.

The proposal would legalize more than two dozen home-based occupations, including those operated by accountants, attorneys, engineers and composers. A home business license fee ranging from $50 to $150 would be charged.

Approved by the Planning Commission last August, the ordinance is expected to go before the City Council’s Planning and Land Use Committee in April, said Ken Bernstein, aide to Valley Councilwoman Laura Chick, who supports legalization of home businesses.

“The majority of these businesses require only a phone, a fax and a computer and do not in any way create negative impacts on the neighborhood,” Bernstein said.

Among those expected to attend the workshop, which is open to the public, are home-business owners, homeowner groups, city planners, economic development experts and officials from cities that have successful home-based occupation ordinances.

The event’s sponsors include Chick, PLAN-LA, the American Assn. of Home-Based Businesses, the Rockwell/Rocketdyne Small Business Office and the United Chambers of Commerce of the San Fernando Valley.

Many cities in Southern California have allowed home-based occupations in residential zones and have reported few problems. Efforts to pass similar legislation in Los Angeles, however, have been stymied for the last 10 years.

Opponents of the ordinance say permitting home businesses will spoil the character of residential neighborhoods by drawing increased traffic and noise.

Supporters, however, say home businesses could become larger enterprises, generating hundreds of thousands of dollars for the city in license fees and taxes. They add that home businesses cut down on smog by eliminating commutes.

The workshop will be held in the Terrace Room of the Texaco Building, 10 Universal Plaza, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.