Council OKs Homes but Puts Ridge Off Limits

Despite a lawsuit by a frustrated developer, the Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday approved a scaled-down version of a controversial plan to build homes near a ridge in the Santa Monica Mountains.

The project, known as Woodland Hills Estates, calls for paving a section of Mulholland Drive and removing tens of thousands of cubic yards of earth along a mountain ridgeline just east of Topanga Canyon.

The council, eager to ensure that the project preserves the mountain ridge, approved a plan Wednesday for up to 25 homes at the site but made sure none could be built on the ridge.

“I’m very pleased,” said Councilman Marvin Braude, whose district includes the project site. “I feel very strongly about the Santa Monica Mountains.”

But developer Maj Rayes, who has been trying for about six years to build homes at the site, was hoping to receive approval for at least 30 homes, including several on the ridge.

Rayes’ lawyer, Benjamin Reznik, said Wednesday that a lawsuit was filed against the City Council this month because of its handling of the issue and a series of delays. The council’s vote for 25 homes “only exacerbates” the conflict, Reznik said.

“It’s very difficult,” he said. “We were even willing to take it down to 28. The 25 is totally unacceptable.”

Reznik said that his immediate plan is to pursue the lawsuit in Superior Court in the hopes of reversing the council’s decision and gaining approval to build 37 homes at an estimated project cost of about $10 million.

“It’ll be interesting to see what a judge thinks,” he said.

Braude, relying on the opinion of the city attorney’s office, said he considered the lawsuit frivolous because the developer was treated fairly. The main concern for city officials was to preserve the mountainside, he said.

“It’s consistent with all the policies we’ve been working on for years and years and years,” Braude said. “That’s all the lots the land can hold without destroying or seriously scarring the topography and the ridges.”

Much of the past year has been spent debating that last point.

Nearly a year ago, the city’s Planning Commission approved a plan allowing Rayes to build 37 homes and grade 340,000 cubic yards of earth. That decision was protested by conservationists such as the Santa Monica Mountain Conservancy and homeowners.

Since then, the issue--including details such as the building of a secondary access road required by the Fire Department--was considered at times by the full council or a council committee, but a final decision on the project was not made until Wednesday.

Braude said the developer now is free to build 25 homes at the site as long as he can meet standard development requirements.

Reznik said Rayes’ ability to meet those requirements is exactly why building homes on the ridge would be safe.

Still, Bonnie Kopp, planning deputy for Braude, said that despite strong disagreement from the developer, the mountain topography ultimately was considered unstable for ridge homes.

“Those are just landslides waiting to happen,” Kopp said. “That’s what we wanted to avoid.”