Westside : Council Ordered to Reconsider Project

A Superior Court judge ruled Wednesday that a controversial Venice redevelopment project rejected by the Los Angeles City Council in September must be reconsidered because Councilwoman Ruth Galanter violated the state’s open meeting act.

Galanter, who represents the Venice area and opposes the $150-million Lincoln Place redevelopment project, attended two closed meetings of the council’s Planning and Land Use Management Committee committee in August. The developers, TransAction Co. Ltd., were not allowed into the meetings, and the committee ultimately voted to advise the council to reject the project.

On Wednesday, Santa Monica Superior Court Judge Hiroshi Fujisaki ruled that Galanter’s presence in the closed meetings violated the Brown Act, and ordered the redevelopment proposal be heard again by the committee and the City Council within 90 days.