Protest Planned to Retain Council’s Power

Calling it a dangerous and potentially harmful proposal, Los Angeles City Councilman Joel Wachs and several San Fernando Valley homeowner groups plan to protest today a proposal that would limit the council’s authority to hear public appeals of planning decisions.

The proposal--one of 65 ideas offered last year by a development reform panel created by Mayor Richard Riordan--would take away the council’s power to overturn decisions made by the Board of Zoning Appeals, a committee appointed by the mayor.

Under the proposal, the Board of Zoning Appeals would have final say on approving liquor licenses, imposing restrictions on bars and restaurants and permitting cellular antennas, among other matters.

The idea behind the proposal--and the 65 other measures offered by the so-called Development Reform Committee--is to reduce the amount of time and money developers spend in getting projects approved by City Hall.

“It would make things go quicker,” said Deputy Planning Director Franklin Eberhard. “You could lose two or three months on a development” waiting for an appeal to the council.

But Wachs and others say they are not willing to sacrifice the council’s oversight for expediency.

“People must be able to take cases all the way to the council,” Wachs said. “This is a dangerous and potentially harmful proposal that takes away from city residents their rights to due process and a full hearing.”

Valley homeowner groups are already queuing up to protest the measure when it comes before the council today.

“‘This is an effort to take the homeowners out of the loop,” said Don Schultz, president of Van Nuys Homeowners Assn. “We think the council should have the last word.”

Patricia Bell, president of the Federation of Hillside and Canyon Assn., said her group is also concerned that the measure will limit the community’s rights to appeal unpopular decisions by the zoning panel.

In a letter to hillside homeowner groups, she said: “We all know that our voices are not being heard in City Hall. The last thing we need is for City Hall to take away some of the remaining rights we already have.”

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Under the current system, decisions made by the city’s zoning administrator can be appealed to the five-member Board of Zoning Appeals.

More significant planning issues, such as hillside developments, mall construction and significant zone changes, can be appealed to the city’s Planning Commission. Under the streamlining measure, those decisions can still be appealed to the council.

But the measure appears to have few supporters in City Hall.

Even Patrick Sinclair, executive director of Progress L.A. and a member of the Development Reform Committee, said he does not want to cut the council out of the appeals process.

“This does not represent what were the intentions of the DRC,” he said.

Councilman Hal Bernson, a longtime supporter of development reform, said he, too, is opposed to any effort to take the council out of the appeals process.

A spokesman for Riordan said the mayor supports the overall goal of streamlining the city’s development process and has recommended that the council consider the entire package of measures.

But he stopped short of endorsing the proposal to eliminate certain appeals to the council.

“These are the recommendation of a citizens group,” said Riordan aide Jason Greenwald. “Their recommendations were the starting point on development reform and the discussion will now continue in the City Council.”

This is not the first streamlining proposal to generate some controversy. In April, the council balked at a measure that would have charged residents up to $5,000 if they appeal a planning decision on projects more than 500 feet from their homes.