Panel May Limit Late-Night Noise at Film Studios

In a nod to residents’ concerns about noise from film shooting at Universal Studios, the staff of the Los Angeles County Regional Planning Commission is considering the first-ever late-night restrictions against pyrotechnics and helicopter sounds from the studio’s movie sets.

Commission staff members initially recommended the restrictions months ago, to the objection of officials from Universal who have opposed limitations on the way the studio makes movies.

The issue is coming to a head, however, because the commission is poised to make a decision next month on the studio’s plan for a mammoth expansion.

A long-awaited, 22-volume environmental impact report on the expansion plan was released this week, marking a key stage in a review process that began in 1995. Public hearings on the proposal started early last year.

The environmental impact report is designed to respond to all comments and concerns, either voiced or written, during the public comment process. The accompanying specific plan sets up the development restrictions and requirements for the proposed 3.2-million-square-foot expansion--governing everything from signage to noise and building height.

Among the specific plan recommendations likely to generate the greatest controversy is the proposal that Universal be prohibited from making loud “impulsive” sounds like explosions and gunfire, from midnight to 5 a.m. during the winter and from 1 to 5 a.m. during daylight-saving time.

During the public hearings, Universal attorney George Mihlstein repeatedly said the studio has been shooting outdoors on its land since 1915, using an industrial zoning permit that exempts it from noise limits during outdoor productions. He said Universal vehemently opposes “‘any dramatic policy shift that potentially could affect one of the largest studios in the world.”

“Universal continues not to want any limits on outdoor nighttime filming,” said Ginny Kruger, assistant chief deputy to County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky. “But the staff recommends that there be limits. We support that position and we hope the commission as a whole will, too.”

During the staff review process, Universal has agreed “to a number of things, sometimes kicking and crying,” said Kruger, noting that the size of high-rise buildings along Barham Boulevard has been significantly reduced.

Scrapping the film noise restrictions is “probably the biggest thing they’ve continued to push for.”

Helen McCann, Universal’s vice president in charge of the master plan, said Universal remains opposed to “limits on production, and that’s exactly what this is.”

But she added: “There are other things in the staff recommendations that we don’t agree with. That’s all part of the process.”

One of the key concerns to many area homeowners, in addition to noise, has been a potential traffic crunch caused by the proposed expansion, which was scaled back by 40% after neighbors complained.

But, Kruger said, “Most of the traffic impacts have been mitigated. Hopefully we are close if not there on [seeking] conditions that will address those concerns.”

Florence Blecher, president of the Cahuenga Pass Property Owners Assn., said she has yet to finish reading the thick document, but said she is not yet convinced that homeowners’ concerns have been adequately addressed.

Expressing concern about the more theme park-oriented portions of the proposed expansion, and the attendant traffic, Blecher complained that they can’t help but create more congestion.

“The studio is in a bottleneck, it’s in a pass for goodness sake,” she said. “To lay Disneyland in the middle of a dense residential topographically restricted area is basically inappropriate.”

To further relieve traffic congestion, the staff is recommending that Universal study construction of a ramp leading directly from the studio to the southbound Hollywood Freeway. Kruger said that feasibility study is ongoing.

The proposed expansion will be reviewed by the full commission in meetings set Oct. 7 and 14. At that time the commission could approve the staff recommendations or send the package back to the staff for more work.

Eventually, the plan must be approved by the Los Angeles City Council and the county Board of Supervisors. The package is not expected to reach the supervisors until spring.