New Obstacles Arise for Major CRA Project

A plan to build a massive commercial complex next to the North Hollywood subway station faces two new obstacles after a labor group demanded Monday that tenants pay a living wage and an environmental report predicted major problems for motorists.

The Valley Jobs Coalition, an offshoot of a labor group that won adoption of Los Angeles’ living wage ordinance in 1997, so far has been unable to persuade the city’s Community Redevelopment Agency to adopt a similar measure, or to extend it to require that a living wage be paid by tenants in buildings subsidized by the agency.

The coalition has focused on one of the CRA’s major new projects, a plan by developer J. Allen Radford to build 2 million square feet of office towers and commercial structures, including a 14-screen movie theater, a 250-room hotel, stores and restaurants.

The 22-acre project, which would create as many as 4,000 jobs and has long been seen as the key to revitalizing North Hollywood, would receive up to $20 million in subsidies, the coalition said.

Radford, who was not available for comment Monday, has accepted an invitation from the coalition to attend a community forum tonight.

If Radford refuses to reach an agreement that satisfies the coalition, the group is prepared to oppose the development before the City Council, which it believes is sympathetic, Levin said.

“If this can’t go forward with what we are asking for, we can’t support the project. We will speak out against it,” Levin said.

In another potential setback, an environmental impact report released Monday found that the project will have significant unavoidable negative effects on traffic at 18 intersections and on area air quality.

That added to concerns of project opponents, including Glenn Hoiby, president of North Hollywood Concerned Citizens, who said traffic is already a mess in the area.

Radford has said he does not feel he is in a position to dictate to tenants of his development what they pay their employees, Levin said.