New Shell Permitted at Hollywood Bowl

Construction on the Hollywood Bowl’s new orchestra shell, delayed for two years because of a lawsuit by local preservationists, can go forward after a California Supreme Court decision Wednesday.

The panel let stand a Court of Appeal decision in August against Robert Nudelman, a leader of Hollywood Heritage Assn., and another preservationist group, Friends of the Santa Monica Parks and Seashore. They filed suit two years ago to prevent Los Angeles County and the Bowl’s main tenant, the Los Angeles Philharmonic Assn., from tearing down the Bowl’s 73-year-old white shell to replace it with an acoustically superior model.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, whose district includes the Bowl, said shell construction will begin next fall, immediately after the Bowl’s 2003 summer season. The new shell will be ready for the Bowl’s 2004 season. He added that delays should not significantly increase its $18-million budget.

Attorney Lawrence Teeter, who represented the conservationists, said Wednesday: “We are disappointed of course. Historic preservation has never rated very high in Los Angeles. We are evaluating our options.”