Steamed Brentwood Protestors Finish Second to Archer Project

Archer School for Girls’ controversial, $100 million campus expansion project was approved by the Los Angeles City Council on Tuesday despite the serious concerns of the Brentwood community. Residents said the project would add to the flood of traffic already paralyzing Sunset Boulevard. They refuted the claims of school supporters that the building plan was a compromise endorsed by local residents.

The City Council followed the lead of Brentwood’s own lawmaker, Councilman Mike Bonin, and quickly approved Archer’s massive three-year building plan involving almost a quarter million square feet of construction and more than 100,000 construction-related vehicle trips at the school site, 11725 Sunset Blvd., immediately west of Barrington Avenue.

The spirited opposition was led by Sunset Coalition, an organization newly formed to protect the Sunset corridor from the traffic impacts of major development projects. Longtime Westside community activist Wendy-Sue Rosen is a co-chair of the group, as is Brentwood resident David Wright.

The coalition released the following statement after the City Council vote:

“The Brentwood community is deeply disappointed in Councilmember Mike Bonin and by today’s Council action. The Archer project will have major impacts on traffic and air quality that have not been adequately addressed or mitigated. In the coming days we will be exploring all of our options. However, it appears that today’s Council action leaves us little choice but to file a lawsuit to require Archer to follow state environmental protection laws.”

As recently as April, Mr. Bonin called the stretch of Sunset around Archer “one of the worst traffic choke points” in Los Angeles. “I can’t drive down Sunset in the afternoon without planning for maddening traffic delays.”

So it was stunning when Mr. Bonin struck a bargain with Archer and opted to support the private girls school’s massive building project (called Archer Forward) that critics say will seriously exacerbate the brutal rush hour traffic conditions that already exist on Sunset Boulevard.

“The community has just survived five years of construction-related traffic congestion due to the 405 Freeway widening work,” said Ms. Rosen. “And now Archer wants to put us through three more years of a traffic nightmare.”

“Bonin’s so-called compromise is really no compromise at all because the project is still too big and too impactful,” Mr. Wright said. “We had hoped Councilman Bonin would represent the interests of all the residents of Brentwood, not just the interests of Archer.”

Eric Edmunds, president of the Brentwood Hills Homeowners Assn., which is a member of the Sunset Coalition, says Archer moved to its current location, a historic former retirement home, in 1998 with wide support from the community.

“I personally backed their move in 1998,” Mr. Edmunds said. “But I do not support Archer’s current building plan. Traffic is out of control on Sunset already. The Archer project, as it is now proposed, will only make it worse.”

The project’s traffic will affect 20,000 residents and 1500 businesses in the 90049 (Brentwood) and 90272 (Pacific Palisades) zip codes, thousands of non-residents who travel to and from work on this stretch of Sunset and thousands more beach-going motorists.

During Tuesday’s Council meeting, Mr. Bonin claimed that a compromise he engineered would substantially reduce the size of the project.

Archer opponents dispute that. They point out the Archer plan – as approved by the Council – would involve 234,900 square feet of construction, including an extensive remodel of the school’s main 85,000 square foot building. It would also add:

• A new 17,700-square foot, 395-seat performing arts center;
• A new 85,500-square foot underground parking garage with 164 spaces (expandable to 251 stacked spaces);
• A new two-story, 39,300-square foot multipurpose facility with two gyms; and,
• A new  7,400-square foot visual arts center.

In addition, the school will be permitted to newly operate a six-week summer session and host a significantly greater number of athletic and special events on campus than it does now.

Sunset Coalition leaders also disputed Mr. Bonin’s claim that the so-called compromise plan would actually reduce traffic on Sunset.

“That’s just not believable,” said Mr. Edmunds. “Archer’s new buildings, its new playing fields are being built to accommodate more visitors and guests. That means more traffic, and more gridlock. It’s unavoidable. Can Archer try to manage the traffic, for example, by having its events before or after a rush hour? Yes, but what they’ll be doing is extending the peak traffic hours.”

Mr. Bonin is expected to run for reelection in 2017. That election would be held just weeks before the project construction is set to begin.

Ms. Rosen said the coalition is committed to continue to inform the community about the negative impacts of Archer’s massive expansion project.

Mr. Schwada may be contacted at john.schwada@gmail.com