A tall mixed-use building being proposed for an indistinguishable portion of Downtown that actually is in the city of Los Angeles — the present site of the Mann Theatres, eateries, other businesses and offices on Washington Boulevard, from Hughes Avenue to Dunn Drive — ran smack into criticism as word became public.
Expressly in the name of L.A. City Councilman Herb Wesson, the developers have called a 2-hour meeting with neighbors for 6 o’clock tonight, in the lobby, at 3855 Hughes, with a promise that plans and renderings will be displayed.
The present 2-story structure, familiarly identified by a giant mural on its easternmost side, would be replaced by a 6-story building featuring 131 apartments and “neighborhood-serving businesses,” according to the developers.
Clearing Away the Mud
Where this leaves Culver City remains muddled at this early stage of the ambitious proposal, although City Hall staffers will attend the session.
A tone of vexation emanated this afternoon from Andy Weissman, chair of the Redevelopment Agency.
“A hundred and thirty-one apartments on top of retail, on a corner as congested as Washington and Hughes, seems relatively insensitive on the part of the developers,” he told the newspaper. Further, “this proposal also seems hypocritical on the part of the city of Los Angeles, which recently accused Culver City of overbuilding.”
Mr. Weissman was referring to harsh criticism by Bernard Parks and Bill Rosendahl, two L.A. City Council members who previously have not been known for keeping a close eye on day-to-day doings in Culver City.
“Too much building at too sensitive of an intersection ,” Mr. Weissman concluded.
Reduced Influence
Culver City activist residents, who have not been shy about protesting what they regard as outsized projects envisioned by City Hall, are likely to be reduced to a questionable voice since this is a Los Angeles project.
In the view of Steve Rose, formerly a City Councilman in Culver City, one of the dazzling magnets for developers lies in the fact that between 300 and 400 parking spaces would be available.
Without positioning himself on either side of the issue, Mr. Rose said that “intensification and redevelopment are the reality in today’s world.”
