The Redevelopment Agency did not need to resort to tea leaves during the noisy session in Council Chambers to determine the trajectory of popular sentiment. Communal support for one of the largest teardown-rebuilds in Culver City history remains questionable. This caused the four eligible members of the Redevelopment Agency to appear to equivocate before voting. Otherwise, the Agency was undaunted. Once each member of the Agency had stated, with vigor, There is no project, in an unsubtle attempt to quell rising opposition, he proceeded with equal verve in the other direction, voting to formally open the non-project. In droves, activists skipped the meeting. It was well known in advance that the pro-active Agency would vote 4 to 0 to grant a legal device known as an exclusive negotiation agreement to Champion Realty of Wilshire Boulevard. (Agency Chair Steve Rose recused himself from the entire 1 hour, 45-minute discussion on the grounds that he owns property within the zone of the project.) Of the 6 persons who spoke during the public comment period, 5 were familiar with the plans, and the 6th seemed to think their anti- stand was a neat idea. The protestors degree of unanimous opposition ranged from vehement to skeptical.
Introducing City Halls Next Strategy
Displaying a deftness that is unique for City Hall, the city and the developer, by last nights very meaningful vote, have forged a new-look relationship for this community. In recent years, City Hall has been the lead party in redeveloping neighborhoods across Culver City in broad, sometimes simultaneous, strokes. This has made City Hall a plump, stationary target. The Hall has been forced alone to absorb enormous volleys of criticism from neighbors, business owners and landowners. Now it has a partner who could come in handy when arrows are launched. With a private party ostensibly in charge of this project, while the city hovers over the developers left shoulder, one keen motivation for both parties to team up is the ability to deflect public opprobrium to the other guy.
A Calming Voice
Speaking for the Community Development Dept., the professional headquarters for redevelopment in City Hall, Todd Tipton sought to play referee between the aroused citizens and the members of the Redevelopment Agency board. This is a role the very soft spoken, young but avuncular-sounding Mr. Tipton has played at this juncture in previous design proposals. He spoke as if he were tiptoeing across a pillow. Several persons in the audience asked him to elevate his volume. Agreeably compliant, he repeated himself. This is a very complicated project, Mr. Tipton said, trying not to seem pedantic, and succeeding. We are just at the beginning. The Exclusive Negotiation Agreement is nothing more than a description of the project with the responsibilities attached. We are anticipating that (the developer) will return within 140 days with a better idea. But credit for the Line of the Night went to Sunkist Park activist/resident Chip Netzel. The neighborhoods traffic problems are so old they almost predate the earliest horseless carriages. In silent tribute to the San Diego Freeway, Mr. Netzel suggested plans are afoot to change the names of two streets in Sunkist Park to the 406 and the 407. Sunkist homeowner Ann Treleven was a close second as an award winner. Ever since she moved into the neighborhood 4 years ago, she said, the favorite lukearm topic has been traffic mitigation, which has remained unresolved. How this (planned) project is going to complement what is (already) not working, I dont know, she said.
Targeted Stores, Owners Are Diverse
Champion has maintained a low profile for the past two years, carefully scrutinizing the territory, making early acquisition offers. Its grand plan calls for tearing down 13 acres along the west side of south Sepulveda Boulevard, between Jefferson and Slauson. More than 100 businesses are affected. Many are small. Most businesses are in low-rise structures built in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Some owners feel threatened. Some do not. They say they are determined to fight their way through whatever circumstance confronts them. Some businesses have aging owners who think this may hasten their retirement, but not by much. Some stores feature sturdy young/new owners who feel confident of their ability to prevail. Champion has made acquisition offers to the largest affected businesses at the southern end of the project. Not surprisingly, all turned down the developer. Champions announced intention is to build what it is artfully casting as a destination village. Has a nice ring, they say. This is one way of portraying a massive overhaul from the present, long established comfortable, informal, smallish neighborhood businesses to a series of mixed-use buildings. At this stage, they would feature retail on the ground floor more sophisticated, decidedly upscale chain-type businesses with condos and offices occupying the upper stories.
Postscript
Tongues became a little twisted and minds of the most important people in the room turned into tabula rosa screens when the subject of relocating businesses arose. Led by Agency member Carol Gross, a number of City Hall persons vowed that Culver City would aid entrepreneurs in finding a place to land if that became necessary. But when the promising persons were pressed to identify parties who have been successfully relocated in the past, the single example of George Petrellis restaurant came up, over and over. Mr. Netzel wondered how many businesses City Hall has relocated in the last 5 years. Mr. Tipton replied that of 25 that were forced out of their original sites, I would say we relocated about half of them successfully. Some, Mr. Tipton said, opted not to continue to operate. Except for Mr. Petrellis eatery and a muffler shop, though, no one could recall the name of any other business.
