Community Corner
Opponents Of Gehry Sunset Blvd. Project Reach Deal With Developer
Neighbors fighting the Sunset BLvd. development by Frank Gehry reached a settlement involving investments and street improvements.
LOS ANGELES, CA — A group that had been fighting a proposed Hollywood complex designed by famed architect Frank Gehry has reached a settlement with the developer, it was reported Wednesday.
The group Fix the City settled its lawsuit over the 8150 Sunset development in exchange for reimbursement of its legal and expert fees and a handful of investments and street improvements by the developer, Townscape Partners, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Townscape will also need to get the city's permission to eliminate an eastbound right-turn lane that currently exists at Sunset and Crescent Heights, which can take six to nine months, the Times reported.
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The project plans to replace a shopping center whose tenants include a bank, fast-food restaurants, a dry cleaner and an ice cream shop.
The developer envisions 229 residential units of mostly apartments and 65,000 square feet of commercial space, along with a grocery store, restaurants and retail shops.
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The project faced multiple challenges and appeals from community groups and neighbors, including the city of West Hollywood, before it was approved by the Los Angeles City Council in 2016.
Opponents say the project will dwarf nearby buildings, which must follow a 45-foot height limit. One appellant, the owner of a nearby apartment building, called it a "monstrosity" that would negatively affect her property.
The City Council also in 2016 named the Lytton Savings bank at the site a historic-cultural monument.
The bank was designed in 1960 by Southern California architect Kurt Meyer. A Department of City Planning report said the bank "was constructed in a distinctive mid-century modern style that melds Googie and New Formalism stylistic influences, reflected in its glass walls, travertine cladding, concrete columns, and zigzag, folded plate roof."
In March, Townscape prevailed in court when a three-judge panel ruled in its favor over its plans to demolish the bank, The Times reported.
City News Service; Image courtesy of the city of Los Angeles.
