City Adopts Anti-Mansionization Ordinance

They're big, they're inappropriate and neighbors never like them. 

And soon, they'll be built no more.

In an effort to stem the tide of "mansionization" of Los Angeles hillsides, the City Council last week adopted new rules for building single-family homes in hillside and canyon neighborhoods.

 The ordinance received 13 “yes” votes and zero “no” votes.

“We are thrilled about the ordinance,” said Janet Turner, Pacific Palisades Community Council Chair. “People buy a small lot and try to get the most out of it . . . with very little creative design elements.”

The ordinance will encourage people to build with the contour of the hillsides by changing the current definitions of building height, said George Wolfberg, the council’s at-large representative.  

“I think it will make for a more natural looking community than just boxes,”  Wolfberg said.

“The Baseline Hillside Ordinance is a major step toward the protection of our city’s hillsides and ensures that development conforms to the land, instead of the land conforming to the development,” Director of City Planning Michael LoGrande said in a statement.

The key to the new regulations is a property's "floor area ratio," or FAR, that compares the size of a building to the lot's total area. The ordinance, which takes effect in May and applies to both new construction as well as major remodeling projects, sets the maximum limit a landowner can develop his or her property based on lot size, zone and steepness of slopes. 

It takes into account varying hillside conditions when determining size limits and also establishes a minimum unit size, guaranteeing a base level of development regardless of lot size and topography. 

The new regulations base height measurement on the slope of a lot and allow for buildings to step up or down a hillside.

"This will remove a major design constraint that has been in place for many years and resulted in large and tall box-like structures that many communities have specifically identified as a problem," said City Planning Department spokeswoman Claudia Rodriguez.

Height limits range from 18 to 36 feet depending on a structure's zoning classification and the host hill's slope grade, according to the ordinance. The maximum size of front yards, or "setbacks," ranges from 20 to 25 feet, depending on the zone, and must be no less than 20 percent of the lot's depth.

For questions regarding a specific property, the City Planning Department can be reached at 213-482-7077.

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Story courtesy Encino.Patch.com