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Trailer Park Closure Delayed:

Village Trailer Park residents have been given a reprieve.

The City Council voted unanimously to support the processing of a Development Agreement (DA) for the redevelopment of the 3.85-acre park located at 2930 Colorado Avenue.

The vote means the park will not close on January 31, 2008 as previously planned, but instead will remain open while the DA is processed.

Village Trailer Park LLC, the owner, is proposing to redevelop the property with 109 rent-control units (which current tenants should be able to afford), 240 condo units, 40,000-square feet of studio space, and 8,000-square feet of neighborhood commercial space with 469 subterranean parking spaces and 34 surface parking spaces. The owner is also proposing to make some of the site’s buildings 50 feet high.

A DA is processed between an applicant and the City when an applicant wishes to develop a property with parameters that are not within the City’s zoning limits for the site. In exchange for being able to do things outside of those limits, the applicant offers the City public benefits. In this case, the site is located in the City’s RMH zone, which limits development to trailer courts, mobile home parks, and childcare uses. According to the City staff report, the public benefits being offered are “an extended stay for the existing mobile home park residents [relocation of the existing tenants will be delayed during Phase I construction of the rent-controlled apartment building], 109 rent control apartments, additional housing stock, a mix of residential, studio, and neighborhood – serving commercial uses, sustainable design/construction (LEED certified), and affordable condominium units with special condominium purchase incentives for existing VTP residents and teachers, police officers, and firefighters.”

The Village Homeowners Association President June Griffith expressed in a letter that was read to the Council that “it goes without saying the residents would prefer to remain in our mobile homes,” but because this is not the desire of the owner, they supported the City entering into a DA.

At the November 27 Council meeting, when the DA vote was passed, the Council agreed with City staff and the Planning Commission that the DA should be in agreement with the objectives of the City’s General Plan and should address the residents’ concerns about relocation and rent-control removal permits. The Councilmembers expressed concerns about the size of the proposed 109 rent-control units. Councilmember Ken Genser said, “The 250-square foot unit just doesn’t cut it.”

In other news, the Council unanimously approved the specific criteria for selection of an operator to provide concession services at the new Annenberg Community Beach Club at 415 PCH, scheduled to open in early 2009. The desired services include sit-down and take-out food service at the existing beach café as well as rental of beach equipment for visitors to the facility.

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