The City of Los Angeles’ Planning Commission decided on February 11 to give Stonebridge Holdings Incorporated 30 days to modify their proposed plan for their 11.5 acre Bundy Village and Medical Park which is slated for two parcels that face both Olympic Boulevard and Bundy Drive. The project has met with intense opposition from Santa Monica and other Westside residents because they are concerned it would bring additional traffic congestion to an already congested area and negatively impact traffic in the surrounding residential neighborhoods.
Stonebridge is proposing to build a mixed-use project which would consist of medical facilities, retail/commercial space, and market-rate and affordable senior housing residential units. About 40 percent of the project would be open and green space. The project’s Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) calculates that the project would create more than 20,000 additional daily car trips in the area and 15 out of 25 intersections within or bordering on the City of Santa Monica will suffer significant traffic impacts from the project.
The Commission’s decision came after a staff person from Los Angeles City Council member Bill Rosendahl’s office read a statement from him that changed his support for the project: “I support this project proposal in concept. Los Angeles in general and the Westside in particular have a pressing need for medical services and for senior housing. Additionally, building a project like this along a transit corridor with a planned Expo Line stop makes good sense. However, I share the worries of many Westside residents who are concerned about the size and scale of the project, and its traffic impacts. If CPC approves this project today, I am committed to working with the developer to make sure that community concerns are addressed, that the project is scaled back, and that additional traffic mitigations and community benefits are secured,” said Rosendahl.
The Mirror spoke with Brandon Stephenson of Cerrell Associates about the Commission’s decision and he said the President of Stonebridge Holdings Inc., Michael Lombardi, had agreed to the continuance for 30 days in order to work out the differences with the Westside residents so that he could “deliver a project the community would support.” This will be accomplished by having conversations with the neighborhood organizations and will involve the participation of Rosendahl.
Friends of Sunset Park President Zina Josephs reacted to the continuance by stating, “The Santa Monica Planning Department found that, of the 15 intersections in Santa Monica that would be (single “significantly impacted’ ) by the Bundy Village project, seven are located in Sunset Park. So we’re very hopeful that the size of the project and the amount of traffic generated will be reduced.”
The 30-day continuance delayed Stonebridge’s request of the Commission for zoning changes and general plan amendments for their project.
HANNAH HEINEMAN
Mirror Contributing Writerhannah@smmirror.com
