Saturday, November 21, 2015
Wednesday, November 4, 2015
Is Fire Station 18 at Risk Again?
Coincidence in Timing
of Changes for Zoning? Dense Development Possibly Coming at Los Coyotes and
Palo Verde.
Next Tuesday, the
Long Beach City Council is being asked to allow increased density (more condos
per square feet) in several areas of the city now zoned as “institutional.”
This new zoning called Planned Unit Development (PUD) will increase the number
of residences allowed from 7 per acre to 13 per acre.
In 2004, the Long Beach Community College Board of Trustees
purchased 5.78 acres of land and medical office buildings located at 3320, 3340 Los Coyotes Diagonal
and 3325 Palo Verde Ave. They paid around $9 million and told the public it
would be used for a Culinary Institute. Actually, the taxpayers are still paying for
the property because funds from a bond measure were used for the purchase – a
measure that is paid for by an increase in local property taxes. LBCC put the
property up for sale this year for an asking price of $14.4 million.
The property is not currently zoned for homes, but low and
behold, the ever accommodating City Council is about to change all of that when
it votes for the new type of development zoning next Tuesday.
Sadly, there has been no transparency about what is going to happen at
Palo Verde and Los Coyotes Diagonal. Sources say that a developer was promised
the zoning would be changed before he bought the property. Really? Before the
public even knew about the zoning change and before the residents living in
that neighborhood even had a chance to comment?
Sources also say that the developer plans on building not
less than 70 condos/townhouses at Palo Verde and Los Coyotes Diagonal and more
if the developer can persuade the church located adjacent to the property on
Palo Verde to sell for $2 million.
But there’s more. Remember several years back when I fought Mayor
Foster’s proposal to close Fire Station 18 which is conveniently located right
where this new development is planned? Has anyone asked the current
councilwoman if Station 18 will be closed and sold off too?
If you are concerned about high density in your neighborhood,
let the City Council know before November 10th.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)