Communication from Public

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Name:

Date Submitted: 09/07/2020 07:39 PM

Council File No: 20-1024

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Name: S. Eddington

Comments for Public Posting: I vehemently oppose the Venice Place Project. My neighborhood

is already overcrowded enough, traffic levels are appalling, and we absolutely DO NOT need to bring in more people to the little residential streets surrounding Abbot Kinney. There are numerous big hotels in the Marina - let them stay there.

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Name:

Comments for Public Posting: Dear Honorable Council members, I am writing to ask you to

either deny approval outright for the hotel and retail development known as The Venice Place Project or veto it and send it back to the WLA Planning Commission for further review and community input. The Venice community has opposed this project since it was first proposed 8 years ago. In that time, the developers have done little to address community concerns that have been brought up over and over again. Among the issues that have never been addressed: The developer seeks to tie 8 lots together in an area where legally they can only tie 3 lots together. This will set a dangerous precedent for future development in Venice. The project will negatively impact the quality of life for the historically African-American community of Oakwood, an area already disproportionally impacted by COVID, lack of affordable housing, gentrification, land speculation and inadequate parking. At capacity (and especially during events such as weddings, screenings, and business gatherings) there is simply not enough parking to accommodate the hotel, multiple bars and restaurants and thousands of square feet of office/retail space. Overflow traffic will park in Oakwood, where the Coastal Commission has mandated parking be free and unrestricted. The infrastructure in the area is not adequate to accommodate the traffic this project will generate. With the parking entrance and exit located on Electric Ave. - a tiny side street barely wide enough for one car to pass at a time now and locked in on all sides by single family homes and small apartments - gridlock is inevitable at peak times there and the surface streets in Oakwood. And unlike other retail or residential projects on Abbot Kinney, the hotel will be open 24 hours a day, bringing with it traffic very late at night and early in the morning. The developers claim they will provide state of the art "automated" parking, but have admitted the technology is new and untested. Worse, they've provided no back up plan in case the technology fails. The developers are seeking a liquor license to serve alcohol from 7AM-1AM, even though it will be located directly across the street from the Westminster Elementary School. Lastly, the West LA Planning Commission, headed by Mike Newhouse, has failed to implement the Mayor's Executive Directive 27, acknowledging that racism and inequality continue to harm communities of color in Los Angeles, and that the West LA Planning Commission

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populations and those denied resources and a voice for so long. Until these issues are adequately addressed by the developer, I respectfully ask you to deny approval outright or veto this project as proposed send it back to the WLA Planning Commission for further review and community input. Sincerely, Resident Venice, CA

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Name: David edd.

Comments for Public Posting: i fully oppose the "Venice Place Project, it is wrong for the

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Name: Gardner Gaghan

Comments for Public Posting: I oppose venice place project. Please don’t build a mega-hotel

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Name:

Comments for Public Posting: I am "in favor" of the "Venice Place Project" to build a hotel on

Abbot Kinney Boulevard, and to deny further appeals against this project. This project does not displace existing housing and the property is already filled by several commercial buildings and businesses. Adding a new commercial business will not change the character of the area, but only enhance it. The project plans are exemplary and, as an area resident, I believe the hotel will contribute and add value to the neighborhood.

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Name:

Comments for Public Posting: Construction of this monstrosity would be the final nail in the

Venice coffin. Ongoing traffic nightmares tops the List of Horrors that includes parking hell, noise pollution, and shameful

indifference to Venice residents. The only advantage this

monstrosity offers is to line the pockets of greedy city “leaders” with even more cash. STOP THE MONSTER NOW.

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Name: Jenny P

Comments for Public Posting: I wholeheartedly OPPOSE the "Venice Place Project." Our

neighborhood and streets are too small to handle this mega development. Also, bringing in heavy traffic and more alcohol service just across the street from an elementary school? I

ABSOLUTELY OPPOSE. Our neighborhood does not need this hotel.

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Name: Hillary Bedell

Comments for Public Posting: This project will impact my neighborhood in nothing but bad

ways. The traffic and the parking are two ways it will negatively impact my neighborhood. Also there is no room for the big trucks that deliver to hotels. Two cars can barely get by each other on Electric Ave. There are no buildings that are that big on Abbot Kinney. It will be an eyesore. What happened to the Coastal Commission? I remember when they wouldn't let this kind of thing happen. Abbot Kinney is a street of little stores. People come here for its old small feel with its beautiful old brick buildings. It will ruin the feel of the neighborhood. And we'll miss the the French nursery school that is a beautiful part of our community. The traffic is bad already and the parking horrendous. This would make a huge impact on the neighborhood and community of Venice. A small town by the sea. Lets keep it that way.

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Name: CEO Synergy Media

Comments for Public Posting: We do not need another HOTEL in Venice, we have plenty already that are properly zoned (not

near an Elementary school! Venice already suffers form housing and bad traffic and impossible parking with way too many Air BnB's that take valuable housing away from residents. I AGREE WITH Unite HERE Local 11 and the owner of the property at 1041 Abbot Kinney Boulevard -that Wynkoop's project is incompatible with local and state land use regulations, and should be required to undergo additional environmental review. WE DON'T NEED MORE TRAFFIC! WE DON'T NEED MORE CARS TRYING TO PARK ON ABBOT KINNEY AND TAKING RESIDENTS PARKING AWAY ON ELECTRIC AND NEARBY STREETS. WE DON'T NEED T BLOCK OUT THE SUN FOR NEARBY RESIDENTS WITH THIS MONSTROSITY OF A BUILDING. IT DOES NOT FIT WITH MASS, SCALE OR CHARACTER. WE DON'T NEED MORE BARS AND ALCOHOL NEAR 2 SCHOOLS! OVERALL - ITS IS NOT ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY TO ADD 70,000 SQUARE FEET AND DWARF ALL OTHER CONSTRUCTION AND CREATE A DANGEROUS PRECEDENT ON OUR ALREADY BUSY STREET. I AGREE WITH Keep Neighborhoods First, is an organization which opposes the conversion of housing into short-term rentals on platforms such as AirBnB. Their appeal argues that the project would eliminate housing stock which is subject to the City's rent stabilization ordinance, and could open the door to allowing short-term rentals in other apartment hotels. A staff response notes that the housing referenced in the appeal has already been converted into a daycare business as of 2004, meaning that NO AFFORDABLE units would be replaced by the development. THIS IS HORRIBLE! I AGREE WITH the fourth appellant, Susan Kaplan, that the project - in addition to allegedly violating zoning and land use rules - is incompatible with the Venice community due to its size, perceived lack of parking, and potential to create crime and noise in the surrounding area. YOU HAVE HEARD FORM YOUR CONSTITUENTS AT THE Aug. 1 hearing where we told our representatives (West Los Angeles Zoning Administrator Theodore Irving) of our concerns about traffic congestion, the displacement of French-language school Ecole Claire Fontaine. RESIDENTS AND FAMILIES HAVE RAISED CONCERNS MULTIPLE TIMES SO STOP SIDING WITH BIG DEVELOPERS AND TRYING TO SHOVE THIS hotel THROUGH in such close proximity to Westminster Avenue Elementary School! THIS CONSTRUCTION WILL HAVE LONG LASTING EFFECTS ON AIR QUALITY, PARKING. LACK OF PARKING FOR RESIDENTS, BLOCKING SUNLIGHT AND OCEAN BREEZES FOR RESIDENTS, DISPLACE LOW INCOME HOUSING AND ALSO 2 SCHOOLS. WHAT ARE WE DOING THIS! NO ONE WANTS THIS EXCEPT FOR THE MONEY GRAB DEVELOPERS! THIS IN ADDITION TO CONCERNS RAISED BY Mar Vista attorney Amanda Seward raising questions about alcohol consumption and security FOR FAMILIES. VENETIANS DON'T WANT VENICE PLACE HOTEL. #GARCETTI, #BONIN, #GAVINNEWSOME = WHY DON'T YOU BUILD LOW INCOME HOUSING AND GET PEOPLE OFF THE STREETS IF YOU WANT TO IMPROVE OUR NEIGHBORHOOD! HOTELS AND BARS HELP NO ONE IN NEED. https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-01-21/homeless-count-los-angeles-county-faq YOUR CONSTITUENTS HAVE SPOKEN 3 TIMES!!! NO VENICE PLACE!

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Name: CEO Synergy Media

Comments for Public Posting: We do not need another HOTEL in Venice, we have plenty already that are properly zoned (not

near an Elementary school! Venice already suffers form housing and bad traffic and impossible parking with way too many Air BnB's that take valuable housing away from residents. I AGREE WITH Unite HERE Local 11 and the owner of the property at 1041 Abbot Kinney Boulevard -that Wynkoop's project is incompatible with local and state land use regulations, and should be required to undergo additional environmental review. WE DON'T NEED MORE TRAFFIC! WE DON'T NEED MORE CARS TRYING TO PARK ON ABBOT KINNEY AND TAKING RESIDENTS PARKING AWAY ON ELECTRIC AND NEARBY STREETS. WE DON'T NEED T BLOCK OUT THE SUN FOR NEARBY RESIDENTS WITH THIS MONSTROSITY OF A BUILDING. IT DOES NOT FIT WITH MASS, SCALE OR CHARACTER. WE DON'T NEED MORE BARS AND ALCOHOL NEAR 2 SCHOOLS! OVERALL - ITS IS NOT ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY TO ADD 70,000 SQUARE FEET AND DWARF ALL OTHER CONSTRUCTION AND CREATE A DANGEROUS PRECEDENT ON OUR ALREADY BUSY STREET. I AGREE WITH Keep Neighborhoods First, is an organization which opposes the conversion of housing into short-term rentals on platforms such as AirBnB. Their appeal argues that the project would eliminate housing stock which is subject to the City's rent stabilization ordinance, and could open the door to allowing short-term rentals in other apartment hotels. A staff response notes that the housing referenced in the appeal has already been converted into a daycare business as of 2004, meaning that NO AFFORDABLE units would be replaced by the development. THIS IS HORRIBLE! I AGREE WITH the fourth appellant, Susan Kaplan, that the project - in addition to allegedly violating zoning and land use rules - is incompatible with the Venice community due to its size, perceived lack of parking, and potential to create crime and noise in the surrounding area. YOU HAVE HEARD FORM YOUR CONSTITUENTS AT THE Aug. 1 hearing where we told our representatives (West Los Angeles Zoning Administrator Theodore Irving) of our concerns about traffic congestion, the displacement of French-language school Ecole Claire Fontaine. RESIDENTS AND FAMILIES HAVE RAISED CONCERNS MULTIPLE TIMES SO STOP SIDING WITH BIG DEVELOPERS AND TRYING TO SHOVE THIS hotel THROUGH in such close proximity to Westminster Avenue Elementary School! THIS CONSTRUCTION WILL HAVE LONG LASTING EFFECTS ON AIR QUALITY, PARKING. LACK OF PARKING FOR RESIDENTS, BLOCKING SUNLIGHT AND OCEAN BREEZES FOR RESIDENTS, DISPLACE LOW INCOME HOUSING AND ALSO 2 SCHOOLS. WHAT ARE WE DOING THIS! NO ONE WANTS THIS EXCEPT FOR THE MONEY GRAB DEVELOPERS! THIS IN ADDITION TO CONCERNS RAISED BY Mar Vista attorney Amanda Seward raising questions about alcohol consumption and security FOR FAMILIES. VENETIANS DON'T WANT VENICE PLACE HOTEL. #GARCETTI, #BONIN, #GAVINNEWSOME = WHY DON'T YOU BUILD LOW INCOME HOUSING AND GET PEOPLE OFF THE STREETS IF YOU WANT TO IMPROVE OUR NEIGHBORHOOD! HOTELS AND BARS HELP NO ONE IN NEED. https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-01-21/homeless-count-los-angeles-county-faq YOUR CONSTITUENTS HAVE SPOKEN 3 TIMES!!! NO VENICE PLACE!

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Name: tandy parks

Comments for Public Posting: As a resident of Venice since 1967 I have come to appreciate the

intelligent development of business and community. It is needed. But there must be a realistic acknowledgement of negative environmental and social impact and this project shows none. It's possible to build wisely and offer something to both the community and to the businesses that develop. Let's see stop this one and see some better ideas in the future.

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Name: Linda Tadic

Comments for Public Posting: I am a Venice homeowner and resident, and strongly oppose the

Venice Place Project. The proposed building is far out of size with any other structure in that area, its location is inappropriate to its surroundings, it would dramatically increase traffic along an already over-congested street, and could destroy some of the few remaining examples of early Venice residences (unless incorporated into the project design). Location. The hotel’s location is inappropriate. A hotel is not consistent with the Land Use compatibility; there are no hotels in this mixed residential and commercial area. It would be surrounded by single family residences, low-rise businesses, and importantly, an elementary school across the street. Shockingly, the EIR report does not take the school’s location into consideration in its Land Use and Planning evaluation other than to state the school is 65 feet across the street. There will be a “pool deck” on the third floor and two roof decks, with hotel guests making noise to carry across the neighborhood where working people are trying to sleep and live their lives. The Project is requesting a Conditional Use Permit to allow a hotel within 500 feet of a residential zone; this should be rejected. There are residences within 40, 50, and 230 feet of the proposed building. There are other places on the Westside where a hotel of this size could be built, but this is not the appropriate location. Traffic. Abbot Kinney already has too much traffic. The EIR traffic study states that for this section of AK, traffic in both directions during morning and evening rush hours is approx. 2,000 cars. This project would increase traffic with over 900 new car trips a day to the Electric Avenue Roadway, a 40% increase over existing traffic. (Table 4.K-13) Note that there are residences along Electric, and on the perpendicular streets. The valet service would shuttle cars back and forth between the proposed rented parking available at the school, increasing traffic in that intersection adjacent to homes. This is a hotel; people would be coming to it in cars (whether rentals or being dropped off by rideshares), not on bicycles. They would not be coming on a bus; the applicant asserts that the project is in a “transportation corridor” in order to gain exceptions to the building code and to gain approval of the project, which is cynical. People coming to stay at the hotel will not be taking the bus from LAX. In addition, people visiting the hotel and restaurant would park on the neighboring residential streets, which are already over-extended

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scale project in this area. Housing. Venice needs affordable housing, not an over-sized hotel. The City of Los Angeles states that affordable housing is a critical need, yet consistently approves these large projects that do the opposite of its stated goal. This project proposes 4 apartments, but 78 hotel units. Venice history. Venice is losing its unique character and history with increased developments such as these. The character that makes Venice "Venice" and draws people to want to live here is ironically being destroyed. A summary on page 4.C-33: "The Project would have a cumulative impact on the environment as a result of the demolition [of] rare examples of early residential development on Abbot Kinney Boulevard, of which only six intact examples remain." I do appreciate that the recommended Alternative 4 would preserve these 3 bungalows and incorporate them into the overall project design. Thank you for considering this comment.

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Name: Briana Masson

Comments for Public Posting: I oppose the Venice Place Project. This development will destroy

Venice and the people that live here. We do not need a huge mega hotel to create more traffic and congestion and ruin the essence of what makes Venice special. This hotel does not honor the people of Venice in any way. Thank you, Briana Masson

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Name:

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Name: Madeline Coy

Comments for Public Posting: I strongly oppose the Venice Place Project. This project will

inevitably hurt the community, inundate our streets with traffic and parked cars, and raise property value across the city to the detriment of renters and artists.

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Name: Angie

Comments for Public Posting: I oppose the Venice place project. We need affordable housing,

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Name: Allan Moyle

Comments for Public Posting: Dear Mister Bonin Please help keep Venice the way it is. Housing

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Name: Karen Smith

Comments for Public Posting: I am saying NO to the mega development of a block long hotel on

Abbot Kinney Blvd. I am a nearby homeowner, and I do not want the congestion and noise. This neighborhood already has majorly insufficient parking and space, and is way too population dense for this kind of project. The quality of life will be adversely affected for all residents. This is another example of ruthless developers who don’t care at all about the neighborhoods they decide to tear up. They only care about money. We care about our lives here. I sincerely hope the city has SOME sensitivity towards its constituency and denies this unnecessary and behemoth project that in no way serves its residents.

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Name: Jan Slayton

Comments for Public Posting: I live 1 block west of Abbot Kinney and have lived here for 35

years. I am now not able to leave my home because when I come back everyone who works on Abbot Kinney will have filled up all the parking. I am over it. If you want to build something build a parking lot that all those people have to park in. Not on our residential streets!!!!!

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Name:

Comments for Public Posting: Do not allow the Venice Place project to move forward. It does

nor meet the requirements of the Venice Specific Plan and is out of sync with what the history and character of venice is about. Do not let developers slip around the requirements and buy/bully their way in to this one of a kind city. Please stop the progress in it's tracks, Respectfully submitted, A 20 year resident of Oakwood

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Name: Miles Perlich

Comments for Public Posting: I totally oppose the Venice Place Project. This would be an

absolute disaster for our neighborhood as the area is already over saturated with traffic, noise and congestion on Abbot Kinney and surrounding streets. I'm all for smart development that adds to the quality of life in our community, but the Venice Place Project will do just the opposite. This cannot be allowed to happen.

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Name: Rachel Hoyt

Comments for Public Posting: I oppose the "Venice Place Project".. It is too large for that

location.. and it would be a parking nightmare.. And not okay from being across the street from the elementary school.

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Name: Josh Fruehling

Comments for Public Posting: I oppose the "Venice Place Project". This neighborhood has been

getting more and more overcrowded for years and now this development will become a major problem by removing land for housing, increasing the amount of people in Venice on a daily basis, furthering gentrification that pushes locals out and puts a massive blight on the neighborhood that serves to erode the character where we live.

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Name: Tony Truong

Comments for Public Posting: I oppose the "Venice Place Project." We do not need a mega

development to dwarf everything on the street and set dangerous precedent for future development.

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Name: Janet Lally

Comments for Public Posting: I oppose the Venice Place Project. It's a terrible idea and will only

benefit the developers. We need more housing in Venice, not hotel rooms. We need development that is at an appropriate scale for the neighborhood. The proposed hotel will clog the streets nearby with way too much traffic. These are small streets that already have too many cars. Also it is right across the street from an elementary school, not an appropriate place for a huge hotel serving liquor all day long in its bars. Many guests will look for free parking in the neighborhood and use up all the parking spaces that residents need. This plan needs to be thrown out!

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Name: Felice Callans

Comments for Public Posting: I oppose the 'Venice Place Project". It is completely out of

character and way too large a development for the area. It will destroy what is left of the character of Abbot Kinney and cause traffic chaos.

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Name: Jim Nadolny

Comments for Public Posting: This comment is in opposition to a planned hotel complex on

Abbot Kinney Blvd. in Venice known as "The Venice Place Project". In short: Too big, too much new traffic, too big an impact on available residential parking. Further additional negative impact on the social texture of neighborhood. Already a rather unhealthy "destination" aspect has developed over the last decade with event and stores that would be better suited to - say -the Farmers Market complex on Melrose, rather a neighborhood shopping street. The project will accelerate the effect by a level of magnitude. My main concern is parking. I am actually not a fan of residential permit parking zones, because I believe they reduce the vibrancy of urban life by creating residential ghettos. But such would be the only way to prevent an additional 100 or even 200 cars each day pushing onto the residential street in order to avoid -usually massively overpriced - on-site parking. I do understand those drivers. I just don't think a project that creates such problems does not belong into such a small, tight neighborhood. In conclusion: This is the type of megalomania that will open the doors to a new, rather unpleasant "Abbot Disney Blvd".

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Name: Gurbir Tur

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Name: Henry Kao

Comments for Public Posting: we object to this proposal. the homeless situation is out of control

in Venice and the City of Los Angeles in general. Building a housing project directly adjacent to the Venice Canals, an

architectural icon, a tourist destination and landmark, a high end residential area. is absolutely NOT the solution! do BETTER!

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Name: Fred P

Comments for Public Posting: I oppose the Venice Place Project. It is out of place in our

community and inappropriately situated across from a school. Also, who tears down a pre-school to build a mega hotel?

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Name: Claire Pichel

Comments for Public Posting: I oppose the Venice Place Project. It is out of place in our

community and inappropriately situated across from a school. Also, who tears down a pre-school to build a mega hotel? Please put a stop to this development.

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Name: Hailey Burkhardt

Comments for Public Posting: As a resident of Venice Beach, I STRONGLY oppose the Venice

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Name: Pietro Cecchini

Comments for Public Posting: I would like to voice my strong disapproval for this project. I feel

it is wrong for out neighborhood, and cannot find any positive outcome from its development. I do NOT support this project and do not want it to be approved or to proceed. Pietro Cecchini, 20 year home owner and resident in Venice (Brooks at 4th Ave.)

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Name: Luca Cecchini

Comments for Public Posting: I strongly oppose the venice place project. It will increase the

harmful effects of gentrification on venice and create lots of problems for the surrounding area, including but not limited to parking, having a hotel bar next to an elementary school, and closing down local restaurants, a preschool, and a garden that defined the atmosphere of the neighborhood. The housing units provided will be few, expensive, and unobtainable to those in need of low income housing--they will be built for the rich. Venice needs more affordable housing and resources for the homeless, not a hotel that will displace those who are being hit hardest by the current recession and omnipresent gentrification.

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Name: Martha H Smith

Comments for Public Posting: I oppose the Venice Place Project. Let's create homes and

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Name: Sergio Rodriguez

Date Submitted: 09/07/2020 11:10 AM

Comments for Public Posting: I am writing to strongly oppose the Venice Place Project for a

number of reasons: 1) A 78 guest room high-end hotel for an area lacking in affordable housing is out of touch with the needs of the community (aka affordable housing) 2) The addition of 175 spaces for non-residential car storage will greatly increase automobile congestion on an already high volume road. Not only will there be an increase of traffic, but this will also indirectly yield an increase in pedestrian activity. The proposed project does not take into account the needed to include or specifically advocate for additional safety measures for pedestrians, cyclists and other individuals who pursue short-term trips (less than 2 miles) via other modes of transportation. A significantly higher volume of automobile activity (as suggested via the proposed additional non-residential car storage) in an already high volume automobile corridor increases the potential points of vehicle-vehicle conflict points and more severely vehicle-pedestrian 3) The project suggests that there will be no back up on Electric Avenue, but does not specify how this is will be managed or implemented as a higher volume of car storage will automatically increase the automobile activity in the surrounding areas, specifically the nearby residential streets. 4) The project promotes itself as striving "for LEED Gold or Platinum certification and integrate emerging sustainable technologies in design, construction practices and operations," yet is carelessly promoting automobile usage implementing 175 spaces for car storage The proposed project is too large and incongruent to the size and needs of the community. It is visible in their plans that the individual or group has not taken into account the downstream effects of additional traffic on an already high volume corridor, higher pedestrian volume and additional potential points of conflict between pedestrians/cyclists and automobiles, the effect of 175+ vehicles in the immediate residential surrounding areas in the form of traffic and noise as well as safety concerns of 175 additional vehicles traveling through and around the already very narrow residential streets. Increased economic opportunity and growth is more feasible and produces larger results via pedestrian-focused activity. Venice will be limiting its potential growth if we are overrun by vehicular traffic.

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Name:

Comments for Public Posting: I oppose the Venice Place Project. I live in Venice and doing that

to this neighborhood will make it unmanageable. In order to do something like this, we need and INCLUSIVE planning process not just catering to mega-developers. There will be more traffic, which over the past few years has already become gridlock, inadequate parking for residents, and make the neighborhood unlivable. It is already extremely congested Bc of the lack of foundation for its growth.It is important that the neighborhood grow, and that we deal with the extreme homeless population problem. However, to be successful there should be a plan encompassing all parts, otherwise the system will collapse over time.

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Name: Amauta Marston-Firmino

Comments for Public Posting: I oppose the Venice Place Project. It will clog an already

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Name: norbert weisser

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Name: Angela

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Name: Jose

Comments for Public Posting: I oppose the ridiculous “Venice place project” we do not need or

want a hotel/bar on Abbot Kinney Next to a school or in a community that desperately needs affordable housing amidst a pandemic where thousands/Venetians have lost jobs or are not working. To see another shitty hotel pop up is horrible. No one wants Venice to be Santa Monica. Please do not make our streets even more packed with tourist who don’t give a shit about our streets as they over crowd them and pollute our streets, beaches, beach runoffs and cause trouble at night acting crazy leaving bars.

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Name: Elizabeth VanZandt

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Name: Dean Pace

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Name: Maxine Kesselman

Comments for Public Posting: Voting no to 70,000 sq ft mega development hotel on Abbot

Kinney. Inadequate parking, close to the Westminster Elementary School, and will jam up the local streets of citizens. Develop more housing NOT hotels!

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Name: Violet Mendoza

Comments for Public Posting: I don’t want a mega hotel development to be built on abbot

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Name: Kathy Suder

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Name: Jim O'Brien

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Name:

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Name: Oliver Hoffmann

Comments for Public Posting: I do oppose the “Venice Place Project”. The Venice area already

underwent a transformation during the last year that negatively impacted it’s residents by replacing smaller properties with “luxury” ones. New developments should be in appropriate to the scan of the surrounding buildings, should focus on housing, and not businesses.

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Name: Margot Zimmermann-Gendraud

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Name: Brent Bovenzi

Comments for Public Posting: Hi my name is Brent, resident of Oakwood, here to support the

development on Abbot Kinney. Millions of people want to visit Venice every year, Abbot Kinney is one of the most famous streets in the whole city. It makes sense to have a hotel there. Far too many homes in Venice have been turned into Airbnbs precisely because the demand for hotel rooms far exceeds the supply. One hotel is not a "mega-project". Let's not stop a perfectly reasonable development because of exaggerated fears of traffic and parking.

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Name: Manny

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Name: David Voss

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Name: Isaac gomez

Comments for Public Posting: I lived in Venice my whole life and all I’ve seen is gentrification

and local residents bribed with quick cash to move out when their property value skyrocketed more than what they were offered. It’s not fair. A community shouldn’t be broken apart. I remember when they purposely burned down the pier and didn’t let fire fighters contain the fire. Just to relocated groups that would hang in the area. Our local government doesn’t want us to live freely. They want to put up apartments and charge an arm and a leg for a town that used to be considered a slum. The history in Venice needs to be preserved. This was once a black and Hispanic owner community, we weren’t allowed to live anywhere else. The whites pushed us into this Venice/Mar Vista/Santa Monica area and now that all the inland property is bought up and prices drop they want to buy up our town and remodel all the homes to look modern when in fact they look like giant hamster cages. It’s no fair, it’s up to you to listen to community and do what’s right for the people not the dollar value. I have had family here for 80+ years I own multiple properties here, this new 72,000 sqf hotel would raise my property value but that’s not what I value as a human being. I want to go for a walk with individuals I can say hi to everyday. I don’t want to live in a community with entitlement, every new residents keep their head high from pride of the amount they pay to live here. These people aren’t genuine and Venice is all about the real.

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Name: Jay Zaretsky

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Name: Samson

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Name: Amelia Alvarez

Comments for Public Posting: I oppose the Venice place project. It is not appropriate to have

such a structure across from a local public elementary school. This sort of structure and the tourism it will bring is not appropriate for our neighborhood which is largely families. Look at the horrible congestion on Ocean Ave in Santa Monica or the hideous morass that Hollywood has become. Our small beach community does not need this development.

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Name:

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Name: jay grossman

Comments for Public Posting: Dear Honorable Council members, I am writing to ask you to

either deny approval outright for the hotel and retail development known as The Venice Place Project or veto it and send it back to the WLA Planning Commission for further review and community input. The Venice community has opposed this project since it was first proposed 8 years ago. In that time, the developers have done little to address community concerns that have been brought up over and over again. Among the issues that have never been addressed: The developer seeks to tie 8 lots together in an area where legally they can only tie 3 lots together. This will set a dangerous precedent for future development in Venice. The project will negatively impact the quality of life for the historically African-American community of Oakwood, an area already disproportionally impacted by COVID, lack of affordable housing, gentrification, land speculation and inadequate parking. At capacity (and especially during events such as weddings, screenings, and business gatherings) there is simply not enough parking to accommodate the hotel, multiple bars and restaurants and thousands of square feet of office/retail space. Overflow traffic will park in Oakwood, where the Coastal Commission has mandated parking be free and unrestricted. The infrastructure in the area is not adequate to accommodate the traffic this project will generate. With the parking entrance and exit located on Electric Ave. - a tiny side street barely wide enough for one car to pass at a time now and locked in on all sides by single family homes and small apartments - gridlock is inevitable at peak times there and the surface streets in Oakwood. And unlike other retail or residential projects on Abbot Kinney, the hotel will be open 24 hours a day, bringing with it traffic very late at night and early in the morning. The developers claim they will provide state of the art "automated" parking, but have admitted the technology is new and untested. Worse, they've provided no back up plan in case the technology fails. The developers are seeking a liquor license to serve alcohol from 7AM-1AM, even though it will be located directly across the street from the Westminster Elementary School. Lastly, the West LA Planning Commission, headed by Mike Newhouse, has failed to implement the Mayor's Executive Directive 27, acknowledging that racism and inequality continue to harm communities of color in Los Angeles, and that the West LA Planning Commission

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populations and those denied resources and a voice for so long. Until these issues are adequately addressed by the developer, I respectfully ask you to deny approval outright or veto this project as proposed send it back to the WLA Planning Commission for further review and community input. Sincerely, Jay Grossman 6600 West 82nd Street Los Angeles, Ca. 90045