Larchmont 2030 calls for ‘gentle density’
UPPER LARCHMONT could incorporate designs like these on the left. Citizens are wary of designs like these on the right.
Housing in Los Angeles is a hot-button item, and the future of upper Larchmont Boulevard between Beverly Boulevard and Melrose Avenue has been in discussion for several years. Reboot Larchmont, a local advocacy group started by Larchmont Village resident Sam Uretsky, has teamed up with Livable Communities Initiative (LCI), a grassroots organization also started in the neighborhood. Together they formed Larchmont 2030.
In July, Larchmont 2030 hosted a couple of Zoom meetings and one in-person meeting to discuss, answer questions and spread the word about housing options for upper Larchmont. Discussions about this area were initially started by local resident Jane Usher in 2020. Usher served as president of the Los Angeles City Planning Commission from October 2005 until her resignation in December 2008. Former Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa appointed her to the City Planning Commission.
What is Livable Community?
During the Zoom meeting, LCI co-founders presented potential designs for owner- occupied housing units on the upper Boulevard that incorporate “gentle density housing” (three to five stories) over retail space with façades in a variety of styles, such as Art Deco, Spanish and Modernist, facing the Boulevard. Housing units would range in size from one to three bedrooms, each unit having a private patio with a shared courtyard on the ground floor. The plans conceived specifically for Larchmont will have the rear of the building tiered, allowing residents more privacy.
SIMILAR LOT SIZES, along with standard plans, make construction more cost effective.
Currently, upper Larchmont is filled with office buildings, bungalows, empty lots and apartment buildings. Most of the commercial lots are similar in size, making the transformation of the street easier.
The idea is similar to creating an old-time “Main Street,” with the majority of one’s daily needs available within 15 minutes of one’s residence. Not only would it be convenient, it would also pleasing to the eye. Paris is frequently mentioned as a model. Another way to think of it is as a Sears house kit—predesigned blueprints coupled with materials that were used to build homes in the early 1900s—but for city streets. Los Angeles already has standard plans for additional dwelling units, so it’s possible.
LCI did its own informal survey to find out if employees on Larchmont would be interested in this kind of housing. The answer was a resounding yes.
Although the organization started in this neighborhood, its plan can be used throughout the city and the country. Similar layouts have already been instituted in the city of New Orleans, Louisiana, and in South Bend, Indiana. There’s talk of implementing this type of system in Alta Dena and Pacific Palisades.
Can it come to fruition?
According to one of the co-founders of LCI, Lindsay Sturman, “Los Angeles has the second lowest home ownership in the country.” Plans like these could start to change that. Larchmont 2030 has already started reaching out to land and building owners on upper Larchmont.
There are multiple hurdles, but LCI is addressing them head-on. Some obstacles include changing the current building code requiring two stairwells to one, getting the mayor’s office behind it and having multiple city agencies talk to each other and review the plans. But the team has been chipping away at the obstacles and gaining support from city officials and departments along the way. According to Uretsky, Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martínez is very supportive of the idea. Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky proposed a motion to modify the current stairwell code to the Los Angeles City Council. The Los Angeles Fire Dept. as well as the Los Angeles Dept. of Building and Safety have been receptive to the plans. Finally, the Larchmont Boulevard Association, a coalition representing businesses on the Boulevard, recently endorsed the plan. Those who participated during the July Zoom meeting seemed very much in favor of the transformation.
Category: News
