Studio City Ca Development And Redevelopment

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge has denied a Studio City residents group's request for a court order to stop the In-N-Out Burgers chain from building a controversial restaurant at the corner of Cahuenga Boulevard and Regal Place. On Friday, Judge Diane Wayne denied the Studio City Residents Assn.'s request for a temporary restraining order, calling it unnecessary.

It all started with Great Uncle Fred. Half a century ago, the stubborn old banker had a mind to rent out the family farm. A rather bad deal in retrospect: $1,000 a month, regardless of inflation, for 50 years. That choice chunk of San Fernando Valley real estate is now the Studio City Golf and Tennis Club, a 17-acre spread still owned by Fred Weddington's great-nephew and other relatives.

Mann's Studio Theater in Studio City, one of only two operating single-screen theaters in the San Fernando Valley, will go dark in February, a victim of the burgeoning trend toward multi-screen complexes. But the 50-year-old landmark may be saved from the wrecking ball and restored to its original grandeur.

A proposed senior housing project on part of the Studio City Golf and Tennis complex has led residents to protest the threatened loss of open space and recreational facilities in the densely developed community. The 240-unit independent living project for seniors would use four or five acres of the 17-acre golf and tennis center on Whitsett Avenue, likely requiring one hole of the nine-hole golf course to be relocated and eliminating many of the tennis courts, officials said.

After weeks of negotiations, Studio City's new bookstore has won consent from a residents group to replace a five-foot-tall stucco falcon head atop an old building with a single red star. In exchange, Bookstop/Bookstar Inc. agreed to scrap plans to remove the name Studio City from two signs on a prominent column and promised not to paint green- and peach-colored stripes on the building, an old movie theater that the new owners are converting. The issue might seem trivial.

It all started with Great Uncle Fred. Half a century ago, the stubborn old banker had a mind to rent out the family farm. A rather bad deal in retrospect: $1,000 a month, regardless of inflation, for 50 years. That choice chunk of San Fernando Valley real estate is now the Studio City Golf and Tennis Club, a 17-acre spread still owned by Fred Weddington's great-nephew and other relatives.

Groundbreaking ceremonies for a larger, updated Studio City branch library will be held at 3:30 p.m. today. The new library at 4400 Babcock Ave. is scheduled to open sometime next year, said Rachel Conger, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles library system.

A city zoning administrator Friday favored limiting the hours of operation for a large grocery market and drugstore planned for a 100,000-square-foot development at Vineland Avenue and Ventura Boulevard. Saying crime levels in the largely residential area are higher than the Los Angeles average, city Associate Zoning Administrator Leonard S. Levine said a 24-hour operation might be inappropriate and called for the anticipated operating hours to be 6 a.m. to midnight. Von Der Ahe Property Co.

In a raucous meeting Monday punctuated by catcalls and applause, neighbors and business people testified for and against Universal Studios' proposed $2-billion, 25-year expansion plan in the final public-comment session by the Los Angeles County Regional Planning Commission. Film critic Leonard Maltin gave thumbs down to Universal's project, saying that crime, noise and traffic have dramatically worsened in the six years he has lived in Toluca Lake.

Although city zoning officials already have approved CBS Studio Center's plans to build a six-story parking garage as part of its expansion, the Studio City Residents Assn. is continuing its effort to negotiate a compromise with the studio and the city. At a neighborhood meeting Monday night, a list of four conditions passed a vote by a roughly 3-to-1 margin. The association, which has appealed the city's decision, plans to present the list to CBS and the city in the upcoming weeks.

A proposed senior citizens housing project on part of the Studio City Golf and Tennis complex has led some residents to protest the threatened loss of open space and recreational facilities in the densely developed community.

Despite warnings that it is inviting a lawsuit, the Los Angeles City Council voted Wednesday to reject a proposal that would allow the construction of six luxury homes at the northern end of Hazelbrook Road. Buttressed by opposition from the Studio City Residents' Assn., Councilman Joel Wachs argued that the hilly property is too steep to accommodate more than two or three houses.

Groundbreaking ceremonies for a larger, updated Studio City branch library will be held at 3:30 p.m. today. The new library at 4400 Babcock Ave. is scheduled to open sometime next year, said Rachel Conger, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles library system.

Moving to polish commercial areas around two major San Fernando Valley streets, the Los Angeles City Council on Tuesday voted to create business improvement districts in Studio City and Canoga Park. Creation of the districts, approved by a majority of merchants in each area, allows businesses to assess themselves to pay for improved security, landscaping, marketing and storefront refurbishments over the next five years. The initiatives were hailed by politicians and local businesspeople.

City Councilman Joel Wachs and two residents groups have joined in opposition to a property owner's proposal to build 13 houses on 14 acres of open space in the Studio City hills. Property owner Howard Stone is seeking approval from the city Planning Department to build a private road and emergency access into a small canyon that would allow him to construct homes on the property, said Tom Henry, planning deputy for Wachs. The Planning Department has not yet scheduled a hearing on the proposal.

The city's Board of Zoning Appeals on Tuesday reversed a zoning administrator's decision to limit the operating hours of a proposed Ralphs grocery and Rite Aid pharmacy planned for the site of the now-closed Racquet Centre. On a 5-0 vote, the board granted property owner VDA Property Co.'s appeal, asking for the reversal of Associate zoning administrator Leonard S. Levine's May decision to limit operating hours to between 6 a.m. and midnight.

A homeowners association has scheduled a meeting with representatives of two Los Angeles city councilmen and city engineers tonight to voice objections to a $1.6-million plan to widen the Tujunga Avenue bridge in Studio City. City officials have said widening the bridge over the Los Angeles River just north of Ventura Boulevard is necessary to avoid traffic bottlenecks and to eliminate city liability if the narrow bridge were to cause an accident.

Los Angeles Councilmen John Ferraro and Joel Wachs say they agree with Studio City residents that the widening of the Tujunga Avenue Bridge over the Los Angeles River would make it a bridge too far. Last week, Ferraro and Wachs announced their opposition to the $1.6-million project, which the city Bureau of Engineering had proposed--initially to relieve a traffic bottleneck, then out of safety concerns.

The developer of the proposed Studio City Plaza shopping center has appealed a decision that would limit the operating hours of businesses to be located on 100,000 square feet of land that now contains the Racquet Centre, a representative of the developer said Monday. The appeal is one of many issues that has led developer Von Der Ahe Property Co. to delay the closing of the public tennis facility for a couple more months, said Pauline Amond, a legislative advocate for VDA Property.

Although area residents were told two months ago that McDonald's had shown interest in building a restaurant at Coldwater Canyon Boulevard and Moorpark Avenue, a company representative said the fast-food chain has no plans to build in the neighborhood. "We don't have any plans to build in Studio City," Sandy Ayers, a McDonald's real estate representative, said Tuesday. "We looked, that's what our business is. I have looked at maybe 20 places in the San Fernando Valley."