October 18, 2011

Douglas GuthrieGeneral ManagerLos Angeles Department of HousingGarland Center1200 West 7th Street, 1st FloorLos Angeles, CA 90017

Michael LoGrandeDirector of PlanningLos Angeles Planning Department200 North Spring Street, 5th FloorLos Angeles, CA 90012

RE: Samoa Ave. Affordable Housing ProjectDIR 2011-2058-SPR-DB/ENV2011-2059-EAF

Dear Messers Guthrie and LoGrande,

I am writing to confirm the details of the many discussions that my staff has hadwith your offices regarding the proposed affordable housing project at 10056Samoa Ave in Tujunga, CA.

Specifically, I would like to confirm the following details regarding the processand conditions for potential TEFRA loan financing and project entitlement andapproval:

• The developer of the project, Samoa Avenue Housing, will not receiveany bond financing until the project is fully entitled and approved.  

• The current deadline to release bond financing for this project as approvedin April (CF # 11-0404) is October 28th, 2011;

• If this project does not receive full entitlement by October 28th, 2011 theTEFRA bond financing will expire and the developer will have to reapplyfor TEFRA bond financing.

 

 

• The developer has until October 20th, 2011 to apply for a four monthextension of the TEFRA bond financing application and the California DebtLimit Allocations Committee will be the sole authority in approving ordenying the extension request.

• This project application has been deemed “complete;” however, it hasNOT been deemed “approved.”

• This project’s Mitigated Negative Declaration (MND) has been deemedcomplete, however it has NOT been approved and must still be subject tofull public review.

• The public can submit comments on the MND until November 2nd, 2011.• When the public comment period ends, the Planning Department will have

75 days to summarize the opinions and prepare responses.• Before the 75-day window closes on Jan. 28, 2012, the Planning

Department will need to make its determination regarding the application,and at that time the community will have two weeks to appeal thedetermination if it chooses to do so.

• The Planning Department has agreed not to issue its determination priorto January of 2012.

As you know, this project has received City Council approval for $13 million inTEFRA bond financing. Although my office supported the application for thisbond financing, my support was and will continue to be conditional upon theproject meeting certain criteria. As I said in my original letter of February 15th,2011:

“This project will be developed in accordance with the provisions of theFoothill Boulevard Corridor Specific Plan and its associated DesignGuidelines and Standards Manual. In addition, the developer of thisproject has met with the Land Use Committee of the Sunland-TujungaNeighborhood Council, and in response to concerns about parking thatwere raised by members of the Committee, the developer has agreed todouble the number of parking spaces originally proposed in itsdesign. The developer has further assured my office that it will continue tomaintain an open dialogue with the Neighborhood Council to addressadditional concerns that the community may have and to ensure that thisproject is consistent with the unique character of this community. “

 

 

My office is committed to ensuring we can develop affordable housing in this Cityand in Council District 2, however my support for any and all projects, whetherthey be affordable housing or market rate, are that they comport with thecharacter and aesthetics of the community and that the developers work with thecommunity to meet the needs of local residents and mitigate adverse impacts.

Please ensure that your staff continues to monitor this project closely and informsmy office of any and all changes in status regarding the application, TEFRA bondfinancing, and any other pertinent information that needs to be shared with thecommunity.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me or my Deputy Chief ofStaff, Areen Ibranossian, at 213-473-7002.

Very truly yours,

PAUL KREKORIANCouncilmember, Second District

cc: Sunland-Tujunga Neighborhood CouncilSunland-Tujunga AllianceMilare Housing Investments, Inc.