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Del Aire
apartment complex gets interim OK
Traffic, parking and
construction issues must be addressed before the project is formally
approved.
By Alison Shackelford
April 28, 2005
A controversial 430-unit apartment complex in Del Aire received
tentative approval Tuesday from the Board of Supervisors, with
Supervisor Yvonne Brathwaite Burke asking the developer to meet new
conditions before the county formally signs off on the complex.
Trammell Crow Residential must address concerns about parking,
traffic and construction, and develop a formal way for local
residents to communicate their opposition to the project, as part of
an eight-page motion by Burke that was unanimously approved by the
board.
The developer also will have to provide a plan to reduce the effect
of construction on the surrounding business park, and could end up
paying to expand parking at the nearby Airport Courthouse, among
other things.
But even if all the individual conditions in Burke's motion aren't
met, the board can still grant approval when the project returns for
consideration, the motion states.
"We'll have to see how it works," Burke said after the meeting.
There may be a need for further changes to the development, she
said, adding that she hopes the changes proposed in her motion will
be enough.
Before the vote, dozens of Del Aire residents opposed to the project
complained to the board about additional traffic, crowded schools
and other effects they expect the apartment complex to have on their
community.
But Burke was adamant that more housing is urgently needed in the
area.
"The project will provide work-force housing for professionals and
others likely to fill the jobs in this area, and this is an
important need for the county," she said.
Del Aire resident Ardis Dahl said she and many of her neighbors fear
the board's action likely means the end of their monthslong battle
to derail the complex.
"I don't know what more we can do," she said. When Burke, after more
than an hour of testimony from concerned residents, responded by
reading her amendment, it seemed that she had made up her mind ahead
of time, Dahl said.
"Today was just an exercise in futility for us, and we're all very
disappointed to the point of being depressed," she said.
However, Michael Genthe, managing director of Trammell Crow
Residential, said he was very pleased with Tuesday's vote, adding
that he didn't think Trammell Crow would need to make any more
changes to the development.
The developer has already proposed paying $1.25 million in standard
development fees as well as an additional $322,000 in voluntary
contributions to community resources such as child care, schools and
libraries used by residents. The so-called "community benefits
package" is designed to benefit residents in both Del Aire and
Hawthorne.
Addressing Hawthorne's concerns could prove vital, because the
Hawthorne City Council authorized a lawsuit in December to block the
development. The council was scheduled to discuss the lawsuit in a
closed session on Tuesday night, and the developer has offered
additional benefits, according to Trammell Crow officials.
The developer cannot begin construction until it receives final
approval from the county. That could happen in as little as six
weeks, a spokesman for Burke said.
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