BUILDING GUIDELINES PROPOSED : ST. VIBIANA'S STATUS MAY REQUIRE REVIEW.

Byline: Rick Orlov Daily News Staff Writer

Los Angeles City Councilman Nate Holden called Friday for tougher requirements in naming buildings as historic cultural monuments to avoid future problems similar to those involving St. Vibiana's Cathedral.

Holden said he believes the city should be required to perform an environmental impact review before any new properties are placed on the list of monuments.

Superior Court Judge Robert O'Brien said such a study must be performed before the city can remove the cathedral from the list of historic monuments.

``If this is the case, then it would be equally appropriate to impose the same requirement on any action to include a facility on the city's list of historic and cultural monuments,'' Holden said.

Holden's proposal, which was sent to the council's Arts, Health and Humanities Committee for review, asks the City Attorney's Office to draft the language necessary to change the present city law.

Such a review would give officials additional time to consider whether to give such a designation to a building, Holden said.

The City Council is scheduled to consider Tuesday whether to overrule its Cultural Historic Commission's recommendation to keep St. Vibiana's listed as a historic monument.

Cardinal Roger Mahony wants to demolish the 120-year-old facility and replace it with a $45 million cathedral square project, which would include offices and a conference facility.

He has been stymied in his effort by O'Brien's order as the result of a lawsuit filed by the Los Angeles Conservancy.

There were no new developments in the dispute Friday as attorneys for the archdiocese waited for Mahony to return to Los Angeles to discuss the options available to the archdiocese.