PROPOSED CONDO COMPLEX WOULD INCLUDE RETAIL SPACE.Byline: GREGORY J. WILCOX WOODLAND HILLS - Scott Dinovitz sees the concept of mixing retail and residential space work in other places and wonders why not here. He, and his partners, are about to find out. They want to build a condominium condominium In modern property law, individual ownership of one dwelling unit within a multidwelling building. Unit owners have undivided ownership interest in the land and those portions of the building shared in common. complex that includes a retail component like a restaurant, cleaners and other small shops on a Woodland Hills bluff that offers views across the Valley. First, though, they will see some red tape and some skeptical community members. Even so, Dinovitz, president of D2 Development Inc. and Troxler Residential Ventures XXVI, are betting $25 million that this highly touted concept will make a successful debut in the west San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. . They've bought the 8.3-acre landmark property that first housed the Valley Music Theater in the Round and was more recently an assembly hall for the Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses, Christian group originating in the United States at the end of the 19th cent., organized by Charles Taze Russell, whose doctrine centers on the Second Coming of Christ. . Now all Dinovitz has to do is come up with a plan that pleases a couple of neighborhood groups that cast a critical eye on development guys. Those would be the Woodland Hills Warner Center Neighborhood Council and the Woodland Hills Homeowners Organization. He's mindful mind·ful adj. Attentive; heedful: always mindful of family responsibilities. See Synonyms at careful. mind of the task, pulling out of a meeting about a month ago after deciding what information he could offer the groups was too sketchy. ``We want to be able to answer all of (their) questions. We didn't want to do anything premature and we want it to be a nice addition to the neighborhood, not an eyesore eye·sore n. Something, such as a distressed building, that is unpleasant or offensive to view. eyesore Noun something very ugly Noun 1. ,'' he said. Details are still being worked out. Dinovitz is not sure how many condos will be built, but it will probably be more than 200. The retail operations will be at street level, grading kept to a minimum and no change in the current zoning, a mix of high and medium density residential, will be sought, he said. ``I really like the access to Ventura Boulevard Ventura Boulevard is one of the primary east-west thouroughfares in the San Fernando Valley; as it was originally a part of the El Camino Real (the trail between Spanish missions), Ventura Boulevard is the oldest route in the San Fernando Valley. It was also U.S. , it has fantastic views and it's an infill in·fill n. 1. The use of vacant land and property within a built-up area for further construction or development, especially as part of a neighborhood preservation or limited growth program. 2. site. There are existing residential and commercial projects surrounding it,'' Dinovitz said. While the zoning is already in place, the partnership will still have to submit a subdivision tract map because the use is changing from a church to residential, said Tom Henry, planning deputy for Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. City Councilman Dennis Zine. This means the project will need approval from the planning department. And it will likely need the neighborhood nod, too. Dinovitz hopes to be ready for his public presentation in four to six weeks - it will be the first of many. ``Traffic will probably be a major issue (and) there will be quite a few public hearings,'' Henry said. The parcel has some historical significance, too. The initial announcement on behalf of commercial broker Lee & Associates noted that the church bought the land from the late Bob Hope. Turns out, that is only partially correct, notes reader Sidney T. Lubin, a retired doctor who practiced in the West Valley for four decades. He had a piece of the action, too. And so did lots of other folks. Lubin said an investment group, Music Theater Inc., that included entertainer Art Linkletter Art Linkletter (born Gordon Arthur Kelly on July 17 1912 in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada), was the host of two of the longest-running shows in United States broadcast history: House Party, which ran on CBS radio and television for 25 years, and , sold shares in the theater project. Lubin and his wife Deborah were among the investors. Things didn't go too well. ``All I got out of it was a preferred parking space (before) it went broke.'' Gregory J. Wilcox, (818) 713-3743 greg.wilcox(at)dailynews.com |
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