Beverly Hills has moved closer to creating an affordable housing development for seniors following a vote taken by the City Council at its Nov. 12 meeting.
The council voted 4-1 to approve an Exclusive Negotiation Agreement (ENA) between the city and West Hollywood Community Housing Corporation (WHCHC), a nonprofit affordable housing developer, regarding the potential for a 100% affordable housing development at 327-335 S. Robertson Blvd.
Vice Mayor Craig Corman voted against the agreement.
The approved ENA allows for a one-year negotiation period for a ground lease between the city and WHCHC with the possibility of extensions for up to six months. According to a report written by city staff, a project at the property could potentially deliver between approximately 50 and 80 affordable units.
Beverly Hills has committed to facilitating the development of 557 units of affordable housing on city property under its housing element.
The possible project that has been preliminarily proposed by WHCHC, which would own and operate the development, is a four- to five-story building with a minimum of 50 units and an additional rooftop amenity level. The proposed development would include some ground-floor retail and surface parking.
Public outreach and community input will inform the project plans.
The property on Robertson Boulevard currently houses a single-story, 6,000-square-foot commercial structure containing eight retail spaces, five of which are vacant.
During the ENA period, the city will be prohibited from negotiating with any other entity for the sale, lease or development of the site. Under the agreement, WHCHC will be required to cover all costs related to an environmental review. The developer will also be obligated to hold public outreach meetings in coordination with the city.
The issue was discussed in more detail during the council’s Study Session, also held on Nov. 12. At that meeting, Councilmember John Mirisch, who served on the Affordable Housing Ad Hoc Committee along with Councilmember Mary Wells, noted that the city has been in discussions with WHCHC for at least five years regarding senior supportive housing. He said that the first two sites they considered both turned out to be on fault lines.
“This is essentially a pivot as a result of earthquake faults that don’t allow us to build where we would have preferred to have built, and where we could build a larger number of units,” said Mirisch.
The council additionally voted 4-1, with Corman dissenting, to transfer the property at 327-335 S. Robertson Blvd. by a quitclaim deed from the city’s Parking Authority to the city. The Parking Authority acquired the property in November 2019 for $10.1 million with the intent of developing it into a parking lot or structure, but the city’s focus has since shifted to affordable housing.
Councilmembers reiterated multiple times during discussion at their Nov. 12 Regular Meeting that the vote does not constitute an approval for development to begin, or even for a specific plan for the site.
“They’re not definite plans to develop the site for affordable housing, it’s to the potential development of the site for affordable housing,” said Wells. “I don’t want people to be under the impression that it’s already been decided to develop this property for affordable housing.”
Councilmember Lester Friedman further clarified that the possibility of building with WHCHC is “just one of many options that is being considered.”
“This is just another option in part because we lost the ability in another area of town to fulfill our requirement with the State of California Housing Division,” he said. “This is just another possibility. It is certainly not something that I envision as a final step.”
Recent projects developed by WHCHC, which was founded in 1986, include four affordable housing developments in the Koreatown/Pico Union area and another in the Westlake North neighborhood of Los Angeles.
The organization is not formally affiliated with the city of West Hollywood.
According to a presentation given at the council’s Study Session by Logan Phillippo, the city’s real property development manager, WHCHC does not anticipate needing gap funding for the project and the city is not making any financial commitments at the moment. However, Phillippo said, “It’s always contingent on the availability of the funding sources and their successful application.”
WHCHC plans to apply for $3 million in funding through the L.A. County Affordable Housing Solutions Agency, which recently sent out a draft notice of funding availability using Measure A funds. In order to be eligible, WHCHC must demonstrate site control, which they may do with the approved ENA.
The deadline for applications is Dec. 22.
