At its regular meeting on Dec. 9, the Beverly Hills City Council discussed potential changes to regulations governing medical use for commercial spaces.
As part of that discussion, it also considered changes to the medical taxation structure, which will be incorporated into a city-wide business tax modernization study being conducted by the city’s Finance Department.
The council’s discussion served as an annual update and the requisite three-year review of an ordinance adopted in 2022 that revised the city’s medical use regulations to allow the conversion of existing commercial space to certain medical uses, prohibited so-called “specialty clinics” and prohibited medical uses on the ground floor of commercial buildings.
Councilmembers were charged with ensuring that an increase in converting commercial spaces to medical use spaces hasn’t created unforeseen problems to commercial or residential properties and uses.
The ordinance adopted by the City Council in 2022 served as a continuation of an urgency ordinance adopted in November 2020 that offered flexibility for commercially zoned properties during the COVID-19 pandemic, when commercial spaces were being vacated.
Since the adoption of the ordinance in 2022 to October of this year, 88 permits have been issued for the conversion of commercial space to new medical uses.
Of those, 17 were issued between January and October, including a nail spa that was converted into a medical spa, a general office space converted into an ambulatory surgical site and several office spaces converted to dental offices.
In 2024, 13 permits were issued; 25 were issued in 2023; and between 2020 and 2022, 33 were issued.
At the Dec. 9 meeting, Chloe Chen, the city’s principal planner, said that brokers and other interested parties have expressed “a high level of interest in allowing medical uses on the ground floor,” which could have positive impacts for the city because it would help fill existing vacancies.
Susie Herrera, a representative for Cedars-Sinai, spoke in favor of expanding medical use during the public comment period.
“Cedars-Sinai has a long history of serving Beverly Hills, and we are proud to provide world-class care to these residents,” she said. “Today, the need for care in the community is growing faster than our ability to meet it within the city’s current land use framework. Pediatric primary care appointments now average a three-week wait, and geriatric care often exceeds one month. With an aging population and rising demand for accessible, high-quality care, these pressures will only continue to increase. For this reason, we’re seeking to expand our services and footprint in Beverly Hills.”
During a discussion about the possibility of allowing medical uses on the ground floor of buildings, some councilmembers cited the negative impact on foot traffic in areas that are considered highly walkable.
“For me, it’s almost a non-starter in terms of the high pedestrian areas,” said Councilmember Lester Friedman. “I just can’t see there being medical use in those areas. I think it would really impact significantly the pedestrian areas.”
Mayor Sharona Nazarian expressed a similar concern.
“I feel that this is a challenging predicament, because on one hand, we want to support businesses and we have space that is vacant, and on the other hand, we don’t want to saturate our ground-level spaces with primarily medical spaces, especially in areas we want to promote the walkability,” she said.
All members of the council said that they would like to see the results of the business tax modernization study before making any further decisions.
“I support the study, so that we see what is in the best interest of the city and the residents, and bringing in revenue for the city, but also preserving the quality of life that we want to ensure in the future,” said Nazarian.
In other news, the council adopted a resolution to approve an updated Hazard Mitigation Action Plan, which is required by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). According to a staff report, the goal of the plan is to “promote sound public policy designed to protect citizens, critical facilities, infrastructure, private and public property and the environment from natural and manmade hazards.”
The updated version of the plan reflects the city’s experiences with the COVID-19 pandemic, an increased risk for power outages due to severe weather events and the most current data on wildfire risk.
Additionally, the council awarded a contract for more than $7.7 million to Palp Inc. (doing business as Excel Paving Company) for resurfacing Wilshire Boulevard between South Santa Monica Boulevard and Stanley Drive, San Vicente Boulevard between Clifton Way and Wilshire Boulevard, and other local streets to restore areas that have been impacted by Metro’s D Line Extension.
