The Beverly Hills Architectural and Design Review Commission approved the architectural review of a new 29-unit multifamily residence at 9945 Durant Drive in a 3-1 vote March 18, despite significant pushback from surrounding neighbors. Commission Chair and Beverly Hills City Council candidate Rebecca Pynoos dissented.
The six-story project is designed in a contemporary architectural style consisting of asymmetrical design, a facade featuring white concrete and smooth stucco, floor-to-ceiling windows with glass and curved balconies with aluminum railings. The project also includes an 8-foot non-illuminated sign facing the street and will have three units designated for low-income residents.
Pynoos said she dissented because the project was “out of context architecturally” with the street it’s on, despite commending the project’s designers on the development.
“The responsibility to maintain neighborhood character has shifted to this commission,” she said. “Durant is a street that still has a strong sense of place, even if there are some new, modern buildings on it. It feels cohesive. It feels residential. In Beverly Hills, that’s increasingly rare.”
The Beverly Hills Planning Commission approved a development plan review and density bonus permit to allow construction of the development in October 2025. The project is also located within a half mile of a major transit stop, located at Wilshire and Santa Monica boulevards.
Kevin Murray, an associate with the project’s designer, Lorcan O’Herlihy Architects, argued that the development fits within the pattern of surrounding large-scale buildings in Century City and future Beverly Hills developments. He added that designers incorporated aspects of other buildings on Durant Drive, including street-facing courtyards and a central bifurcation.
“It should be noted too that in our immediate context, right at the end of the block here, we see Century City and just beyond our property will soon rise One Beverly Hills,” he said. “So when we approached the site, we wanted to make sure that we were finding rhythms that existed on the site that can keep us in scale while still providing innovative architecture here.”
The approval came after numerous residents in the surrounding neighborhood spoke out against the development, decrying state-mandated housing laws and arguing the project strips away the neighborhood’s charm.
“That is an ugly building design. It’s straight out of Huxley’s dystopic “Brave New World,” and is just another step in degrading the family character of this old neighborhood,” Robbins Drive resident Daniel Ditzhazy wrote. “Finally, this is just an implementation of the humiliating attack on local sovereignty conducted by the state of California…It forces us to put high-density residential structures in suburban communities such as Beverly Hills, where the residents oppose such things.”
Terrence Rodsky, who owns the adjacent property on Durant Drive, also questioned the development’s place in the neighborhood.
“This project, as currently designed, is not in good taste. Were it proposed for Miami Beach, it would be welcomed,” he said. “My other point in general is that if the commission is to approve this project as designed, you will jeopardize the right to object to future projects, as builders will cite 9945 Durant as carte blanche for anything they wish to construct.”
Commissioner Jeffrey Daniels voted to approve the project, citing the city’s need to build more housing to meet mandated housing goals from the state. He also commended the project’s design, saying it will bring something “new and innovative to the community.”
“Beverly Hills in particular, but Los Angeles as an entire region, needs to come up with more housing. And this is not like a personal preference, it’s a matter of existential survival,” he said. “So while I appreciate the concern among neighbors, who understandably have a very strong association with the quaintness of the neighborhood, that may not be a sustainable requirement going forward into the future.”
Commission Vice Chair Terri Smooke expressed concerns about whether the project’s design fits with the rest of the street, but commended the developers for incorporating elements from other buildings on Durant Drive. She added that the commission ultimately had to approve the project in order for the city to meet state-mandated housing requirements.
“So for the neighbors who are very concerned about this project, please understand that this commission does not have the ability to deny,” she said. “I am concerned, as I said, we don’t have the right to deny and I think it’s going to be problematic for many people on the street, because it is so different in mass and scale and design, frankly. But I do believe you’ve created something that’s really exceptional.”
Commissioner Evan Meyer said he voted to approve due to the city’s need to build more housing and commended the planners on the design and landscaping of the property.
In other business, the commission heard details about a proposal for a new three-story building with a restaurant and rooftop use for the new Tiffany & Co. flagship store, located at 360 North Rodeo Drive.
