Historic Glendon Manor may be demolished
By Daily Bruin Staff
March 13, 2002 9:00 p.m.
ANGIE LEVINE Some Westwood residents fear that Glendon Manor,
located at 1070 Glendon Ave., may be torn down to make room for a
multiplex.
By Dexter Gauntlett
Daily Bruin Staff
A link to Westwood’s past could be quickly reduced to a
pile of rubble if the most recent proposal to develop the property
on the corner of Tiverton and Glendon Avenues is approved.
The proposal, which would combine a five-story, 350-unit
multiplex with three restaurants, has some community members
worried that the current building on the property ““ a 1929
historic landmark called Glendon Manor ““ might be
demolished.
The Los Angeles Department of Planning is accepting public
comments through April 8 on the environmental impacts of the
proposal for Palazzo Westwood before the Department of Building and
Safety determine the fate of Glendon Manor.
If a permit for demolition is approved by the Department of
Building and Safety, an appeal could then be directed to Fifth
District Councilman Jack Weiss, who did not say whether he supports
or opposes the plan.
Real estate developing firm Casden Properties ““ which was
recently bought by Apartment Investment and Management Co. ““
is funding the potential project.
Casden has made attempts to open a retail and residential
multi-plex in the village in years past, but failed to meet
guidelines under the Westwood Specific plan, which defines
community standards for building in Westwood, said Sandy Brown,
president of the Holmby-Westwood Property Homeowners
Association.
However, this time, the company is confident they meet all the
guidelines.
“Palazzo not only meets the intent of each guideline, but
exceeds them,” boasts the Web site for the proposal.
The plan faces opposition from the Los Angeles Conservancy
““ an organization dedicated to preserving historic landmarks
and the environment ““ and the Property Homeowners
Association.
“When I think of Glendon Manor, I think of … the
beginning of Westwood Village and the arrival of UCLA, which moved
into the village in 1929,” Brown said.
Glendon Manor was a housing project originally designed for
professors and non-students, Brown said.
Only 12 buildings remain that were built in 1929 when Westwood
was just a glimmer in the eyes of a community with a specific idea
of how they wanted “the village” to be, Brown said.
The state of California recognizes Glendon Manor as a historic
resource, but the building is still subject to demolition if the
city decides to do so.
This demolition of Glendon Manor is something Ken Bernstein of
the Los Angeles Conservancy hopes to avoid.
“We feel that because it’s mostly residential,
instead of commercial, there’s a way to develop Glendon Manor
into the overall plan or to separate it off and develop it
separately from the retail plan,” Bernstein said.
As part of the development process, Casden had submitted an
environmental impact report, which requires a list of possible
alternatives to the project.
According to Bernstein, Casden’s report cites the
preservation and restoration of Glendon Manor as the
“environmentally superior” alternative.
Casden’s report on the environmental impact of the
construction of Palazzo and possible alternatives to the project is
under evaluation by the city zoning commission.
Comments to the Department of City Planning should be sent to:
Maya Zaitzevsky, Department of City Planning, 200 N. Spring St.,
Room 763, Los Angeles, CA 90012.
