Friday, July 17, 2015

PAPER, SCISSORS, STONE


RE "Paper" Streets Everywhere

A little research with the help of some neighbors resulted the interesting little map below to illustrate in a very simple manner the threat that Crisler Way poses to all of us who live in the hills - not just the people who live on Grandview, Kirkwood and Yucca Trail.

This map only covers a small portion of Laurel Canyon (The Kirkwood Bowl) and the Marmont, Hillside and Crisler Way areas downslope from Grandview, but the same thing is happening all over our hillsides. You can check out your neighborhood "paper" street(s) by clicking on this link  http://www.zillow.com and plugging in your home address. You'll then be able to see any "paper" streets that might be close to you - they're the ones that start where the actual streets end. 

No one thought anyone would be able to build on Crisler Way, but here they are, so don't discount any "paper"street in your neighborhood. 

Where there's a will there's a way.





FYI
Recapping Earlier Posts 

1.  A B-permit was issued for Crisler Way without anyone in the neighborhood receiving a notice. It appears to be totally legal at present. This is on the same street that the 1979 Laurel Canyon fire began and is considered by the LAFD to be the riskiest street for a catastrophic fire event in the City of Los Angeles.

2. The developers want to build a 200 foot driveway (only a small portion of the actual "paper" street) with no fire engine turnaround to support their also building four MacMansions with swimming pools on a 60% grade slope. The "street" will eventually connect with Crisler Way below.

3.  The 200 foot "street: will require a 200' X 10' concrete retaining wall on the upslope side and thirty (30) 3' X 40' concrete caissons on the downslope side of the "street" - the caissons alone will require over 100 Cement trucks to complete.

4. The reason the developer wasn't required to send notices out for a haul route hearing is that he plans to build a wooden chute from Grandview down to Marmont to remove the dirt from the caissons, retaining wall, street and, as soon as possible, four  brand-new mansions. It shouldn't take more than five or six years - if there are no delays. The hundred or so dump trucks required would have to come up Marmont from Sunset.

(This is in addition to three other proposed projects on the same quarter mile of Grandview Drive to be developed at the same time). 

He also plans to run the sewers all the way down to Marmont. I don't know how many trucks that will take but I sure wouldn't want to be living underneath them. Things fall.

5. Concerned Citizens of Kirkwood Bowl has filed an appeal on CEQA grounds and is waiting to learn if it will be heard in front of the Commission of Public Works or the entire City Council. We will notify everyone on our list as soon as we know where, when and  before whom we'll be appearing.

6. Council member Ryu has asked for a stop work order to be issued and as far as we know it's being enforced - but we don't know for sure. We'll inform you if this changes. At best this is temporary. We may need people to appear downtown on short notice, depending on the hearing requirements. 

If anyone would like to be included in our mailing list let me know.

Best regards,
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