CROWDS TURN OUT ON NOHO DEVELOPMENT

CROWDS TURN OUT ON NOHO DEVELOPMENT.

Byline: ANGIE VALENCIA-MARTINEZ Staff Writer

http://www.thefreelibrary.com/CROWDS+TURN+OUT+ON+NOHO+DEVELOPMENT.-a0147132685

NORTH HOLLYWOOD -- Hundreds of people packed the first public meeting Thursday night on plans to build more than 1,000 town homes, condos and apartments -- a modernization project that includes revamping the lackluster Valley Plaza shopping center into a $560 million open-air mall.

Neighbors at the meeting, held at Emmanuel Lutheran Church, raised concerns over increased crime, traffic and its impact on schools and city services from the project, located near Laurel Canyon Boulevard and Oxnard Street.

``It's absolutely overwhelming,'' said resident Stephanie Murray. ``A six-story apartment building? No thank you.''

Developer J.H. Snyder Co. is proposing 700 condos, town homes and possibly lofts for sale and about 300 rental units. Snyder also wants a 5-acre park just east of the Hollywood Freeway and south of Victory Boulevard at Laurel and Valley plazas.

While many agreed that the area needs to be revitalized, they opposed the number of rental properties, saying more owner-occupied units should be built.

The company also wants to spruce up the 22-acre commercial complex at Valley Plaza with a cinema complex and department and retail stores, making it the costliest retail development in the San Fernando Valley.

One potential anchor store for the new complex would be a Federated Department Stores Inc.-owned Macy's, officials with the Miracle Mile-based company said. J.H. Snyder hopes to break ground in about 18 months.

The proposed project is being designed by the same architect who did The Grove shopping center in Los Angeles. J.H. Snyder also is building a $200 million complex of lofts, apartments and shops known as NoHo Commons at the core of the NoHo Arts District, to the south of the current proposed residential development.

``Every project we do is a work in progress, nothing is set in stone,'' said Cliff Goldstien, a partner at J.H. Snyder. ``We have a lot of work to do.''

angie.valencia(at)dailynews.com
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EDITORIAL NOHO MOJO CITY CAN'T LET INVESTMENT LOSE

EDITORIAL NOHO MOJO CITY CAN'T LET INVESTMENT LOSE.

http://www.thefreelibrary.com/EDITORIAL+NOHO+MOJO+CITY+CAN'T+LET+INVESTMENT+LOSE.-a0147065850

THE economic and cultural rebirth of North Hollywood is a testament to what can happen to a depressed neighborhood when the powerful resources of the city are focused in its direction.
Although it took a decade after the completion of the subway, the promise of a Valley urban hub shows signs of being fulfilled in the next few years, thanks to the convergence of attention by the MTA and CRA, as well as tireless advocacy by Valley groups.

Property prices are increasing as new lofts and apartment buildings and stores rise from long-empty lots. The decrepit Valley Plaza is getting a multimillion-dollar makeover. The NoHo Arts District is becoming a modern-day reality. This neighborhood, so convenient to Hollywood's major studios, as well as on a straight subway shot to downtown, is a natural sell.
Call it NoHo mojo.

Even Rick Caruso, the Westside developer responsible for The Grove and the Commons at Calabasas, now says he may give a second look to a project in NoHo. At one time, he wouldn't consider it because of the crime and other negatives associated with NoHo.

That's as sure a sign as anything that the miasma clinging to North Hollywood for so many years is lifting.

But although NoHo construction is on the upswing and a vision is being developed that hopefully will make it a landmark region of the city, the need for strong leadership in the San Fernando Valley doesn't end there.

Indeed, while violent crime is down nearly 11 percent across the city from this time last year, it's up 8 percent in North Hollywood, according to Los Angeles Police Department statistics. Crime is down overall in the Valley, but the area historically gets shortchanged in police coverage, and that has not changed.

Declining neighborhoods in the Valley can still be revived, but safe streets are critical, as are well-organized communities, good planning and investment.

City officials need to understand that delivering on their long-overdue promise to NoHo doesn't answer the long-standing neglect of the Valley as a whole.

The Valley has waited too long to get its fair share of City Hall resources and leadership.
Some positive signs are visible. The Orange Line busway is a step in the right direction, as its massive popularity shows. Still, the Valley has paid more than its share of taxes and fees and gotten too little in return.

Now is the time to save the Valley and save the city. It's time to spread the NoHo mojo.