WRITTEN PUBLIC
COMMENTS RECEIVED
1 Jessika Vasquez
From: Zhiyuan Zhang
Sent: Monday, June 22, 2026 11:16 PM
To: City Clerk
Subject: City Council Public Comment Item G-8: Preserving decorative sidewalks at 8484 Wilshire Boulevard and South Hamilton Dr
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To Whom It May Concern,
My name is Zhiyuan Zhang. I am a practicing architectural designer from China, and I am currently a resident in a historically preserved apartment building on the South Hamilton Drive.
I am writing to express my sincere hope that the historic sidewalk can be preserved through the guidance and expertise of historic preservation specialists, rather than being replaced with concrete pavement.
The original pavement tile material appears to be historic brick tiles. It should be feasible to source similar materials from manufacturers nationwide to preserve the authentic character of the site originally designed by Pereira.
The scratch textures on these historic tiles were commonly created before the wet clay was cut into individual brick units; as the continuous clay ribbon moved forward, it passed a series of tense, coarse wires that scraped against its face and ends.
Finally, historic preservation architects can provide valuable expertise and technical guidance, from selecting appropriate replacement tiles to developing durable construction details that contractors can follow to ensure the long-term preservation of the sidewalk.
Thank you very much for your time considering preserving the local architectural heritage.
Sincerely,
Zhiyuan Zhang
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From: Janna Wong Healy
Sent: Monday, June 22, 2026 4:42 PM
To: City Clerk
Subject: Great Western Building, City Council Meeting - June 23 - Item G-8; from the Daughter of Gin D. Wong, Designer of the Building
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Dear Members of the Beverly Hills City Council:
I am writing to share my concern about Beverly Hills City Council’s consideration of ripping out the beautifully conceived and designed structure and landscape that complement the equally beautiful design of the oval tower and replacing it with “ordinary concrete sidewalks.”
Such an action will surely destroy the beauty of this nearly 60-year-old, carefully created modern structure, which was designed by Pereira & Associates and, specifically, by my father, Gin D. Wong, who served as the lead designer of this one-of-a-kind headquarters facility. To offer some details about how creative this design is, the building’s elliptical shape features a “submarine conning tower design,” and is placed at an unusual angle on this corner lot. My father created this unusual design to maximize floor space for Great Western, thus eliminating awkward corners and right angles. The end result, as we all know, is this unusually thoughtful headquarters building.
Please don’t damage this beautiful and creative design by turning it into an ordinary structure. In fact, I ask you to please respect the creative thinking involved in all aspects of this Beverly Hills treasure, maintaining the curves, colors, textures, and planters that were designed to complement and complete the design.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Janna Wong Healy
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From: Ann Rubin
Sent: Monday, June 22, 2026 11:53 PM
To: City Clerk
Subject: Item G-8 -- 8484 Wilshire -- restore original pavers & oversight [Some people who received this message don't oŌen get email from Learn why this is important at hƩps://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdenƟficaƟon ]
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(less than 350 words)
Dear Beverly Hills City Council,
Once again, along with many of our neighbors, I urge you to properly restore and maintain the elegant and unique claybrick paving Ɵles in the walking areas surrounding the William Pereira building at Wilshire and La Cienega.
The surrounding context for this building is essenƟal. We are reminded of Pereira's original campus for the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, where the seƫng was first desecrated and then ulƟmately demolished, as we know. Let's recall when the water was drained around the museum buildings and that impact.
We ask the City of Beverly Hills to ensure that the architect's vision stays intact here, a point of pride and architectural beauty at the eastern gateway to Beverly Hills, across from the historic Saban Theater and the Clock Tower buildings, all crucial to the southeast part of the city's standing.
With the new D-Line staƟon right across the street, many more people will have a chance to experience walking the disƟncƟve and creaƟve perimeter and admire the conƟguous, wholisƟc environment.
To support the recent decision of the Cultural Heritage Commission, the City of Beverly Hills needs to hire an architect specializing in historical preservaƟon to oversee the whole restoraƟon process. Based on what we know to date, we cannot leave this up to the building owner and Metro. I urge the players to not pour any more concrete or install ADA ramps unƟl the right consulƟng preservaƟon architect is on board.
Like the Transamerica building in San Francisco, the iconic Great Western building is an important part of Beverly Hills' architectural make-up. We can take pride in conƟnuing to care for this special office building -- as the master architect intended -- on this prominent corner on Wilshire Blvd.
Thank you for your consideraƟon,
Ann Rubin=
1 Jessika Vasquez
From: KEITH B NAKATA
Sent: Tuesday, June 23, 2026 9:15 AM
To: City Clerk
Subject: BH City Council Meeting 6/23/26 Item G-8-Nakata Public Comment CAUTION: EXTERNAL SENDER
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Honorable Mayor and City Council,
As a preservation advocate who participated in the June 10, 2026 meeting of the Cultural Heritage Commission, I received an email
Dated Monday June 22, 2026 at 4:30pm from Beverly Hills City Staff Christine Chung stating that work would be allowed to continue unsupervised within the next two weeks that could lead to additional damage to be inflicted to Character Defining Features of a protected Historic Resource under CEQA as confirmed by the City Attorney at that meeting.
Lack of proper preservation supervision has created the situation that we find ourselves in today, where pavers were destroyed and not saved for proper restoration as required under the Secretary of Interior Standards (SOI). SOI Standard 5 states: “Distinctive materials, features, finishes, and construction techniques or examples of craftsmanship that characterize a property will be preserved.” This was not observed during the initial removal and destruction of the pavers by Metro and clearly violates these standards. Metro and their contractors clearly need qualified supervision during any work that impacts materials used in Character Defining Features.
The Commission strongly recommended the hiring of a Qualified Historic Preservation Architect to supervise any work on the historic resource and help identify potential replacement pavers.
Based on the email, it appears that Metro plans on exceeding the recommendations made by the Cultural Heritage Commission regarding this matter and could lead to further degrading of the resource.
At no time during the meeting did the Commission suggest that Metro should continue with any concrete paving even as an “interim safety measure”. Concrete appears to be more of a permanent solution and lead to further damage to the remaining pavers. They expressed low confidence in Metro’s judgement and efforts in resolving this self-created problem, which has negatively impacted a historic resource.
They emphasized the importance of having a historic preservation architect carefully monitoring any work regarding the pavers from further damage.
Work needs to be completely stopped until the outstanding issues surrounding the restoration are resolved to the satisfaction of the Cultural Heritage Commission and a restoration plan is created.
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1 Jessika Vasquez
From: Melody
Sent: Tuesday, June 23, 2026 3:59 PM
To: City Clerk
Subject: Agenda Item: LaCienega (John Wayne Statue) Pavers Preservation CAUTION: EXTERNAL SENDER
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***Thank you, Huma :)****
Good evening Mayor Corman and Council Members,
I am writing in support of preserving the landmark design where the John Wayne statue was historically dedicated which legacy remains a "monumental" part of the Beverly Hills' landscape, an attraction now even moreso with the Metro stop across the street.
My father worked with Rogers & Cowan for the dedication event which drew national media. The Wayne famly and city dignitaries attended and the site was a prestigious highlight of LaCienega Boulevard and the bustling Restaurant Row vicinity.
I hope you can do whatever possible to keep the foundation and unique design of the surrounding sidewalk in tact.
Thank you,
Melody Legget
1 Jessika Vasquez
From: Alan Hess
Sent: Tuesday, June 23, 2026 10:56 AM
To: City Clerk
Subject: re: 8484 Wilshire Blvd, item G-8, City Council Meeting June 23, 2026 CAUTION: EXTERNAL SENDER
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To the Beverly Hills City Council:
Monica Pereira, daughter of William L. Pereira, asked me to convey this email to you re: 8484 Wilshire Blvd., to be read at the June 23, 2026 meeting.
From:
Subject: Re: Great Western Bank Building landscape pavers threatened Date: June 6, 2026 at 12:48:36 PM PDT
To: Alan Hess
As you know my father wanted his architecture to not only stand out but also to complement and be an asset to its surroundings.
I am stunned that Mr. Emmet would want to destroy one of the very beautiful assets, the sidewalk, with concrete. The integrity of the Great Western Bank building should remain.
Monica Pereira
Daughter of William L Pereira
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architect
1 Jessika Vasquez
From: Huma Ahmed
Sent: Monday, June 22, 2026 10:08 PM
To: City Clerk
Subject: Fw: City Council Evening Meeting, Item G-8, 8484 Wilshire Blvd.
Huma Ahmed
City Clerk
City of Beverly Hills
Ph: 310-285-2400
From: Lori Greene Gordo
Sent: Monday, 22 June 2026 22:02:51
To: Huma Ahmed >
Subject: City Council Evening Meeting, Item G-8, 8484 Wilshire Blvd.
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Honorable Mayor, Vice Mayor and Councilmembers,
As the chair of the Cultural Heritage Commission, I wish to affirm our commission's unanimous decision to deny the request of the property owner, Douglas Emmett, to rescind the encroachment permit for the property located at 8484 Wilshire Boulevard.
Based on comments made by the representatives of both the property owner and the contractor engaged by Metro to replace the original pavers, it was clear that no one engaged the services of an architect that specializes in historic restoration projects to oversee the procurement of pavers that would fit with the originals. Metro has the responsibility to restore the pavers that are a character defining feature of this potentially landmarkable property designed by master architect, William Pereira. The concept of the plaza extending through to the curb is a distinctive feature of buildings designed during this period of time. Eliminating that feature by pouring concrete sidewalks would irreparably alter the design of the entire property. With all of the projects that the city has engaged in that have required matching of historic materials, we are certain that you are aware that this is not an impossible task. Further, we ask that you allow the Cultural Heritage Commission the opportunity to oversee this project, to ensure that the Secretary of the Interior's standards are abided by.
Finally, it has come to my attention that city staff has agreed to allow Metro to pour the diamond patterned concrete along Wilshire Boulevard to cover the openings that currently exist. Clearly, while the openings are a safety issue, there is no reason to put in finished concrete if the intent is to jackhammer it out as soon as the appropriate pavers are located. In the interim, the sidewalks can be patched while the pavers are sourced. Please do not allow the staff and Metro to make this unilateral decision, which is in direct contravention to the express wishes of the Cultural Heritage Commission.
Sincerely,
2 Lori Greene Gordon
Chair, City of Beverly Hills Cultural Heritage Commission 1 Jessika Vasquez
From: Mark Elliot
Sent: Tuesday, June 23, 2026 7:37 AM
To: City Clerk
Subject: Comment on agenda item G-8: 8484 WILSHIRE BOULEVARD CAUTION: EXTERNAL SENDER
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Dear Mayor Corman and members of the city council:
I hope you will deny the property owner’s request to rescind 72-R-4552 and the associated encroachment permit.
Notwithstanding the city's adopted street design standards (Connect Beverly Hills), you should make an exception here to recognize the character-defining contribution of the decorative tiles. Please require the property owner to restore -- and continue to maintain -- this essential design element.
Metro says only two pallets of tiles were preserved during construction. That degree of negligence would be laughable were it not plainly contemptuous of an eligible historic resource in the city. If Metro can literally move mountains for infrastructure, then it can address this relatively tiny molehill.
Please hold Metro to account for the destruction of the tiles by requiring the agency to locate, or recast, as necessary, the replacement tiles. The Cultural Heritage Commission should oversee the process.
Sincerely,
Mark Elliot