1 Vernice Hankins
From: Andrew Thomas <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, March 13, 2023 12:45 PM
To: Andrew Thomas
Subject: RE: March 14, 2023 Santa Monica City Council Agenda Item 16F (1318-1320 4th Street Use)
EXTERNAL
Dear Mayor Davis and Honorable Councilmembers,
The Downtown Santa Monica, Inc. (DTSM, Inc.) Board of Directors at its February 23, 2023 meeting unanimously determined to direct DTSM, Inc. staff to engage with the City of Santa Monica to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to activate and program underutilized space at 1318 ‐ 1320 4th Street.
It is the understanding of DTSM, Inc. that this vacant space cannot structually support a surface parking lot. DTSM, Inc. is requesting to enter into a MOU with the City of Santa Monica so DSTM, Inc. can bring destination programming to Downtown. This programming could include a roller‐skating rink, pickle ball courts, a temporary dog park, arts and crafts and food festivals, and other uses that would encourage local residents and people from across the region to visit our Downtown.
Thank you for your thoughtful consideration of this matter and your continued work to make Downtown Santa Monica a great destination for our community.
Sincerely,
Andrew Thomas, LPM
Chief Executive Officer
CC: DTSM, Inc. Board of Directors
DTSM, Inc. Staff
Downtown Santa Monica, Inc.
1351 Third Street Promenade, Ste. 201
Santa Monica, CA 90401
310.393.8355 (Office)
https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://www.DowntownSM.com__;!!OfuUnHCITYtmmjM!tvK6V7ACO3Hr9tN9X9gTYribYa_ E9hKhyIIPiqp6iPD992wn‐Ap4Ez0Kl4An8hQO7KpDUQWR1L7G0_k5N0_muruHqU4dPg$ Facebook | Twitter
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1 Vernice Hankins
From: Tricia Crane <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, March 13, 2023 5:42 PM
To: Caroline Torosis; Jesse Zwick; Christine Parra; Lana Negrete; Phil Brock; Oscar de la Torre; Gleam Davis; councilmtgitems; David White; Susan Cline; Anuj Gupta Subject: SUPPORT for Agenda Item 16-D from Northeast Neighbors to allow parking on the site of Parking Structure #3
EXTERNAL
To: Santa Monica City Council
From: The Board of Northeast Neighbors
Re: Agenda Item 16-D
Council meeting of March 14, 2023
Dear City Council,
We support the proposal advanced by Councilmember Oscar de la Torre and Mayor Pro Tem Lana Negrete (Agenda Item 16-D) that the City improve the now vacant, fully gated, asphalt-paved lot (formerly known as Parking Garage 3) at 1318 – 1320 4th Street so that it may provide public parking daily from dawn to dusk, until such time that the development planned for the site is ready to begin.
We understand that the parking will serve employees, owners and patrons of our restaurants and retail, especially those on the 1300 block of the Promenade and 4th Street, who have suffered steep declines in business since Garage 3 (with 393 spaces) was demolished by the City last year.
It is also our understanding that the cost of making use of this space is minimal, especially given the benefit to businesses, employees, property owners and residents.
The use of this surface parking lot - even on a temporary basis - will contribute to efforts to revitalize our downtown and thereby benefit our entire city.
Thank you
The Board of Northeast Neighbors
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1 Vernice Hankins
From: Council Mailbox
Sent: Tuesday, March 14, 2023 10:24 AM
To: councilmtgitems
Subject: Fw: Dissent from NE neighbors - Item 16F
From: Diana Williams <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, March 14, 2023 9:50 AM
To: Council Mailbox <[email protected]>
Subject: Dissent from NE neighbors
EXTERNAL
I am a homeowner on the 1000 block of 25th St and I vehemently dissent from this endorsement by my local neighborhood council, the NE neighbors board, of the proposed use of the site of PS3 for surface parking. The city already allocates excessive space for the storage of private cars, which itself leads to gridlock as well as other car‐related hazards including tire air pollution and the danger speeding drivers pose to vulnerable road users (cars have mowed down the very prominent **school crosswalk sign** at the intersection of Washington and 25th St nearly half a dozen times in the past 2.5 years). I hope that the new relatively affordable housing can be built on that site without further delay.
What IS needed, and urgently, in the absence of more frequent BBB service, is a safe and legal loading zone near the north side of the 26th St expo station. My 79 year old mother enjoys taking the expo line to downtown LA and USC for concerts and lectures, and I currently drop her off and pick her up from the 17th St station because there is literally no legal space to stop within 1/4 mile of the 26th st station. And it's my understanding that the 3 loading zone parking spots next to the 17th St. Station will be disappearing soon due to the anticipated move of a bus stop. This is also an issue for my husband’s commute to USC, and for anyone wishing to connect to/from the expo line to uber or lyft.
Warmly,
Diana
617‐908‐5884
‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐ Forwarded message ‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐
From: Tricia Crane <[email protected]>
Date: Mon, Mar 13, 2023 at 20:06
Subject: NE Neighbors: Allow parking where PS #3 once stood ‐ Support Agenda Item 16‐D at City Council Tuesday, March 14
To: Tricia Crane <[email protected]>
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2 Aerial view of the scraped parcel where Parking Structure #3 once stood at 4th and Arizona ‐ Proposal to allow surface parking until developed to help downtown businesses with a safer parking supply is on the City Council Agenda on Tuesday.
Dear Northeast Neighbors and friends,
Parking Structure #3 is gone, but the scraped and paved surface parking lot can be used to help downtown businesses. Our board supports the proposal by Councilmember de la Torre and Mayor pro tem Negrete to allow downtown businesses to benefit from the use of this space until development begins. We hope you agree. Below is our letter. Attached is the proposed Ordinance.
Tricia
##
Caroline.torosis@ santam onica.gov,
Jesse Zw ick <jesse.zw ick@ santam onica.gov>,
christine.parra@ santam onica.gov,
Lana Negrete <lana.negrete@ santam onica.gov>,
Phil Brock <phil.brock@ santam onica.gov>,
Oscarde la Torre <oscar.delatorre@ santam onica.gov>,
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3 gleam .davis@ santam onica.gov,
councilmtgitem s@ santam onica.gov,
"Cc:David W hite" <david.w hite@ santam onica.gov>,
Susan Cline <susan.cline@ santam onica.gov>,
AnujGupta <Anuj.Gupta@ sm gov.net>
To: Santa Monica City Council
From: The Board of Northeast Neighbors
Re: Agenda Item 16-D
Council meeting of March 14, 2023
Dear City Council,
We support the proposal advanced by Councilmember Oscar de la Torre and Mayor Pro Tem Lana Negrete (Agenda Item 16-D) that the City improve the now vacant, fully gated, asphalt-paved lot (formerly known as Parking Garage 3) at 1318 – 1320 4th Street so that it may provide public parking daily from dawn to dusk, until such time that the development planned for the site is ready to begin.
We understand that the parking will serve employees, owners and patrons of our restaurants and retail, especially those on the 1300 block of the Promenade and 4th Street, who have suffered steep declines in business since Garage 3 (with 393 spaces) was demolished by the City last year.
It is also our understanding that the cost of making use of this space is minimal, especially given the benefit to businesses, employees, property owners and residents.
The use of this surface parking lot - even on a temporary basis - will contribute to efforts to revitalize our downtown and thereby benefit our entire city.
Thank you
The Board of Northeast Neighbors
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1 Vernice Hankins
From: Alyssa G <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, March 14, 2023 12:07 PM
To: councilmtgitems
Cc: Caroline Torosis; Jesse Zwick; Christine Parra; Lana Negrete; Phil Brock; Oscar de la Torre; Gleam Davis; David White; Susan Cline; Anuj Gupta
Subject: YES on Agenda Item 16-D
EXTERNAL
Dear City Council,
I support the proposal advanced by Councilmember Oscar de la Torre and Mayor Pro Tem Lana Negrete (Agenda Item 16-D) that the City improve the now vacant, fully gated, asphalt-paved lot (formerly known as Parking Garage 3) at 1318 – 1320 4th Street so that it may provide public parking daily from dawn to dusk, until such time that the development planned for the site is ready to begin.
I understand that the parking will serve employees, owners and patrons of our restaurants and retail, especially those on the 1300 block of the Promenade and 4th Street, who have suffered steep declines in business since Garage 3 (with 393 spaces) was demolished by the City last year.
It is also my understanding that the cost of making use of this space is minimal, especially given the benefit to businesses, employees, property owners and residents.
The use of this surface parking lot - even on a temporary basis - will contribute to efforts to revitalize our downtown and thereby benefit our entire city.
Thank you,
Alyssa Ganezer
90403
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1 Vernice Hankins
From: Jason Mastbaum <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, March 14, 2023 1:59 PM
To: councilmtgitems; councilmtgitems
Subject: 3/14/2023 meeting item 16F
Attachments: santa-monica-parking-map.jpg
EXTERNAL
Hello, I'm disturbed to see the suggestion by two councilmembers to return the Parking Structure 3 site to parking. The council just heard on Saturday about how the city is broke, and it makes no sense to spend over a million dollars to return the site to parking just to remove it again six months later when the affordable housing construction starts.
Furthermore, I have attached a Santa Monica parking map which shows that there are five parking structures and a surface lot within a block of the PS3 site, four more structures within another block, and the library parking garage within one additional block. And that's just the municipal parking! Downtown has an absurd over‐abundance of parking, including Parking Structure 6 having been expanded in anticipation of PS3 being torn down. Please don't waste city time and money on this foolhardy idea.
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March 14, 2023
Agenda Item 16F: Temporary Parking 1318-1320 4th Street Dear Mayor Davis and City Council Members:
As co-chairs of the Santa Monica Safe Streets Alliance, we strongly oppose any idea of examining the wasteful costs of turning the vacant lot at 1318-1320 4th Street into a parking lot for any period of time, while awaiting the construction of affordable housing set for the site. Even on the busiest days, the City's publicly available parking data found that Downtown has a glut of parking. Defaulting to providing more parking is a retrograde habit that we know incentivizes car-driving, which contradicts our safety and climate goals. In fact, such a default also counters council’s recent good work on the budget priorities, unanimously supporting the addition of “Sustainability and Community Connections” and “Racial Justice, Equity and Social Diversity” to our City’s commitments.
We cannot understand why City Staff time or additional resources would be spent to consider a wasteful and speculative notion of a parking lot when we know more car parking is seriously detrimental to our natural environment. Why would our leaders even consider expensive expenditure costs of fortifying a platform for cars that we know would encourage more car trips? Why do proposals keep entertaining the backwards thinking, old habit of increasing car parking?
Since 1994 the precautionary principle adopted in our City’s Sustainability Plan has been intended to be a guiding principle for the City’s decision-makers in the pursuit of sustainability and resiliency. When leaders continually propose more and more unneeded car parking, they undermine the expectations of our youth and the broader community to see that their leaders are creating healthy conditions for safeguarding the future for a sustainable, equitable, just and diverse community.
As the City’s own data shows, parking has been on a downtrend. Potential utilization of any surplus space should give the highest priority to activate community-serving uses. Together let us see how the 4th Street city lot can help add vibrancy to Downtown and be imaginatively reused for flexible “community-serving” gathering opportunities until the much needed affordable housing construction commences. It would be exciting to see staff and Downtown Santa Monica, Inc (DTSM) explore more spaces like this one for active community-building resources and uses.
We urge council to instruct staff to look into the possibility of more flexible uses for community-serving opportunities at the site slated for affordable housing on 4th Street, using ideas and resources to carry out our budget priorities and commitments and not jeopardize potential waste and risk.
With respect
Cynthia Rose Cris Gutierrez
Co-Chair, Santa Monica Safe Street Alliance Co-Chair, Santa Monica Safe Streets Alliance Director, Santa Monica Spoke
SaMoSafeStreets.org
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