1 David Yakobson
From: Brian Stedge-Stroud <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, October 22, 2024 11:54 AM
To: councilmtgitems
Subject: Item 16D & E
EXTERNAL
Mayor and Councilmembers,
I am writing to support my neighbors on 18th Street who have recently been unfairly fined for fence and hedge heights. These longtime residents missed the opportunity to grandfather their fences in 2007 for several different reasons.
I want to express my sincere gratitude for the work Councilmember Parra and Mayor Brock have put into finding a creative solution to this unique issue.
Would reopening the grandfather exemption for families that could demonstrate the walls were built before 2007 be difficult?
Please support a pathway forward that doesn’t unfairly punish longtime residents who missed the grandfather exemption.
Brian Stedge-Stroud
90404
Item 16-D
October 22, 2024
Item 16-D
October 22, 2024
1 David Yakobson
From: Steven Johnson <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, October 21, 2024 8:51 PM
To: councilmtgitems; Jesse Zwick; Phil Brock; Christine Parra; Gleam Davis; Oscar de la Torre; Caroline Torosis; Lana Negrete
Cc: David White; [email protected]; Emily Arms
Subject: Agenda Items 16.D and 16.E
EXTERNAL
Esteemed Council Members,
I am writing in support 16.D and 16.E, not only because I support privacy and security for legacy properties in increasingly dense/gentrified R2, R3, and R4 zoned districts, but also because I am appalled at the selective and unequal enforcement the City applies across the neighborhoods.
Within my own 1-block radius in Sunset Park, I see multiple residences that laughably flaunt the current hedge and fence height regulations. (Pictured Below)
I could drive a few blocks more and document dozens of hedge and fence scofflaws, but because I live South of Pico, apparently there is no effective enforcement. (North of Montana is an even bigger joke.) Specifically, I have one Sunset Park neighbor who was reported to Code Enforcement for his massive 40- foot hedge that blocked the neighborhood view of the SMC fireworks -- yes, blocking half of the night sky when looking from across the street. After months of delay and multiple follow-ups with Code Enforcement, eventually he topped his frontage, but still was not in compliance by a wide margin. What are even the consequences of violating the current code? Apparently none, or at least no follow-up to ensure compliance in Sunset Park.
So, why are our neighbors in the historically diverse Pico Neighborhood being targeted for enforcement, such as on 18th street?
My understanding and personal experience is that the City practices selective enforcement based on individual complaints. That practice invites abuse and unequal application of the law and, in the case of 18th street, potential discrimination against legacy minority families in the neighborhood.
As an aside, the recent petty targeting of Councilmember de la Torre's fence situation seems to prove the point that historically diverse neighborhoods are the only populations that bear the scrutiny and wrath of code enforcement, when weaponized by someone with a grudge.
If the current hedge and fence code cannot be enforced equally and strictly across the City, then the code should be amended to match the legacy realities of our neighborhoods, or at the very least deprioritize enforcement in favor of other more important quality of life issues for Santa Monica residents (and not be solely responsive to personal vendettas).
Item 16-D
October 22, 2024
Item 16-D
October 22, 2024
2 This is why I support Council approving for advancement Items 16.D and 16.E Thank you.
* * * * * * * * * *
Steven Johnson
Sunset Park Resident
(310) 429-0475
Cedar St., east of 17th
Maple St., east of 17th
Item 16-D
October 22, 2024
Item 16-D
October 22, 2024
3 Pine St., east of 17th
Item 16-D
October 22, 2024
Item 16-D
October 22, 2024
4 Item 16-D
October 22, 2024
Item 16-D
October 22, 2024
5 David Yakobson
From: Carolyn Hooks <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, October 21, 2024 7:52 PM
To: councilmtgitems
Subject: Agenda Item 16D. and 16. E
Attachments: Agenda Items 16.D and 16.E.pdf
EXTERNAL
Please find attached letter regarding agenda items 16.D and 16.E Thank you
18th street Homeowner
Item 16-D
October 22, 2024
Item 16-D
October 22, 2024
Regarding Agenda Items 16. D And 16. E
To Whom It May Concern:
We are writing this letter as homeowners on 18th Street in Santa Monica. This property has been in our family for almost 100 years, first being purchased by our grandparents.
We received a citation from code enforcement on 12/12/2023 stating we had 3 violations on our property.
1) SMMC 9.48.010 – Compliance with Article 9
2) SMMC 9.21.050 – Over height, hedge, wall, or fence
3) SMMC 9.21.050 – Hazardous Visual Obstructions
From what we understand, someone bought the home on the corner lot on the south/west side of 18th and Delaware and requested a permit for a 6 – 7-foot concrete wall around the property and was denied. He tried to appeal this decision and was denied again. Since our wonderful neighbor was not given his way, he decided to file complaints against everyone on the block (18th street between Pico and Delaware). Each homeowner was cited for various violations, mostly hedges and picket fences being 2 -3 inches higher than the code allows.
We are trying to understand why this person bought a home in an area where he doesn’t feel safe. In his requests I found comments of wanting this 6 – 7-foot concrete wall to protect him from the gang violence and drug trafficking among other things. I live on the same block, several houses down from him and have not witnessed anything like this.
Though we are aware of the increased amount of theft and violence occurring throughout the City of Santa Monica, and want everyone to be safe, does a 6-7 feet wall really ensure safety and why has his issue now become an issue for homeowners that have lived on the block for many generations.
Since receiving the citation, we have removed the hedges from our lot and other homeowners have trimmed and removed hedges and bushes to comply with the code.
Regarding the wall on our driveway, this wall has been there for over 50 years. It looks identical to the majority of walls in the Pico Neighborhood and were all built by the same man. (we know this because he was a homeowner on 18th street). There has never been an accident on our property due to the wall separating our property from the apartment building next door but now it is a “Hazardous Visual Obstruction” and needs to be modified.
Item 16-D
October 22, 2024
Item 16-D
October 22, 2024
We did have a picket fence installed around the front yard about 4 years ago. This is for the safety of my small pets so they can go in the front yard and not be threatened by other dogs. I also was tired of our front yard being used as a dog park by the tenants in surrounding apartment buildings near me that do not have yards.
When we received the citations, we as a neighborhood reached out to Mayor Phil Brock and asked for help from the City Council. We explained to them how this is a slap in the face to the long-time homeowners on this block. We feel we are being harassed and discriminated against. We were told we could request a Modification at the cost of $3,345.16 which is unrealistic and burdensome. You are talking about retired, fixed income or one income household families! This is absolutely ridiculous! We are being singled out and asked to comply when the rest of the city is not affected. Why do you think it is okay to make one block within the city comply and ignore every other block because one person can’t have his way? I drive around the city all the time and see other homes with violations but none of them are being addressed. If you go north of Montana to the more fluent neighborhood you will find multifamily homes in that area with fences and hedges that are out of compliance but no one is forcing them to do anything about it. If it takes filing a complaint against all of the properties in Santa Monica, then I will be happy to supply the city with addresses.
The City of Santa Monica recently approved the modification in the Begamont area of Santa Monica and we are curious to know why this wasn’t passed for the entire city, which would then resolve the issue at hand.
We really feel that this is an attack on a neighborhood/community that is considered to be where families of color and those with a lower social economic status reside and are now being held to regulations when a blind eye is turned on other more prominent areas of the city.
We are asking to have the code modified to eliminate the need for removing our white picket fences from our front yards. We are talking about picket fences that provide 50% visibility, where the homeowner that was denied the permit wants a 6-7 foot concrete wall! We are not comparing apples to apples here, more like apples to grapes his 6-7 wall request to our picket fences (with visibility).
Thank you in advance for reading this email and for understanding my frustration concerning a problem that only became my (and others in the neighborhood) problem because the City denied the request of a person that lives on my same street. Please let’s just end this matter so myself and my neighbors can continue living peacefully on 18th and Pico.
Item 16-D
October 22, 2024
Item 16-D
October 22, 2024
Carolyn Simon-Hooks
Monica Simon
Homeowers on 18th Street
Item 16-D
October 22, 2024
Item 16-D
October 22, 2024