Getting hot in the kitchen
PACIFIC COAST HIGHWAY — An association of homeowners here are threatening to sue City Hall if it moves forward with plans to turn the former Marion Davies estate into a public beach club.
Residents living along Pacific Coast Highway are concerned that redeveloping the estate, complete with banquet halls and a kitchen, is not only a violation of Proposition S, which limits food-serving facilities on the beach, but would also attract more traffic, creating the potential for deadly car accidents on an already dangerous stretch of PCH.
“We are not opposed to redevelopment of the property,” said Chuck Levey, president of the Palisades Beach Road Home Owners Association, which is threatening City Hall with a lawsuit. “We would like to see improvements so that everyone can use it. Right now, the property is a broken down wreck, an eyesore, so we are foremost wanting it restored.
“But there is a right way to do it and a wrong way. You have to, first and foremost, be concerned about safety.”
Tonight, homeowners will meet with city officials at The Beach Club, 201 Palisades Beach Road. The meeting is open to the public and begins at 7 p.m.
Homeowners said that if City Hall does not scale back the project and abide by the law, a lawsuit will be filed.
The City Council has been briefed by the City Attorney on the legality of the proposed re-use of the estate, and on the concerns of homeowners.
Last month, Council voted to move forward with the beach club’s re-design following the approval of the Recreation and Parks Commission, California State Parks, and The Annenberg Foundation, which has contributed $21 million to the project.
City Councilman Herb Katz, who is in support of the public beach club, said he will work with his council colleagues to push for the installment of a traffic signal at the entrance to the estate, which homeowners have demanded. But the ultimate authority lies with Cal-Trans.
“We must work closely with the neighbors to create a harmony,” Katz, an architect, said. “We are not out to create an entertainment center where people can hold wild parties to all hours of the night … I believe in the purpose of this project. I think it’s excellent that we are creating something for people to enjoy while preserving the history. This will do a lot of good.”
The 5.5-acre beachfront estate was built by William Randolph Hearst in the late 1920s for actress and mistress Marion Davies. It was designed by architect Julia Morgan, who created Hearst Castle in San Simeon. The estate had 100 rooms, guesthouses, tennis courts, an elaborately decorated swimming pool and dog kennel.
The property was sold in the 1940s to a private party and converted to a hotel and beach club. The state purchased the property in 1960. Under an agreement with the state, City Hall leased it to a private beach club, the Sand & Sea Club, and later operated it as a seasonal public beach facility.
Damaged in the 1994 Northridge Earthquake, all structures except the beach cafe have been “red-tagged,” or designated as unsafe to occupy.
Following an extensive community planning process, in 1999 the council approved a re-use plan that determined the site’s potential as an important public resource, leading to the current development proposal.
If approved as is, the beach club design would preserve and restore the original swimming pool, which is constructed of Italian marble tiles with inlaid designs. The north house would also be rehabilitated, complete with interior design touches such as hand-painted bathroom tiles, a marble fireplace, cabinets and a crystal chandelier.
New facilities would include an entry pavilion, an event house and pool house (More information is available at 415pch.smgov.net).
The event house is of major concern to homeowners as well as supporters of Proposition S, a city-wide referendum approved in 1990 that limited development within a new beach overlay district.
Levey said the event house, which is designed to accommodate 200 guests at public and private functions, is in violation of Proposition S because it will be larger than allowed under the law and will include a kitchen where meals will be served.
City officials said the kitchen will only be a catering kitchen and meals will have to be cooked off site and be transported to the beach club. The event house will not be a restaurant, officials said.
“That’s just their way of disregarding the law,” Levey said. “The law clearly states that there will be no food-serving facilities over 2,000 square feet. The event house is clearly over that limit. This isn’t about us not wanting a beach club. This is about respecting the will of the voters who approved this.”
Homeowners are also concerned about security at the estate. The plan calls for around-the-clock security, coupled with surveillance cameras, fencing and lighting.
But Levey said he is skeptical City Hall will be able to afford all of those security measures on top of operating costs for the public beach club, which city staff admits will need to be heavily subsidized for the first year.
“If there is any understanding reached we want it embedded in the documents so it is enforceable,” Levey said. “Not only are we worried about what happens when the next budget comes around, but what about the next council? What will they think then?”
The beach club is expected to raise revenue from parking fees, beach concessions and meeting and special event facility rentals. City Hall would be lucky to “break even,” according to a city staff report.
A draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR) on the adaptive re-use of the Davies estate is available for public review, and the city’s Planning Commission is in the process of evaluating the final EIR. City staff is also in the process of preparing a report to show compliance with the National Environment Policy Act.
City staff will return to the City Council in the fall for approval of the maximum price for redevelopment and to activate the second phase, which will be approving the design-build contract. Construction should begin by this time next year.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on February 21, 2006. Read the original PDF.