> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Downtown Main Street project shot down by planners - URL: https://www.smdp.com/downtown-main-street-project-shot-down-by-planners/ - Published: 2001-12-04T16:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-22T22:29:50.000Z - Author: Carolyn Sackariason - Tags: Real Estate & Housing, Main St, #archive-import *Housing project to be reviewed Wednesday; developer sues city* A recent city staff recommendation to deny developer Howard Jacobs’ proposed housing project on Main Street may be enough of a reason for him to continue with his lawsuit against the city. It has taken nearly two years for the city planning department to review the 133-unit housing project, which finally got a thumbs down by staffers Friday. The Santa Monica Planning Commission is scheduled on Wednesday to review what would be the largest housing development on Main Street, taking up an entire city block. Jacobs slapped a lawsuit against the city in early November. The suit claims the city has dragged its feet in completing the environmental impact report on the project, which is supposed to be done within 12 months, as prescribed by state law. After more than 20 months, the 500-page report is done and city staff made their recommendation to the Santa Monica Planning Commission that the project be rejected. Jacobs claims that the delay has cost him millions of dollars because he has had to extend escrow on the property, as well as pay $82,000 a month in maintenance expenses. The proposed project is located at the former Pioneer Boulangerie Bakery site and across the street, where Jacobs has purchased both parcels just south of Pico Boulevard. The developer claims that the Santa Monica City Council put the project in jeopardy when it delayed hiring a consultant to complete the environmental impact report in April of 2000\. At the time, the city told him that the report would be done in July of 2000 and before the planning commission in February of 2001\. The contract with EIP Associates, the West Los Angeles-based consulting firm hired by the city, wasn’t signed until December. Jacobs was told the project would be reviewed by the plan-ning commission in May or June of 2001\. Then it was October and now it is December. The Santa Monica City Council has discussed Jacobs’ suit behind closed doors in the past month. The Santa Monica Community and Development Department recommended that the project be denied because “it doesn’t fit the character of the area, will impact surrounding neighborhoods and will overwhelm the North Main Street neighborhood.” Jacobs is proposing to construct two mixed-use buildings on the east and west sides of Main Street. The west project, located at 2012-2024 Main Street, (the former Boulangerie site), would have four stories, 107 residential units, a three-level underground parking garage and 12,281 square feet of commercial space at street level. The east project, located at 2021-29 Main Street, would have three stories, 26 residential units, a two-level underground parking garage and 6,533 square feet of commercial space at street level. According to a staff memo to the commission, the environmental impact report identifies unavoidable negative impacts resulting from the construction and operation of the proposed developments. The city’s land use policies attempt to protect the scale and character of residential neighborhoods that are near commercials areas, as well as ensure that the transition between the two are appropriate. City staff say neither the east side nor the west side projects are consistent with those policies. “This placement of the of the (east) building produces a building mass at the property line that is not a sensitive transition to the residential uses to the east of the project... Given the neighborhood context, the proposed east project is inconsistent with the placement and massing of nearby structures, and in general, with the pattern of development in the nearby area,” city staff wrote. “The west project also does not provide a sensitive transition to adjacent buildings and uses. The proposed building has extensive street frontages which dominate the area, including approximately 300 linear feet along Main Street. This frontage gives the impression of a large, single use building and does not have a village-like character with multiple storefronts.” Based on the environmental review report, city staff have concerns about air quality from demolition of the existing buildings and construction of the new ones, as well as construction impacts that would generate more traffic on Main Street. Jacobs estimates that the project would take 18 months to build. The project would consist of market-rate apartment housing — a mixture of single units, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom units. City staffers are afraid that the 107-unit building on the west side would be built for short-term corporate housing, which doesn’t fit in with the city’s goals for multi-family housing. City staff believe Jacobs wants short-term housing because of the amenities included in the project such as a screening room, business center and meeting rooms. “The quality and character of the city’s neighborhoods and community comes in large part from the residents’ participation in civic affairs, cultural events and educational endeavors,” city staff wrote. “Short-term housing does not contribute to these goals as occupants of short-term housing do not have the same ties to the community as those who make the city their home.” The planning commission will meet at 7 p.m. Wednesday in council chambers in City Hall. The meeting will be aired on City TV, channel 16. *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on December 4, 2001.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/120401.pdf?ref=smdp.com)