> ## 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. # Housing gets rise out of neighbors - URL: https://www.smdp.com/housing-gets-rise-out-of-neighbors/ - Published: 2007-01-04T16:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-23T23:35:27.000Z - Author: Melody Hanatani - Tags: Real Estate & Housing, Mid-City, #archive-import *CCSM signing leases for new complex* MID-CITY — After four and a half years of planning and development, a 41-unit affordable housing complex at the intersection of Broadway and 15th Street — complete with its espresso-colored stucco and crushed-can exterior — is finally nearing completion. A product of architectural genius, its planners contend, the building incorporates sustainable green elements and will help revive a desolate stretch of Broadway. Some residents, however, argue that something is not right with the building that now towers above them. Standing at four stories, or 40 feet high, the building is a monstrosity in this neighborhood of primarily one-story and split-level houses and apartments. “It does not fit in with the neighborhood,” said Elena Livenson, who lives on 15th Street, directly across from the new apartment complex. “It’s really ugly,”she added.“It does-n’t have any architectural meaning.” Several residents have been complaining about the scale of the project, which planners say is actually less than the city’s maximum allowable size of 45 feet in the Broadway Commercial District. “It is totally out of place with the single-family homes in the neighborhood,” argued Clara Benrey in a recent letter to the editor (SMDP, Jan. 2, page 4). Officials at both Community Corporation of Santa Monica, the owner of the property, and Pugh + Scarpa Architecture of Santa Monica, the project architect, counter that they have not heard complaints from residents regarding the size of the project, saying that most of the concern has been directed toward the affordabil-ity component. “If you look around the area, most buildings erected in the last 15 years are exactly the same height or taller,” said Joan Ling, executive director of CCSM. Examples include the five-story Breeze Suites Moderne apartments on Broadway and Sixth Street, a five-story medical building on 15th Street between Broadway and Santa Monica Boulevard, and a four-story mixed-use development at Broadway and 10th Street. Since the area is zoned for commercial development, the outcome could have been much worse for neighbors if Community Corp or another housing developer had not purchased the property, said Angie Brooks, a project architect with Pugh + Scarpa. “The zoning code allows us to go higher, but we didn’t,” Brooks said of the design that broke the project into three separate buildings surrounded by an open courtyard that flows into Broadway. That design enabled the development to stay within a smaller scale than had it been built as one structure. “This could’ve been a gas station, which would’ve been terrible,” Brooks said. Though it appears now that the new taller buildings stand out in contrast against the small one-story and split-level houses, the Broadway corridor will one day be lined with developments that are four stories and beyond, said Lawrence Scarpa, principal of Pugh + Scarpa. “The whole Broadway corridor is in scale of what the future will be,”Scarpa said on Wednesday. With recycled crushed aluminum cans decorating the walls, dual flush toilets, and an open-aired garage that lets in natural light, the new CCSM building incorporates sustainable elements to help cut utility costs. The development will include 25 two-bedroom and 16-three bedroom apartments, and 71 underground parking spaces. The apartments will be made available to low-and very-low income households. The architect held two community workshops early in the process to solicit feedback on the design. There was very little to no negative comments on the design at those meetings, according to Brooks. The design went before the Architectural Review Board \[ARB\], whose members found the plan to be innovative in masking the fact that the building was slated for affordable housing. “The ARB has been attempting to deal with low-income housing to try to make sure that it’s attractive and has market appearance,” said Joan Charles, who was the chairwoman when the board approved the plans. “It’s been our effort to make them look more like market rate buildings.” Scarpa said the project was able to bypass the Planning Commission for review because it fell below the required 50-unit threshold. The commission is required to review projects with more than 50 units. Construction began on Nov. 15, 2004\. The project is only a few weeks away from final completion and CCSM has begun signing leases this week. Residents are allowed to move in immediately. “It’s great to see the kids’ faces when they see the unit and know they have a home of which they can be proud,” Ling said. For Livenson, the end means she can finally have more space to park her car, and will no longer be bothered by the noise and the other inconveniences that come with construction. “Everyone in the neighborhood should have a free apartment,” she joked. *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on January 4, 2007.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/010407.pdf?ref=smdp.com)