Mayor Antonio Villa-raigosa’s quest to build a wall around his official mayoral residence at the Getty House on Irving Boulevard has come one step closer to pouring concrete.
A variance has been granted to build a six-foot-three-inch fence around the Getty House. (photo by Matt Wilhalme)
The mayor’s office filed paperwork on Feb. 2 to receive a variance to city municipal code to build a six-foot-three-inch wall around the residence. City code only allows for a maximum fence height of 42-inches.
On April 21, a public hearing held by the Office of Zoning Administration gave members of the community an opportunity to voice their opinion. But on June 8, the mayor was granted his request for the fence.
“We are unaware that a variance has been granted,” said John Welborne, Windsor Square Association vice president for planning and land use. “It makes it difficult to comment, and since we have not seen the grant, we would have no idea if we are going appeal the zoning administrators decision.”
The fact that a decision has been made surprised residents, but the ruling did not, as he is the mayor of the city, Welborne said.
Residents have the opportunity to appeal the decision if they can file their request before the June 23 deadline. As of June 21, no appeal had been filed with the Office of Zoning Administration.
“We hadn’t thought about doing anything on appeal, because we were under the impression it probably wouldn’t make a difference,” said Patty Lombard, who was president of the Hancock Park Garden Club when the plans for a wall were first proposed.
The city’s general services department and police department wanted to construct the wall “in order to provide enhanced security for the front of the house”.
The police department had originally sought an eight-foot-five-inch fence because of the house’s position on the corner at 605 S. Irving Blvd.
Lombard said her group wanted a 42-inch fence, which would have been in compliance with current municipal code, and large thorny bushes could have served as a deterrent to those seeking to breach the property.
The Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council, Windsor Square HPOZ Board, and the publisher of the Larchmont Chronicle also filed letters in opposition to the fence at the public hearing on April 21.
“When he leaves, we will be stuck with the fence whether or not there is an occupant of the house,” according to the testimony of the Windsor Square HPOZ Board. “In addition, more people would have attended this hearing, but the [location] was not posted.”
City Councilmember Tom LaBonge, 4th District, who was represented by Renee Weitzer at the public hearing, stated that the councilmember is always against over-in-height fences, but felt that the mayor’s request was different.
“Is the mayor, in fact, special?” Welborne asked. “Is this property special? I think most of the people think that like any other house in Windsor Square it should follow the same rules.”
4 Comments
I just read the article in the Beverly Press regarding Antonio Villaraigosa’s proposal to wall in the Getty House. I believe this is a tactical, political, artistic and financial mistake.
“SOMETHING there is that doesn’t love a wall,” said Robert Frost, and Mayor Villaraigosa’s proposed wall around the Getty house is no exception. The Getty House belongs not to any specific mayor, but to the people of Los Angeles. This proposed wall would serve to separate the mayor from the people, not only physically, but also symbolically.
In a time when the most important task any mayor of Los Angeles can do is to unite the people of Los Angeles, Antonio Villaraigosa is busy separating himself, and now the mayor’s house from those people. That’s fine–for him. We will only have to put up with him for a little while longer. However, the office of the mayor endures, and this wall can only serve to isolate future servants of the people from the very people their job is to serve. The mayor shouldn’t wall himself away from his constituents like some medieval king, and that’s the only image this wall will convey.
In a democracy, our mayor should be, or should at least seem to be, approachable. The Getty House has historically served us in this capacity. It is always a treat to drive by the Getty House and see how beautiful it is. It has always seemed to be a part of the neighborhood rather than apart from the neighborhood. This encourages any citizen to believe he himself(or herself)is also a part of Los Angeles. Walling it up isolates it from the neighborhood, smacks of exclusivity and can only discourage this emotion.
Finally, in our time of financial distress, the mayor is demanding that we pay for this expensive, unnecessary and offensive addition to our city’s already overstressed budget. Has anyone threatened to storm its existing hedges recently? Granted, he might feel safer being hidden behind exceptionally tall walls, but then he could always offer to occupy a cell downtown and feel really safe. Constructing this wall is an appalling misuse of city funds.
In closing, I urge you to do whatever you can to stop this process. I can only echo the words of our former governor and president, “Mr. Villaraigosa, tear down this wall.”
Very truly yours,
Thomas Meleck
I’m confused. Will the barricade be a wall or a fence?
For example, a fence — NOT a wall — surrounds a famous property at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington DC. That fence is made of wrought iron, and I’d imagine most people think it looks perfectly fine, even dignified and attractive, as least as barriers go.
But a wall is a whole different matter. Moreover, if the one in front of Getty House is going to be constructed of concrete, it will look cheap and tacky.