The Melrose Triangle has been in various stages of development for over two decades. For now, it is a hole in the ground. (photo by Senna Ihab Omar)

As El Niño approaches, West Hollywood residents and City Council members worry about how the rain could affect the Melrose Triangle, a long-stalled mixed-use development site located at 9040-9098 Santa Monica Blvd.

The approximately 3-acre triangular parcel bounded by Santa Monica Boulevard, Melrose Avenue and Almont Drive in West Hollywood is currently an open pit.

Neighbors nicknamed the site “WeHo Lake” after heavy rains in July 2024 turned it into a large, swampy pool, providing a home for mosquitoes, ducks and algae.

With El Niño approaching, residents are concerned the Melrose Triangle could once again fill with water and become a mosquito breeding ground.

Resident Anita Goswami expressed concerns about upcoming storms and how they will affect the 20 unfinished development projects in the city during public comment at the Sept. 22 West Hollywood City Council meeting.

“Several of these [projects], like 9040 Santa Monica Blvd, are holes in the ground. I’m hoping that it doesn’t turn into a giant mud puddle when the rains arrive,” Goswami said. “We’ve already had to deal with that lake on that corner when we have so many projects going on, and [when] those rains arrive, are those mud puddles going to turn into mosquito breeding pools?”

The West Hollywood City Council approved plans for the Melrose Triangle in 2014, but development plans had been in discussion since 2002.

Originally, the property was expected to transform a highly visible intersection in West Hollywood, but after long delays, the developer proposed a new project to the city on May 27 to replace the 2014 plan. The previously proposed office-heavy design has changed drastically, and the developer now plans to build housing.

Under the new plan, the triangle would become three interconnected seven-story buildings with 282 apartments, 66 of which would be affordable housing units for seniors. The development would also include a three-story underground parking lot with 528 parking spaces and nearly 100,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space.

West Hollywood resident Victor Omelczenko said the city must urgently enforce mandatory safety mitigations, such as backfilling on private sites like the Melrose Triangle, before storm season arrives.

“As we prepare for the torrential downpours, we cannot afford to have open, multi-acre excavation craters sitting unaddressed in our city,” Omelczenko said. “If heavy rains hit before the developer fully backfills and stabilizes this site, the runoff and neighborhood impacts will be quite serious.”

The city has required property owner The Charles Company to backfill the excavated area, and according to West Hollywood City Manager Jackie Rocco, The Charles Company provides the city with weekly updates on how many trucks of dirt have been delivered to the site. Staff said they do not know the timeline.

Councilwoman Lauren Meister noted that property owners need to come to the city with a plan, especially as the storm season approaches. She also noted that the new proposal still includes underground parking, which would require part of the hole to remain until construction is complete.

“It’s still going to be a major hole,” Meister said. “I think that we need to ask them for their plan for El Niño, which is coming.”

The council did not take any action nor direct staff to take any action on the Melrose Triangle.

El Niño is expected to arrive in Southern California in October and will last through the 2026-27 winter season. Weather reports predict increased rainfall, coastal erosion and stronger storms in Los Angeles through the storm season.

The City Council voted to approve preparations for the predicted storm; the Department of Public Works, particularly the Facilities and Field Services Division, will oversee many efforts.

Plans include cleaning drainage infrastructure such as storm drains, trimming trees, inspecting roofs on city buildings, distributing sandbags and equipment to divert water from flooded areas and preparing for actions expected during the storm period, such as monitoring for warning signs of flooding and setting up barricades in case road closures are temporarily needed.