Friday, 4/11/97
The vote is in…
Survey shows most residents unhappy with village
By Rachel Munoz
Daily Bruin Contributor
After years of complaining and numerous attempts to improve
Westwood Village, someone is finally putting it in writing.
More specifically, over 500 residents have expressed, through a
phone survey administered in March, that they are overwhelmingly
unhappy with the village’s current state and are eager for
change.
The survey, conducted by MSI International and interpreted by
Sturman and Associates, questioned random people throughout the
Westwood area about their opinions of Westwood and what they think
the village needs to help in the tailoring of the Westwood Village
Development Concept.
More than 50 percent of the respondents had lived in Westwood
for over 10 years. They were asked certain questions and then asked
to give a corresponding rating between one and 10, with 10 being
strongly appealing.
Eleven percent of the respondents, all adults, rated the appeal
of Westwood at a one or a two, meaning that the village was not
appealing at all, while only 6 percent of the people rated
Westwood’s overall appeal as strong, giving it a nine or a 10.
In addition, 19 percent described the retail offerings of
Westwood as not appealing at all, whereas only 5 percent
characterized the retail in Westwood as strongly appealing.
For night life, less than one-tenth surveyed found the village
to be an inviting area to visit in the evening.
Over 60 percent of the people in the survey admitted that they
shop Century City, Third Street Promenade and Westside Pavilion
more often than the village.
Without being asked, the respondents mentioned a deficient
offering of retail shops and inadequate parking as reasons why they
patronize other areas.
"In consumer use, Westwood is not being utilized," said Ken
Sturman, analyst for Sturman and Associates. "We never see the
negative ratings higher than the positive rating unless there is
something wrong."
The respondents were also asked what they would accept as
positive change in the village.
Almost 80 percent of respondents said they would endorse a
supermarket in Westwood and said the village would be enhanced by
an auto-free pedestrian promenade.
Furthermore, seven out of 10 people supported a project in the
village that would bring upscale restaurants, retail stores, a
multiplex theatre and secure on-site parking. However, respondents
were not informed that an IMAX theater is to be included in the
multiplex theater.
Developer Ira Smedra, whose Village Center Westwood project
intends to offer some of the aforementioned features, solidified
Sturman’s interpretation of the results.
"It validates what we have been saying all along: The village is
in dire need for revitalization."
Allan Abshez, the attorney representing the Village Center
Westwood Project, asked at yesterday’s press brief: "What does the
public think? And what will it take to bring them back?"
While the answers to those questions might have been partly
answered by the survey, Abshez knows that not everyone is
interested in Smedra’s project specifically. Other ideas, including
a project by Mann Theatres and a plan for a more
culturally-oriented village are also in the works.
"Homeowners have their viewpoint but this data is from the
people on the street," Abshez said.
The meeting continued with a presentation of the Environmental
Impact Report (EIR) of the Village Center Westwood Project, a
city-published document required for every project put forth in the
city.
The information in the EIR was brought together by Christopher
Joseph, a general contractor and a private consultant who works
under the supervision of the city of Los Angeles.
"This is the project reduced to numbers," Abshez explained.
The EIR examined many environmental issues the project has been
criticized for.
Those deemed as most important to the community of Westwood
include air quality, noise, traffic and parking, solid waste and
aesthetics. The report did admit to an increase in already busy
intersections but only by 2 to 3 percent, with the exception of the
intersection of Wilshire and Westwood Boulevards, which had an
increase of 10 percent.
"The project is going to add incremental traffic during rush
hour," Abshez said. "The most significant issue for the project is
traffic."
Yet Abshez believes that the theater component of the project
will spread the traffic out because people won’t be going to the
movies during rush hour.
The problem with the aesthetics revolve around the eight-story
senior citizen apartment building that already exists across the
street from the proposed site of the project. This building might
be considered a significant visual character impact to the
project.
"It is a great project," Smedra concluded. He said he is
currently looking at the concerns the working group put forth.
At the end of April, Smedra will go public with his redesigned
project. On May 5, the working group, headed by City Councilman
Michael Feuer, will assemble to assess the changes to the
project.CRISTINA ESPIRITU
Allan Abshez discusses the Westwood Village project survey
results.