The Westwood Community Design Review Board voted to recommend against a proposal for a 12-story housing complex on Strathmore Drive on Wednesday, citing concerns over the large size of the building.
The planned development would demolish the current housing complexes at 11027-11045 W. Strathmore Dr. and replace them with a 12-story residential building with 88 units, 34 of which are intended to be affordable housing. The board recommended against its construction because of concerns about the large size of the building relative to others in the neighborhood.
The DRB does not have the authority to stop the proposal, as its role is to make recommendations to the director of planning.
Changes to state law in 2024 increased the level of density allowed for buildings with affordable housing if they provide additional units for very low-income tenants – people who make less than 50% of the average median income – or middle-income tenants, who make less than 120% of the average median income.
Assembly Bill 2334, signed into law in 2022, gave greater height and unit allowances to projects in “very low vehicle travel areas” – where residents travel by car less than 85% of the average in a city – which increased developers’ ability to build higher-density buildings.
Several community members spoke out against the development at the North Westwood Neighborhood Council’s Oct. 7 meeting, though the council voted in favor of the development.
Resident Wolfgang Veith said at the NWWNC meeting that the project was unnecessary and would stand out against the other buildings in the North Village, which do not typically exceed five stories.
Michael Webb, an architectural writer who has lived in Westwood for 48 years, said the project would cause significant congestion on Strathmore Drive.
“There’s no room on the site, so it’s going to block the street,” he said. “For up to two years, the street is going to be blocked with a construction crane and with all of the other impediments that come with a building site.”
Webb added that while affordable housing is important, Strathmore Drive does not have the capacity to accommodate any more housing than it currently has.
“We need much more affordable housing for students and for people of every age because people are being essentially priced out of housing,” he said. “It needs to be greatly enlarged on a much larger scale than could ever be done on Strathmore, but it needs to be done in areas that are ripe for redevelopment.”
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