2641 West Olympic Boulevard (ENV-2022-2826-CE)
Summary
SCH Number
2024080695
Public Agency
City of Los Angeles
Document Title
2641 West Olympic Boulevard (ENV-2022-2826-CE)
Document Type
NOE - Notice of Exemption
Received
Posted
8/16/2024
Document Description
The project consists of three continuous lots with a total lot size of approximately 28,799 square feet. The project is located on the northerly side of Olympic Boulevard with approximately 160 feet of street frontage. The project sit is bounded to the east by South Westmoreland Avenue where it has approximately 180 feet of street frontage. The subject property is zoned C2-1 and R4-1 with corresponding land use designations of General Commercial and High Medium Residential. The project is not located within the boundaries of or subject to any specific plan, community design overly or “Q” Qualified Conditions or “D” Development Limitations ordinance. The site is located within the Housing Element Inventory of Sites (ZI-2512), Transit Priority Area in the City of Los Angeles ZI-2452, Redevelopment Project Area: Wilshire Center/Koreatown (ZI-2488), Local Emergency Temporary Regulations - Time Limits and Parking Relief - LAMC 16.02.1 ZI-2498, State Enterprise Zone: Los Angeles (ZI-2374), and is within an Urban Agriculture Incentive Area. The project site is within the Puente Hills Blind Thrust fault zone.
The site is currently improved with a vacant commercial structure constructed in 1961 and adjoining surface parking lot. Italee Optics was the most recent occupant of the structure, leaving towards the end of 2022. There are three (3) existing street trees along Olympic Boulevard and seven (7) existing street trees along South Westmoreland Avenue. The project proposes to maintain the existing street trees along Olympic Boulevard as well as all of the street trees along South Westmoreland Avenue except for one (1) Palm tree the project proposes to remove to allow the construction of the driveway, and two (2) Palms trees on the north east corner of the subject site the project proposes to remove to allow for the staging of the transformer.
The proposed project includes the demolition of the existing commercial structure along Olympic Boulevard, as well as the construction, use and maintenance of a new seven (7)-story mixed use development containing 99,527 square feet of floor area, with a Floor Area Ratio (FAR) of 4.05:1. The project proposes 2,173 square feet of commercial uses and a total of 123 dwelling units, 110 of which will be market rate and 13 will be restricted to Extremely Low Income Households. This building will be a maximum of 87 feet and four (4) inches in height, as measured from grade. The unit mix will be comprised of 53 studios, 60 1-bedroom and 10 2-bedroom units. The project will provide 116 automobile parking spaces, of which 110 will be for residential uses and six (6) will be for commercial uses along the second floor, first floor at grade, and in one level of subterranean parking. The project will provide 100 bicycle parking spaces, 96 will be for residential use and four (4) will be for commercial use. Bicycle parking will be provided at grade level and the second floor.
The project will provide 9,700 square feet of open space, consisting of 6,850.1 square feet of common open space and 2,850 of private open space. The project proposes to maintain the three (3) existing street trees along Olympic Boulevard, and four (4) of the seven (7) existing street trees along South Westmoreland Avenue. The project proposes to replace a dead street tree along Olympic Boulevard, per UFD requirements. Altogether the project proposes 31 24-incho
box trees including on-site and existing street trees. It should be noted that the project is not counting the three (3) existing Palm Trees in the public right of way along South Westmoreland Avenue that are to remain toward its total of 31 trees. The project proposes grading and export of approximately 10,066 cubic yards of earth.
Contact Information
Name
Ricardo Vazquez
Agency Name
City of Los Angeles, City Planning Department
Job Title
City Planning Associate
Contact Types
Lead/Public Agency
Phone
Name
Mick Choi
Agency Name
Corbel Architects Inc
Job Title
Representative
Contact Types
Parties Undertaking Project
Phone
Location
Coordinates
Cities
Los Angeles
Counties
Los Angeles
Regions
Southern California
Cross Streets
Olympic Blvd & Westmoreland Ave
Zip
90006
Other Location Info
2635, 2639 & 2641 West Olympic Boulevard, 981 & 987 South Westmoreland Avenue (Olympic Blvd and South Westmoreland Ave.)
Other Information
NAME OF APPLICANT / OWNER:
Mihee Jang, MHKJ Investments, LLC
Notice of Exemption
Exempt Status
Categorical Exemption
Type, Section or Code
Section 15332, Class 32 (Urban In-Fill Development)
Reasons for Exemption
The City has considered whether the Proposed Project is subject to any of the five (5) exceptions that would prohibit the use of a categorical exemption as set forth in State CEQA Guidelines
Section 15300.2. There are five (5) Exceptions which must be considered in order to find a project exempt under CEQA: (a) Cumulative Impacts; (b) Significant Effect; (c) Scenic Highways; (d)
Hazardous Waste Sites; and (e) Historical Resources.
(a) Cumulative Impacts. All exemptions for these classes are inapplicable when the cumulative impact of successive projects of the same type in the same place, over time is significant.
The proposed project is located at 2635, 2639 and 2641 West Olympic Boulevard and 981 & 987 South Westmoreland Avenue within the Wilshire Community Plan. There are currently 15
projects dating back to March 1, 2018, which are currently filed with the Department of City Planning have received a Letter of Determination from the Department of City Planning but have yet to receive a Certificate of Occupancy from the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety (LADBS). As such, there are projects within 1,500 feet of the same type and in the same place as the subject project at the time of filing.
According to SCAQMD, individual construction projects that do not exceed the SCAQMD’s recommended daily thresholds for project-specific impacts would not cause a cumulatively considerable increase in emissions for those pollutants for which the Air Basin is in nonattainment. Interim thresholds were developed by DCP staff based on CalEEMod model runs relying on reasonable assumptions, consulting with AQMD staff, and surveying published air quality studies for which criteria air pollutants did not exceed the established SCAQMD construction and operational thresholds. Construction-related daily emissions at the project site would not exceed SCAQMD’s regional or localized significance thresholds. Therefore, the project’s contribution to cumulative construction-related regional emissions would not be cumulatively considerable and therefore would be less than significant. Construction of the
project also would have a less-than-significant impact with regard to localized emissions. The project submitted an Air Quality Impact Analysis, prepared by Envicom Corporation, dated August, 2023, that found that the proposed project would have less than significant effects as to air quality. The report states that “…the peak onsite emissions during construction would not exceed the applicable SCAQMD [Local Significance Thresholds], and as such, potential LST impacts would be less than significant.” Regarding operational impacts the report goes on to state “…the proposed project’s total operational daily emissions would be far below SCAQMD thresholds…Therefore, operational impacts of the project would be less than significant”. Finally, the report also found that toxic air contaminants and odors resulting from the project would be less than significant. As such, the projects potential impact on Air Quality is less then significant.
As noise is a localized phenomenon and decreases in magnitude as the distance from the source increases, only projects and ambient growth in the nearby area could combine with the proposed project to result in cumulatively considerable noise impacts. These above-noted projects will begin construction and end construction at different timelines, with minor overlap between projects. Thus, the construction of these known projects will be staggered and therefore do not have the potential to cumulatively contribute to air quality, construction traffic, and noise levels.
(b) Significant Effect. A categorical exemption shall not be used for an activity where there is a reasonable possibility that the activity will have a significant effect on the environment due to unusual circumstances.
As mentioned, the proposed project includes the demolition of the existing commercial structure along Olympic Boulevard, as well as the construction, use and maintenance of a new seven (7)-story mixed use development containing 99,527 square feet of floor area, with a Floor Area Ratio (FAR) of 4.05:1. The project proposes 2,173 square feet of commercial uses and a total of 123 dwelling units, 110 of which will be market rate and 13 will be restricted to Extremely Low Income Households. This building will be a maximum of 87 feet and four (4) inches in height, as measured from grade. The proposed seven (7)-story building is in an area developed with residential and commercial buildings that range in height from one (1) to three (3)-stories. Thus, there are no unusual circumstances that may lead to a significant impact on the environment.
(c) Scenic Highways. A categorical exemption shall not be used for a project which may result in damage to scenic resources, including but not limited to, trees, historic buildings, rock outcroppings, or similar resources, within a highway officially designated as a state scenic highway.
As it relates to development along a Scenic Highway, the only State Scenic Highway within the City of Los Angeles is the Topanga Canyon State Scenic Highway, State Route 27, which travels through a portion of Topanga State Park. State Route 27 is not located with the vicinity of the subject property. Therefore, the subject site will not create any impacts within a designated state scenic highway.
(d) Hazardous Waste. A categorical exemption shall not be used for a project located on a site which is included on any list compiled pursuant to Section 65962.5 of the Government Code.
In regards to Hazardous Waste sites, according to Envirostor, the State of California’s database of Hazardous Waste Sites, neither the subject site nor any site in the vicinity, is identified as a hazardous waste site. As such, the project would not be developed on a site identified as a hazardous site pursuant to Section 65962.5 of the Government Code. The project was required to provide a Phase 1 Environmental Assessment Study, due to the prior manufacturing use at the subject site. The Phase 1 ESA, prepared by CalEnviro Geologist & Engineer, dated January 2024, identified a Recognized Environmental Concern on the property abutting the subject site to the west. There was an underground storage tank (UST)
leak that was first reported in 1989 and the case was closed in 1996 without any cleanup activities reported. In 2008, the case was reopened when the underground storage tanks were replaced. The Phase 1 ESA discovered this REC from records obtained from the Los Angeles Fire Department. The REC was never listed on a Cortese list compiled pursuant to Section 65962.5 of the Government Code, and as such the project is not on a site which is included in any list compiled pursuant to Section 65962.5 of the Government Code, nor abutting any site that is listed on a Cortese database. According to the Phase 1 ESA, the UST leak in the
adjacent property “…may have migrated beneath the subject property and fuel impact soil may be encountered during future grading work on the subject property. CalEnviro recommends a Soil Management Plan (SMP) to identify and properly handle impacted soil that may be encountered during future grading work on the subject property.” The project provided a SMP developed by CalEnviro Geologist & Engineers, dated March 2024. Per the
SMP, it will “…govern the onsite worker and community health and safety monitoring, notification, and reporting requirements associated with the Site COCs. The HASP is under development and will be completed prior to the excavation activities commencing on the Site.
The SMP protects worker safety by establishing clear means of implementing regulatory compliance measures related to the excavation, proper handling and disposal of potentially
contaminated soil. The SMP is being voluntarily implemented by the project as a project design feature. Additionally, the letter from CalEnviro Geologist & Engineers dated August 2, 2024, Exhibit B, provides the concentration thresholds that will trigger reporting of potential contaminants of concern to CalEPA-DTSC and the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board, as conditioned.
(e) Historic Resources. A categorical exemption shall not be used for a project which may cause a substantial adverse change in the significance of a historical resource.
The project site has not been identified as a historic resource by local or state agencies, and the project site has not been determined to be eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places, California Register of Historical Resources, the Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monuments Register, and/or any local register; and was not found to be a potential historic resource based on the City’s HistoricPlacesLA website or SurveyLA, the citywide survey of Los Angeles. Finally, the City chooses not to treat the site as historic.
County Clerk
Los Angeles
Attachments
Notice of Exemption
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