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TUESDAY, MAY 4, 2010
Volume 9 Issue 149
Santa Monica Daily Press
TIME TO PAY UP FOR DUMPING SEE PAGE 10
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THE STRATEGY ISSUE
Council wants more out of proposed Agensys deal BY NICK TABOREK Daily Press Staff Writer
BERGAMOT STATION Less well-to-do cities would throw out the welcome mat for a company like Agensys, a biotech firm
researching cancer treatments that is both a clean manufacturer and a provider of highpaying jobs. But not Santa Monica. The company, which already occupies several buildings in the city, wants to expand
and consolidate its operations by constructing a 153,000-square-foot building at 1800 Stewart St., a City Hall-owned site next to the future Bergamot Station light rail stop. Because the company’s site is in a specially designated zone called the Light
Manufacturing and Studio District, Agensys needs the City Council’s approval to move ahead, though the scale of its project otherwise wouldn’t trigger the requirement for a SEE PROPOSAL PAGE 6
Making a stand on development BY NICK TABOREK Daily Press Staff Writer
OLYMPIC HS The leading political party in Santa Monica is sharpening its stance in favor of residential development over commercial space as City Hall prepares for a final series of meetings to complete its general plan update. Santa Monicans for Renters’ Rights, which has backed a majority of the sitting City Council members, held its bi-annual meeting to update its platform on April 25, amending its “guiding principles” document to emphasize that only residential space should be permitted above ground level in new mixed-use projects, and stating that new projects should include residential units on the ground floor to better accommodate elderly and disabled residents. About 100 members of SMRR — an organization that comprises some 4,000 residents — voted on the changes, said SMRR Chairperson Patricia Hoffman. The additions to the party’s platform come as City Hall is gearing up for its final series of meetings on its Land Use and Circulation Element, the long-range planning document the City Council is expected to adopt this summer. To some members of the group, the changes suggest there will be a spirited debate about significant details of LUCE in coming months, as development interests are expected to argue against a rigid ban on above-ground-level office space. Developers can generally increase rental income by increasing the percentage of floor-area in a project devoted to office uses, in part because of City Hall’s affordable
VIVA CINCO DE MAYO (Above) Grupo Folklórico Mexcaltitán performs at the fourth annual Cinco de Mayo festival at Virginia Avenue Park on Sunday. Fabian Lewkowicz FabianLewkowicz.com (Right) Visitors walk around the many vintage cars while enjoying traditional Mexican music and food at the fourth annual Cinco de Mayo festival at Virginia Avenue Park on Sunday afternoon. Brandon Wise brandonw@smdp.com
SEE SMRR PAGE 7
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