I reported briefly last week on the whole to-do about the City’s wanton approval of a Frank Gehry megaplex at 8150 Sunset and, more recently, on the extremely weird fact that the Council’s PLUM¹ Committee forwarded proposed historic-cultural designation of the Lytton Savings building on to the full Council without a recommendation, even though CD4 Councilmember David Ryu explicitly favors the designation. This is just a brief update with links to more documents.

First, Marisa Tomei² wrote a stirring letter to the City Council urging them to preserve the building. Don’t forget, the hearing is tomorrow! There’s an excerpt after the break, as always, if you’re PDF-averse. Also, the Coalition to Preserve LA recently reported that Fix the City had sued LA over 8150 Sunset. It turns out that there were two other suits filed at about the same time, making a total of three suits so far over this one project. The City Council is going into closed session tomorrow to discuss all three of them. Turn the page for links to the petitions (and Tomei’s letter).

First of all, documents from the lawsuits are available:

• From static storage
• From this page in the menu structure

And the initial petitions in the three suits are:

• JDR Crescent et al. v. City of Los Angeles
• Los Angeles Conservancy v. City of Los Angeles
• Fix the City v. City of Los Angeles

And, although I do not yet have a copy of any paper, the owner of some adjacent property is suing the City of West Hollywood over the project.

And here is what Marisa Tomei had to say:

Dear Council Members,

I urge you to approve the Historic Cultural designation for the Lytton Savings building.

It saddens me that we might let this amazing mid-century modern building be destroyed. We live in a time when people trade mid-century modern houses like they are Picassos — why would we let this masterpiece be demolished?

Lytton Savings — now Chase Bank — embraced the California car culture and uniquely integrated it with fine art.

Almost daily this building greets me at the entrance of the Sunset Strip. With its zigzag roof and the beautiful glow of the stained glass screen through the first floor lobby windows, it welcomes people every bit as effectively today as it has for the last half century.

To me, it represents an era of Hollywood that cannot be replicated today.

Please honor this building and its architect, Kurt Meyer, with a Historic Cultural Monument designation. Responsible development does not exclude preservation of our historic resources.

Sincerely,

Marisa Tomei

Image of Marisa Tomei is via Wikimedia, who offers it under their usual exceedingly generous terms.

1. Planning and Land Use Management
2. Yes, it’s true. Not all our readers, in fact, not all our writers, know who this Marisa Tomei person is.