Property Rights at Stake in Proposed Moratorium
Zamperini House
This coming Tuesday the City Council will consider whether to adopt an urgency ordinance extending a moratorium on alterations and demolitions of structures located within the Original Torrance Tract. The moratorium was first imposed at the January 12, 2016 Council meeting. That moratorium was only in effect for 45 days. The current proposal, however, would extend the moratorium for an additional 10 months and 15 days and requires at least 6 affirmative votes from the Council.
The moratorium will prevent the demolition or exterior modification of any structures while the City undertakes further studies and implements initial steps to develop a Historic Preservation Program. To that end, the Council recently appropriated $50,000 to hire a consultant to assist in the preparation of a historic preservation ordinance.
The staff report identified 5 properties that are currently in process of being modified that would potentially be adversely impacted by extending the moratorium.
The Council is relying upon the authority granted by California Government Code Section 65858 in order to impose the building restrictions. That statute allows for such action in order to protect the public health, safety, and welfare of the community. The proposed ordinance states that allowing additional alterations or demolitions presents “a current and immediate threat to the public health, safety and welfare due to the following reasons:
- Exterior modifications could result in structures that are not compatible with existing residential, industrial, or commercial areas;
- Existing regulations do not require notice to residents prior to making modifications thereby resulting in inadequate public review of potential impacts;
- Need to further evaluate cumulative impacts of property alterations before approving more projects; and the
- Need to complete process of studying Historic Preservation Program that could require review of building permits to ensure any new development is compatible with the architectural character of the neighborhood.
The moratorium would not apply to structures zoned commercial or industrial.
Just look what happened to Redondo Beach, it’s almost gone, all that remains are Condos and Traffic. Lovely!
We should absolutely have a historic district in Torrance. The houses and area in Old Torrance are just beautiful. It would be a shame for us not to preserve them.
Just great, houses are approaching 90 years old and you can’t replace them??? What happens when they are no longer safe? Who is going to pay for my damages when my house will fall apart from old age.
mine is 96 and still standing….. maybe some maintenance……huh?
what if I want to live in a home that is energy efficient and will not fall down in an earthquake. houses only last so long.
There are ways to make a home energy efficient without tearing it down or irrevocably altering it. Owning a home requires maintenance and upkeep.
Certainly the fabric of the city makes a huge difference to the quality of life for homeowners. That’s a result of many things and residential character is an important part of that. Living in an historic property is a very important trust for people and it’s something that people need to understand prior to buying. If you’ve inherited such a property, it doesn’t make it any less important. It’s a community everyone.
I am all for a historic preservation ordinance but imposing a moritorium would be wrong for the property owners and you cannot justify that it is needed for health, safety and welfare reasons. People need to know before they buy a property that it is a historic property and cannot be altered or torn down.
How does this moratorium improve the quality of life for Torrance homeowners
Certainly the fabric of the city makes a huge difference to the quality of life for homeowners. That’s a result of many things and residential character is an important part of that. Living in an historic property is a very important trust for people and it’s something that people need to understand prior to buying. If you’ve inherited such a property, it doesn’t make it any less important. It’s a community everyone.
PS Sorry…messed up and initially left this comment above.
When I bought my property in 1971 there was no talk of this being a historical part of the city. This area was considered part of the poor section of Torrance. Many of my neighbors have already developed their property. You are asking to make a retroactive decision
which is against my rights as a home owner. If I were to buy in the hill side overlay district I would no ahead of time that there were certain restrictions. If you want to keep your house as historic property than do so but it should be an individual choice.
For those of us that live in what were deemed the “workers houses” at the time of being built have very tiny closets and no space to enlarge them. In the days my house was build people had three out fits…the one they wore to church, the two for work so that one could be cleaned. I have to keep my clothes in the garage.