A battle over a Beverly Hills apartment complex signals a growing regard for the old.

Story from the magazine by Kerri Westenberg / Nov. 14, 2001

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Westwood Village, Los Angeles (©2001 Michele and Tom Grimm)

BEVERLY HILLS, CALIF.—It's not easy getting old in this land of film, fads, and fashion. There are more plastic surgeons per capita here than almost anyplace in the nation. Even the architecture, relentlessly torn down and replaced with new styles, is "in a constant state of face-lift," says Ken Bernstein of the Los Angeles Conservancy.

Two years ago a loose-knit but ardent band of citizens intent on persuading their city government of the historical and architectural significance of local buildings decided to incorporate as the Beverly Hills Architectural Conservancy. Clearly, they have a hard sell, except on a lone block of North Arnaz Drive. There, behind full-figured sycamore trees and flashy bougainvillea, stand duplexes and two-story apartment buildings built in the 1920s and '30s in revival Spanish, French, and Tudor styles. Monster mansions that are out of scale with other houses and oversized apartment complexes that reach to the sidewalk, allowing no green space, have altered other city streets. But they have somehow passed over the 100 block, and the conservancy found its residents trying to ward off a three-story, 22-unit condominium complex that would wipe out four apartment buildings original to the street.

Now the conservancy and residents are allied in a court battle to reverse the city council's approval of the condo project, which residents argue will ruin the friendly, graceful ambiance of their street.

"This is the last block in Beverly Hills that hasn't been chewed up by development," says Chaim Pelleg, who has owned his pink, Spanish-revival duplex for 16 years.

His wife, Dalia, says, "If we lose this block, what will remain of the old charm of Beverly Hills?"

Palm trees line a Beverly Hills street. (©2001 Michele and Tom Grimm)

The residents' appreciation for their block predates the condo proposal. In 1997 they approached the city to seek protection for their historic buildings, made distinctive by lead-glass picture windows, second-story balconies, and red-tiled roofs. They found that Beverly Hills, as the only municipality among neighboring cities that does not have a preservation ordinance, offers no local recognition of historic buildings or neighborhoods. That's among the first problems the fledgling Beverly Hills conservancy hopes to fix.

"Beverly Hills aspires to be a world-class city and promotes itself with an image of cultural sophistication," says Denise Roberts, a writer and film and TV producer and the president of the conservancy, "but it is still an unsophisticated city in the arena of historic preservation."

Ignored by the city, the Arnaz Drive residents, with the conservancy's help, turned to the state. California responded by listing the one-block-long, 25-property area as a historic district on the state register of historical resources. That made North Arnaz Drive the first historic district in Beverly Hills. The state listing describes North Arnaz Drive as a rare example of historic regional architecture and "an early 20th century Southern California prototype which is rapidly disappearing within the city under the pressures of high-density development."

Says Chaim Pelleg, "The decision was unanimous. They fell in love with us."

Meanwhile, the city council was debating approval of the condo project, to be called the Chateau Arnaz, and eventually voted 3-2 to allow its construction.

The developer, Gerald Marcil, says his $15 million building will enhance the neighborhood. "The top story will be set back so that it will look like it is two stories tall from the street. It will match the rhythm of the street."

Arnaz Drive residents and business people who, along with the conservancy, disagree filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles County court to reverse the decision of the council. An environmental impact report prepared for the state by an independent agency states that "the project would result in a substantial adverse change in the significance of the North Arnaz Apartments Historic District." Still, a judge ruled that the project could proceed; the decision is under appeal.

Win or lose this particular case, Roberts admits that preservation in Beverly Hills has "a long way to go, but there is a groundswell of support, especially as demolition of old buildings increases."

Pelleg strolled down North Arnaz Drive one recent sunny day with David Blanco, whose family has owned and occupied one of the historic buildings for 30 years. Pelleg, who greeted his neighbors by name, reflected on the old buildings that are disappearing from Beverly Hills. "These are beautiful and affordable houses, but this city only cares about celebrities' homes," he complained.

"They don't even care about those," Blanco responded. "A few years ago, the city even let Jimmy Stewart's house be demolished."

Kerri Westenberg is a writer in Santa Monica, Calif.

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