Homeowners Wary Of Plans For 'Millennium Hollywood' Project

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — A development project that would transform the Hollywood skyline faces sharp criticism from local homeowners despite promises to bring thousands of new jobs to the region.

Millennium Partners, developer of the Millennium Hollywood project, released the findings of a fiscal study Tuesday on a plan to turn 4.47 acres of surface parking lots flanking the Capitol Records Tower into a one million-square-foot mixed-use development.

KNX 1070's Ed Mertz reports while some local business and community leaders support the plan, nearby homeowners fear the project could adversely impact one of the world's most famous neighborhoods.

The Millennium Hollywood project would take an estimated three years to build each of two 50-story towers that would rise just to the west and south of the Capitol Records building.

Supporters claim the project would create 2,900 construction jobs, 3,000 permanent jobs and generate more than $4 million a year in revenue to the city.

While the L.A. city planning department will review the proposal in the next couple of weeks, Hollywood Chamber of Commerce President Leron Gubler expects the towers to eventually rise.

"I am very confident that the project will get approval," Gubler said. "Obviously, any time you have a project of any magnitude, there's always a lot of give-and-take when it goes before the public officials, but this is an important project for the region."

But despite promises of increased revenue, one homeowners group is less than thrilled about the project.

Patti Negri, president of the Hollywood Dell Homeowners Association, said her greatest concern is about traffic and infrastructure.

"We have tiny, old 1920s sewer systems, they go bad all the time," Negri said. "All of a sudden we're gonna have Lord knows how many more toilets and showers in these two 50-story buildings, and nobody is talking about that."

Negri added that while neighbors don't oppose the project entirely, they are concerned that the towers would ultimately obstruct views of the iconic Hollywood sign.

"All the people in the hills who bought there to have a view of the city have these two [towers] as high as their houses," she said.