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UPDATE: Historic Church Gets OK for Major Expansion

10/6/2013

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One of the largest and oldest Korean American churches can dramatically increase its Los Angeles campus by replacing its nearly 50-year-old facility with a 3-story, 27,000-square-foot sanctuary with seating for 1,755 parishioners, a 60,000-square-foot community center and two levels of subterranean parking.

As first reported by LandUseLA.com, the Berendo Street Baptist Church, which is located in the heart of LA's Koreatown, submitted an application on Jan. 2 for its expansion project.  Among the entitlements needed were a Site Plan Review and Zoning Administrator's Adjustments for reduced yard setbacks for the new buildings and the subterranean parking.

The approval letter from the Office of Zoning Administration was issued last month and became final last week when no one appealed the approval. The church received all of the requested entitlements but did withdraw its request for a reduced rear yard of 10 feet and will instead meet the 15-foot minimum rear yard.

The public hearing was mostly attended by supporters of the project. But a lawyer who represented both a neighboring medical office building and a nearby residential building spoke in objection to how closely the church was building its subterranean parking to his clients' buildings. The lawyer's clients were apparently satisfied with the church's response since the approval wasn't appealed.

The church was organized in March 1957, only the second Korean Baptist church in the United States. It has been called the "mother ship" of Korean Baptist churches in the U.S. because of its activist role in training Korean Baptist ministers and the missionary services that its members have traditionally provided around the country.

ZA Approval Letter:
http://zimas.lacity.org/reports/cee25a68541992bd86a67ad5facb9d08.pdf

LandUseLA.com: Historic Koreatown Church Plans Major Expansion
http://www.landusela.com/1/post/2013/08/historic-koreatown-church-plans-major-expansion.html


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Historic Koreatown Church Plans Major Expansion

8/26/2013

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One of the largest and oldest Korean churches in the United States plans to dramatically increase its Los Angeles campus by replacing its nearly 50-year-old facility with a 3-story, 27,772-square-foot sanctuary, 57,536-square-foot community center and two levels of subterranean parking with 380 spaces.

Public hearings were held last week and earlier this spring for the entitlements needed by the Berendo Street Baptist Church, which is located in the heart of LA's Koreatown. Among the entitlements needed are a Site Plan Review and Zoning Administrator's Adjustments for reduced yard setbacks for the new buildings and the subterranean parking. The project's draft MND was published last month; no potentially significant environmental impacts were determined by the Planning Department.

The church was organized in March 1957, only the second Korean Baptist church in the United States. It has been called the "mother ship" of Korean Baptist churches in the U.S. because of its activist role in training Korean Baptist ministers and the missionary services that its members have traditionally provided around the country.

The Zoning Administrator's Determination Letter on the new project has yet to be issued. Typically, the ZA's office issues its ruling 4-6 weeks after the public hearing, so the church should know by early October whether it can proceed with its ambitious growth plan.

Berendo Street Baptist Church is located at 975 S. Berendo St.

ZA-2013-0001-ZAA-SPR
http://planning.lacity.org/cts_internet/index.cfm?urlCaseId=189871&caseNumber=ZA-2013-1-ZAA-SPR&fuseaction=case.summary

ENV-2013-0002-MND
http://planning.lacity.org/cts_internet/index.cfm?urlCaseId=189872&caseNumber=ENV-2013-2-MND&fuseaction=case.summary

Korean Council to meet in L.A.
http://www.christianexaminer.com/Articles/Articles%20May08/Art_May08_LA1.html

History of the Korean immigrant Baptist church movement:
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/A+history+of+the+Korean+immigrant+Baptist+church+movement+in+the...-a0130777643


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400+ Unit Mixed-Use Project Proposed for Wilshire Area

7/5/2013

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A mixed-use project with 411 residential units and 43,800 square feet of retail space will cover both sides of half a city block in the Wilshire area if plans filed this week with the City Planning Department ultimately get approved by the City Council.

The project is the latest lare-scale Koreatown development from Christopher Pak, a Koreatown-born architect and developer described by the Los Angeles Times as " turning Koreatown into a testing ground for a vision of a dense, taller L.A."

The project is proposed for both sides of James M. Wood Boulevard east of Vermont Avenue. On the north side, the developer proposes 187 residential units and 18,000 square-feet of retail. On the south side of the street would be 224 units and 25,800 square-feet of retail.

The project is located within the Wilshire Center/Koreatown Redevelopment Project Area and a Los Angeles State Enterprise Zone, important designations which could allow for more dense development and a faster approval process. It is located in the MacArthur Park Neighborhood Council area, on the eastern flank of Koreatown. The project is located primarily in Council President Herb Wesson's 10th District but its eastern edge is in Councilman Gilbert Cedillo's 1st District.

The project requires a General Plan Amendment, Zone Change and new Height District designation, which are entitlement requests that ultimately require approval from the City Council.

Pak is a "prominent campaign fundraiser," according to the Los Angeles Times, whose wife was appointed to the City Ethics Commission in December 2012 by Wesson. Pak raised money for Wesson, Cedillo and Mayor Eric Garcetti, among others, before the recent citywide elections, according to the Times.

The Planning and environmental cases were filed on Tuesday so it could be several months or more before the draft Mitigated Negative Declaration is published and the first hearing date is set for the entitlement requests.

Planning Department case:
http://planning.lacity.org/cts_internet/index.cfm?urlCaseId=192244&caseNumber=CPC-2013-1996-GPA-ZC-HD-SPR&fuseaction=case.summary

LA Times: A taller L.A.? He's making it happen
http://articles.latimes.com/2007/aug/23/local/me-pak23

LA Times: Wesson's choice of fundraiser's wife for ethics panel criticized
http://articles.latimes.com/2012/dec/20/local/la-me-wesson-ethics-20121220

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