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The West Hollywood City Council heard public comments on the Sunset Time project that is proposed to replace the House of Blues on the Sunset Strip. No action was taken, and further public comment will be heard at a future date.
Sunset Time project rendering, viewed looking east from the west side of the project.
Some of the big issues on the project are an electronic LED sign with moving images covering a large portion of the exterior, affordable housing, the loss of the House of Blues as one of the big music venues on the Sunset Strip, and the scale of the massive project for the neighborhood.
Council members expressed some of their own feelings after the public comment, with Abbe Land voicing concerns that the residential condo portion might morph into a quasi extension of the hotel portion, and John Heilman going a step further, saying he doesn’t even like the idea of second home type use. They want people to live there who will be integral, active members of the community.
The loss of a large music venue, the House of Blues, didn’t seem to be among the top concerns for a lot of the council members, some noting that it often seems to generate more disturbances than other clubs in the area. Lindsay Horvath said she would like to see more buy in to the project from the Sunset Strip Business Association, which includes heavy representation from the music and entertainment venues on the Strip.
Among John Duran’s comments was his support and enthusiasm for the LED sign, and a comment about being less concerned about the portion of the project that would extend down all the way to Fountain from up on the Sunset Strip.
Rendering of the Sunset Time project, viewed from Fountain and Olive.
Weho Daily is a bit more concerned about the lower portion of the project along Fountain, Olive and De Longpre.
It’s a massive project that feels like it could be an impenetrable fortress looming over pedestrians and the general public. There are not very many entries and exits to the project along these streets, and the design could end up being pretty monotonous to walk around.
This can especially be seen in the renderings of the project from De Longpre, in the area rounding the corner as the street turns, apparently featuring a huge screening wall.
A simulated view of the Sunset Time project from De Longpre, showing a large screening wall around the corner blocking pedestrian access to the central plaza of the project. Opening up this area would provide easier access for the neighborhood to the project and the Sunset Strip.
To be fair, that’s what currently exist around that corner, but that’s not to say what is best for the neighborhood. There may be some reasons that the architects decided to keep it somewhat like that, but it seems like it sure would be nice if the circular driveway area (which also serves as a buffer around the earthquake fault passing directly through) had at least some public pedestrian access to the project, and easier access to the Sunset Strip than currently exists.
Access to the Sunset Strip from the neighborhood around De Longpre is currently limited to just a gate at Hart Park that is only open during daytime hours. It would be nice to see signs of more openness, especially on that side of the project.
More on the Web
- Weho Residents Skeptical About Development to Replace House of Blues – LAist
- House of Blues Project Advancing, Inciting Ire (2008) – Curbed LA
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