It's Now Saturday Morning, Let's Review

Good morning,

Have you taken the time to digest the latest news about Ponte Vista?

Maybe it is time for a review of things that have happened lately.

In early November, Bob Bisno's City Place Santa Ana held a marketing-type auction for many or the unsold units at that condominium project.

The Ponte Vista Outreach team claimed Mr. Bisno was very pleased with the results. But had sales and the economy been better, Bob's marketing team might not have found it necessary to have the auction for 114 unsold properties in the first place.

Bob Bisno was mentioned in one of two articles detailing the lawsuit between residents of Beverly Park North and Beverly Park South, where approximately 64 properties make up some of the most expensive and exclusive housing projects in the city.

The folks living in Beverly Park North don't like having to deal with construction, maintenance, and other traffic going between Mulholland Drive and Beverly Park South, a smaller enclave to the south of where Mr. Bisno and others live.

Later in November the Tentative Vesting Tract for the Ponte Vista at San Pedro project was disapproved of. It may have only been technical in nature, but to some folks it represented a psychological setback for Bob's plans.

On November 20, 2008 the Mayor of the city of Baldwin Park announced that Bob Bisno and his development company had pulled out of plans to redevelopment approximately 125 acres of downtown Baldwin Park.

Late in the afternoon of November 21, the Recommendation Report by the Department of City Planning was released. The document deals with Ponte Vista at San Pedro.

The recommended actions for both the Harbor Area Planning Commission and the Los Angeles City Planning Commission are as follows:

1. Disapprove a General Plan Amendment to the Wilmington-Harbor City Community Plan from “Low Residential” and “Open Space” to “Medium” Density Residential land use.

2. Disapprove a Zone Change from the existing R1-1XL and OS-1XL to a Specific Plan Zone proposed to be created as part of this action.

3. Disapprove the establishment of the Ponte Vista at San Pedro Specific Plan proposed to be created as part of this action.

4. Disapprove a Development Agreement between BDC Ponte Vista Partners LLC and the City of Los Angeles.

5. Not Certify Environmental Impact Report ENV-2005-4516-EIR, Not Adopt a Statement of Overriding Considerations, and Disapprove the Mitigation Monitoring Program.

Note: The words in boldface are as they actually appear in the document.

There are so many issues to review in the document, it would be better for you to read them yourself by visiting: http://www.box.net/shared/hxe1d75o95.

I have heard of no plans yet for the cancellation of the upcoming Harbor Area Planning Commission on December 2.

The more important meeting by the Los Angeles City Planning Commission, concerning Ponte Vista is still scheduled for December 11, 2008 in downtown Los Angeles.

Efforts are still ongoing to have that meeting held in San Pedro.