The auditorium was filled with people emotionally charged for the Abbot Kinney Hotel issue. The crowd topped all records for a Venice Neighborhood Council (VNC) meeting. A fire marshal would have questioned this assemblage.

Before a standing-room-only auditorium and after 18 months, 12 community meetings, and 9 trips to LUPC, the Abbot Kinney Hotel reached the Venice Neighborhood Council and garnered a 9-7-1 vote for building the hotel. Next stop Los Angeles Planning.

It was stated that there would be a special VNC program, possibly 27 February, to cover 1414 Main Street and Firestone-Walker Brewery. The 758 Sunset project that was to be heard had no one to represent it and it was therefore voted down.

The normal business of the VNC was conducted by President Linda Lucks but Marc Saltzberg, vice-president, conducted the Abbot Kinney Hotel portion of the program. Linda Lucks and a board member recused themselves because Dan Abrams had donated money to an establishment they were affiliated with.

Jake Kaufman, head of the land use and planning committee (LUPC), explained the route the Abbot Kinney hotel had taken the previous months and that the hotel had listened each time it visited LUPC and made appropriate changes. Kaufman said the hotel now complied with the Venice Specific Plan.

Architect David Hertz and developer Dan Abrams gave the presentation for the hotel. Following, Marta Evry gave a 15-minute power-point presentation as to why the hotel should not be built. She touched on mass, scale, and character, precedents, parking, traffic, and public safety.

After both presentations, 15 speakers were allowed one minute each to speak positively on the hotel to balance the time Marta Evry had been given. Then speakers were chosen to alternate, pro and con. Not everyone was allowed to speak because of the time constraints.

The crowd frequently got out of control so time was wasted quieting the people enough for people to be heard. Many of the people in the crowd were not familiar with the VNC procedures and continuously had to have steps explained and be told to allow others to speak.

One of the main questions was lot consolidation. Another was mass, scale and character. Some questioned reasoning for a hotel and some mentioned that the property across the street on Electric would be ruined.

Architect John Reed, who handled the hotel for LUPC, did not speak last night, but explained the Venice Specific Plan in relation to lot consolidation in the summary for LUPC case.

Jim Murez, member of the land use and planning committee, explained that there were few places in Venice zoned for a hotel and this was one of them.

Daryl Barnett, who manages property on Electric across from project, said she had attended all the meetings and that no one needed to worry about the property across the street. “We can take care of ourselves and have,” she responded. “The architect has complied with our requests.”

Sue Kaplan, chair of Mass, Scale and Character for VNC, said project did not comply with mass, scale, and character.