Between West Broadway and the boardwalk to the north and south, and Washington and Lindell boulevards to the east and west, stands an aging building covered with murals, home to a whale sculpture composed of recycled garbage.<\/p>\n
The former Hebrew Academy of Long Beach<\/a> was the subject of a two-and-a-half-hour-long discussion at the Aug. 27 Zoning Board of Appeals meeting, as a familiar developer \u2014 Kurt Wittek\u2019s 73rd Meridian Partners LLC,<\/a> a partnership between Wittek Development LLC and Sackman Enterprises \u2014 sought variances needed to redevelop the property.\u00a0<\/p>\n Wittek\u2019s plans call for demolishing the existing building and the construction of a 106-unit condominium development. The 75,000-square-foot property would feature two eight-story residential towers with a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom units, as well as an amenity building above a two-story parking garage with 213 spaces, which developers called \u201cthe podium.\u201d<\/p>\n When the project was first brought before the zoning board in 2016, it was proposed as a 15-story, 154-foot-tall building with 154 units.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen we undertook this, we tried to create what we thought would be an appealing, aesthetically desirable project that would enhance the landscape [of] its environment,\u201d Wittek said. \u201cOur process of interacting with the city and its consultants taught us that we needed to listen. We think we did.\u201d<\/p>\n Because the building is in a residential district, the developer is seeking zoning variances for height, building area \u2014 the portion of a lot that a building can occupy \u2014 front- and side-yard requirements and density. According to city code, residential buildings in that district cannot be taller than 40 feet or occupy more than 35 percent of a lot. The proposed building would be nearly 80 feet tall and cover more than 43 percent of the property.<\/p>\n City code also requires a 10-foot setback from the West Broadway property line and a 20-foot setback from the Boardwalk.<\/p>\n Greg Alvarez, an attorney with Amato Law Group, representing 73rd Meridian, explained that the requested front-yard variance would accommodate access to the parking area rather than allow the building itself to be closer to the property line. \u201cWe don\u2019t need it for the building,\u201d Alvarez said. \u201cWe just need it to get the driveway through so people can access parking.\u201d<\/p>\n As well, city code requires that 65 percent of the lot\u2019s width \u2014 325 feet \u2014 remain open and unobstructed. The proposal would reduce that width to 70 feet. And the property is limited to one dwelling unit per 1,000 square feet of lot area, but 73rd Meridian\u2019s proposal calls for one unit per 708 square feet, which would exceed the zoning limit by 31 units.<\/p>\n