-- Compiled by Lolita Harper INSIDE CITY...

-- Compiled by Lolita Harper

INSIDE CITY HALL

Here are some of the decisions coming out of the Costa Mesa

Planning Commission meeting Monday.

TWO-STORY ADDITION

The Planning Commission bent city rules a little Monday to cover

an oversight that allowed the construction of a two-story addition

with excessive building heights.

Eastside homeowner Michael Kuhns was granted a height variance for

his project at 1500 Riverside Place, which is already under

construction and calls for skylines 2 feet above what is normally

permitted in the city. Plans for the property include heights of 29

feet, with a chimney that reaches 2 feet farther.

Kuhns’ project was approved by the city zoning administrator in

October of 2001, but the excessive heights were not discovered until

after construction began in April of this year, planners said.

While the proposed height exceeds city code, planners said it

would not have hurt the neighborhood, especially since the next-door

neighbor also has a 29-foot second story.

WHAT IT MEANS

Kuhns will be permitted to proceed with his construction as

planned, building a 29-foot second-story addition.

TWO TOWN CENTER

Planning commissioners endorsed plans for an 18-story building and

accompanying five-story parking structure as part of the Two Town

Center master plan, saying the towering building would not have a

negative effect on the surrounding area as it sits in the middle of a

busy business district.

The multi-storied building and its accompanying five-level parking

structure is the latest version of what has been a controversial

development. The 18.23-acre center is bounded by Anton Boulevard, the

San Diego Freeway, Bristol Street and Avenue of the Arts and houses a

host of office buildings, restaurants, a movie theater, retail and

the outdoor Noguchi garden sculpture.

Representatives from Commonwealth LLC, the company that bought the

center from the Segerstroms, presented their plans for the area,

including an artist’s rendering of the modern structure. The

project’s architect called it “the highest quality office space on

the market” and pointed out the dramatic, clean glass paneled

exterior.

WHAT IT MEANS

The proposed project calls for the demolition of Edwards Cinema

and its existing parking structure on Park Center Drive -- the street

that runs through Two Town Center -- to make way for the

400,000-square-foot building.

WHAT WAS SAID:

Resident Robert Graham was concerned whether the new owners of the

property would continue the level of excellence residents have become

accustomed to in the largely Segerstrom-owned area of town.

“Want to make sure it’s going to be of Segerstrom quality, even

though there is a new owner,” Graham said.