Sign and send the email below to oppose the construction of high density housing on The Oso School Site to our elected officials and LAUSD
I am opposed to the LAUSD’s Employee Housing Initiative that proposes to use the Oso School property in Woodland Hills for affordable housing or developer exchange.
The Oso School property, unlike Collins School or Highlander School, is located in an isolated hilly single-family neighborhood, surrounded and facing only single-family homes. There are NO walkable access to main streets, mass transit, or commercial or retail establishments. The neighborhood has limited entrance and exits on narrow, hilly, residential streets making it the LEAST ideal location for employee multifamily housing. The Oso School property is appropriate for school use only. We urge you to look at the property on Google Maps for a better understanding.
The Oso School property must be preserved for educational use only. The Oso School property is within 1 mile of the Warner Center which by 2035 will have over 20,000 new residential units, multiple office buildings, hotels, and a 10,000 seat stadium-the “ Century City of the Valley.” This ‘city within a city” will result in approximately 4000 -5000 new LAUSD students. LAUSD is basing its decisions on demographic information that is outdated and inaccurate and completely fails to accurately account for the current and expected growth in the Warner Center and the Woodland Hills area. The current surrounding schools do not have space or capacity to accommodate the new influx of students and providing seats in schools, less ideally located, reduces the option of attendance at an LAUSD school.
It is also unacceptable for LAUSD to suggest exchanging the Oso School property for a property owned by a developer that has land more suitable to multifamily housing. Mr. Scott Schmerelson (District 3) correctly stated at the November School Board meeting that unless there is a legally binding contract to ensure that the developer is only allowed to build single-family homes on property like Oso, the neighborhood would be left without legal recourse to prevent the developer from building high-density housing in an isolated single-family neighborhood, making LAUSD possibly complicit in the destabilization of a neighborhood.
Additionally, Mr. Hovatter(LAUSD Facilities Chief) has incorrectly stated to the board that the city will only allow developers to rezone Oso School property for single-family development -however, it was later admitted that this could not be guaranteed.
Additionally, Mr. Hovatter(LAUSD Facilities Chief) has incorrectly stated to the board that the city will only allow developers to rezone Oso School property for single-family development -however, it was later admitted that this could not be guaranteed.
Currently, developers in Warner Center are paying LAUSD mitigation fees of $4.08 per square foot for residential construction and $.66 per square foot for commercial construction. If all proposed developments are completed, LAUSD will be paid approximately $133,008,000. for residential construction and $1,986,600. for non-residential construction to procure the building of new schools, and unfortunately, those fees are being used by LAUSD in other areas. Using the funds collected in areas other than Woodland HiIls/Warner Center brings into question whether the mitigation is actually being accomplished.
LAUSD is not considering the future of our communities and our children. Many families currently send their students to Las Virgenes schools due to the lack of high-quality schools in our area. We pay our taxes and contribute to bond funds and have been denied a much-needed elementary and early childhood education center. Parents do not want their children bussed to other schools and the existing schools do not want their playground area taken away by bungalows. Regrettably, LAUSD is not considering projects and developments for near-future growth and demand.
The community understands the need for more affordable housing, however other locations such as the Highlander and Collins School would be much more appropriate due to their locations adjacent to major streets, mass transit, recreation centers, parks, and churches. The LAUSD owned properties located at 21213 Vanowen and 21227 Vanowen would be ideal locations for employee housing due to the N/S bus service on Canoga and the E/W bus service on Vanowen as well as the proximity to retail and commercial developments.
The topography and geography make the Oso School site an inappropriate choice for employee housing or developer exchange and should be removed from consideration for the project. The expected growth in Warner Center is unprecedented in the entire city of Los Angeles and deserves special consideration resulting in the rebuilding of the Oso School.