Next week, the East Los Angeles Area Planning Commission is scheduled to consider an appeal seeking to stall the development of a small lot subdivision in the Highland Park area.

Project applicant AJIT, LLC obtained approvals earlier this year to construct 13 houses on a vacant lot at 616-620 N. Avenue 20.  Plans call for a mix of two- and three-story buildings featuring two-, three-, and four-bedroom floor plans ranging from 1,846 to 2,806 square feet in size, with total parking for 29 vehicles.

Architect Tracy A. Stone is designing the project, which is depicted in the Pueblo Revival style.  Four houses arranged around a common courtyard would front Avenue 66, while an L-shaped driveway would wrap around the property to provide access to the remaining houses at the back of the lot.

The appellant, listed as the San Pasual Arroyo Seco Wildlife Habitat Preservation, contends that the project should require more rigorous study under the California  Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) due to its potential impacts on historic resources and urban wildlife.  The appeal argues that the project site - which is located in the Highland Park-Garvanza historic preservation overlay zone - includes remaining features of the historic Wilson Estate, which is identified as a Historic Cultural Monument by the City of Los Angeles.  Additionally, the appellant puts forth that the presence of wildlife on the property and its sloping topography make the project's CEQA exemption inappropriate.

The appeal is on the agenda for the July 24 meeting of the East L.A. Planning Commission.