Planning Commission goes after hotel-like homes in Bel Air-Beverly Crest

Amid Los Angeles’ impending crackdown on enormous mansions, city officials are considering a separate set of regulations that single out Bel Air-Beverly Crest, where residents say “McMansions” are especially prevalent.

The Planning Commission voted last week to recommend that the City Council adopt changes that would require every single-family home larger than 20,000 square feet in the neighborhood go through the planning department review process, according to Curbed.

Between 2011 and 2015, there were 18 permits issued for single-family homes 20,000 square feet or larger in L.A. — and 13 of those properties were in Bel Air-Beverly Crest, a city planning report found.

Residents in support of the regulations told commissioners that some projects in their neighborhood are essentially hotels.

As part of the proposal, the construction of those homes would also be limited to the hours between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Earlier this month, City Council voted overwhelmingly in favor of enacting stricter limits on the size of single-family houses in proportion to lot size. One amendment, for instance, would limit the size of houses to 45 percent of their lot size, down from the current 50 percent maximum. [Curbed] — Cathaleen Chen