Local News in Brief : L.A. Council OKs Trial Use of Illegal Studio City Parking Lot

A Studio City mini-mall developer, who illegally paved a parking lot in a residential area near his shops, won permission Wednesday to begin using the lot.

The Los Angeles City Council voted 10 to 0 to let Martin Bender park cars on the 23-space lot--constructed last year without a city permit on residentially zoned land at the corner of Fruitland Drive and Sunshine Terrace.

Officials said Bender can use the lot for a year while the city evaluates its effect on nearby homes in a hilly area a block south of Ventura Boulevard.

Legalization of the lot was opposed by the Studio City Residents Assn. and homeowner Elliot Midwood, whose residence overlooks the parking area.

Midwood said the lot could attract transients and become a safety hazard. The homeowner association complained that the lot would set a precedent that owners of other crowded shopping centers would follow.

Others in the neighborhood had supported the parking area in earlier zoning hearings, however. And Bender had told officials that the illegal construction was the result of an innocent mix-up over the building permit.

Council members voted after Councilman Joel Wachs, who represents the Studio City area, said he supported use of the lot during the trial period.