Palm Street Area Residents Association (PSARA) of Altadena, CA

"No School on Palm" webpage for the
Palm Street Area Residents Association (PSARA)
of Altadena, California, USA

http://www.AltadenaPSARA.org

We have worked closely with the Altadena Town Council for several years (2008-2012) to successfully prevent several schools from establishing a campus at 183 - 205 East Palm Street in Altadena. The traffic and noise associated with a 250-student day school would most certainly overwhelm our quiet residential neighborhood, with our narrow dead-end streets.

History of the Property:

The 183 East Palm Street property "was originally owned by Scott Way, an early Altadena settler", according to a May 31, 1992 Los Angeles Times article. It has been used as a private residence, most notably from 1954 to 1967 as the home of shaving cream heiress Betty Williams Zorthian following her divorce from Altadena artist Jirayr Zorthian. Betty sold her property to the YMCA for $50,000 in the late 1960s; it was then used from 1968 to 1975 as an Altadena YMCA Day Camp, with a swimming pool and nature trails, for no more than 75 children. In March 1991, the property was purchased for $825,000 by Bienvenidos Children's Center, and was then used from 1995 to 2005 as a residential home for no more than 46 infants and toddlers, for whom the several stucco buildings currently on the property were built, all but obscuring the original frame residence from public view. The cost to Bienvenidos for acquiring the property for both the 183 and 205 East Palm Street parcels, and for designing the Bienvenidos facility, was estimated at $1.6 million.

The corner house at 205 East Palm Street had been used strictly as a private residence up until the time when it was purchased by Bienvenidos Children's Center for use as office space; this residence had previously been associated with gangster "Bugsy" Siegel in the 1940s, and was later the home of CalTech physicist Kip Thorne in the 1970s.

A day school has never received a permit to operate on this historically-significant residential property.

Chronology of PSARA's "No School on Palm" Campaign:

April 2008: Sahag-Mesrob Armenian Christian School purchased the 183 - 205 East Palm Street property from Bienvenidos Children's Center for $7.1 million, with the intent of using the property as a second day school campus. Their main campus is located about a mile away, on Maiden Lane near Altadena Drive in Altadena.

September 2008: Sahag-Mesrob Armenian Christian School opened its second campus at 183 - 205 East Palm Street, without obtaining the required Conditional Use Permit (CUP). This school campus operated illegally during the entire 2008-2009 school year. Palm Street Area residents came together regarding this issue, and contacted Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael Antonovich's office, as well as the Los Angeles County Depratment of Regional Planning; County efforts to force the school to cease this illegal operation were met with a lawsuit filed by the school. Towards the end of the 2008-2009 school year, the school was ordered to close its illegal Palm Street campus.

June 2009: PSARA was encouraged to learn that Sahag-Mesrob Armenian Christian School has now closed its Palm Street campus, and will relocate to a leased campus in Pasadena in the fall of 2009. The 183 - 205 East Palm Street property became vacant, and was put up for sale. The queues of school-related traffic on Palm Street, as shown in this photo published last fall in an Altadenablog post, along with the associated vehicle emissions, plus the ongoing noise generated from hundreds of students within this bowl-shaped property during each school day, had significantly impacted our quiet residential neighborhood for ten whole months. This actual school experience within our own neighborhood has led PSARA to adopt a simple theme: No School on Palm! We have deployed many "NSOP" yard signs within our neighborhood for all to see, including the next owner of the 183 - 205 East Palm Street property.

March 2010: PSARA learned that Dr. Nancy Lavelle of The Almansor Center intends to pursue the purchase of the property at 183 - 205 East Palm Street for use as a Day School for 250 students with Autism Spectrum Disorders. The purchase of this property from Sahag-Mesrob Armenian Christian School is contingent upon the County's approval of a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) for operation of a school on this residential property. The purchase price is reported to be $4.5 million.

September 2010: PSARA learned on September 13, 2010 that Dr. Nancy Lavelle of The Almansor Center no longer intends to pursue the purchase of the property at 183 - 205 East Palm Street for use as a Day School for students with Autism Spectrum Disorders. PSARA will continue to vigorously oppose the use of this Palm Street property for any Day School, because of traffic, noise, pollution, and property value impacts of a Day School in the midst of our quiet residential neighborhood. PSARA is sorry to see this property go into disrepair and foreclosure. We remain hopeful that a future buyer will use this property for a purpose that is compatible with our rustic and idyllic residential neighborhood, with its very narrow streets. We believe that a hospice facility would be an ideal use for this property, as would an assisted living facility for seniors, a retreat center, or individual residences.

October 2010: PSARA learned on October 29, 2010, after a nearby neighbor overheard a conversation coming from the bowl-shaped property at 183 - 205 East Palm Street, that Mr. Philip Clarke, Principal of Arroyo Pacific Academy, a private high school in Arcadia, wants to purchase this property for use as a.... high school campus for 250 students! Mr. Clarke claims to know about PSARA, having read several posts concerning PSARA on Altadenablog, and he has also noticed the many No School on Palm signs on our streets, so he is well aware of the significant neighborhood opposition to any Day School at this 183 - 205 East Palm Street site. But he intends to pursue the purchase of this property anyway.

November 2010: On November 19, 2010, Mr. Philip Clarke purchased the 183 - 205 East Palm Street property. The purchase was made under the name of Arroyo Pacific Academy. The purchase price was $3.6 million. On that same day, Mr. Clarke issued this statement, which he distributed to Altadenablog, to Altadena Patch, and to PSARA.

December 2010: On Monday evening, December 6, 2010, Crown City News of Pasadena ran a news story on the local cable news channel, concerning this Palm Street property. PSARA provided written information to the CCN reporter, as background for this news story. A replay of this 4-minute broadcast can be found here and here.

January 2011: PSARA learned that Philip Clarke submitted an application for a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) on Thursday, January 6, 2011, with plans to operate a high school for 250 students on the 183 East Palm Street property. The CUP number is RCUP201100002 (that's 4 consecutive zeros); the associated Master Project Plan number is R2008-00985.

August 2011: Philip Clarke has requested that his application for a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) relative to his property at 183 East Palm Street be considered by the Altadena Town Council's Land Use Committee at its monthly meeting on Tuesday, September 6, and subsequently by the full 16-member Altadena Town Council at its monthly meeting on Tuesday, September 20. There will be a presentation by Mr. Clarke, questions and discussion by the Committee or the Council members, as well as an opportunity for public comment, prior to a vote to either approve or disapprove this CUP application. These meetings will take place at 7:00 PM at the Altadena Community Center.

September 6, 2011: The Altadena Town Council's Land Use Committee voted unanimously to disapprove the Conditional Use Permit (CUP) application submitted by Mr. Philip Clarke of Arroyo Pacific Academy for a proposed high school on the property at 183 East Palm Street. PSARA members spoke in opposition to the CUP during this meeting, as documented both in Altadenablog and in Altadena Patch. The Land Use Committee's decision will be considered by the full 16-member Altadena Town Council at its next monthly meeting on Tuesday, September 20.

September 20, 2011: The Altadena Town Council voted 10-to-1 to recommend denial of the Conditional Use Permit (CUP) application submitted by Mr. Philip Clarke of Arroyo Pacific Academy for a proposed high school on the property at 183 East Palm Street. PSARA members spoke in opposition to the CUP during this meeting, as documented both in Altadenablog and in Altadena Patch. A letter confirming this recommendation by the Altadena Town Council has been sent to the Los Angeles County Department of Regional Planning. A public hearing on this matter will be held at the Department of Regional Planning in downtown Los Angeles, on a date as yet to be determined.

November 15, 2011: At the November Town Council meeting, Dr. Sandra Thomas, the Chair of the Altadena Town Council, publicly read a letter from Mr. Philip Clarke, Principal of Arroyo Pacific Academy in Arcadia, stating that he has recently modified his Conditional Use Permit (CUP) application for the 183 East Palm Street property in Altadena, changing the maximum number of students at his proposed second campus from 250 to 200, and including a traffic circulation plan. Mr. Clarke believes that these CUP modifications should adequately address the concerns of the neighbors. Mr. Clarke has requested new hearings at the Altadena Town Council's Land Use Committee, and at the full Altadena Town Council. The date for the presentation of the revised CUP to the Land Use Committee, along with public comment, will be Tuesday, December 6. Altadenablog and Altadena Patch both document Mr. Clarke's latest CUP efforts.

December 6, 2011: At the December 2011 Land Use Committee (LUC) meeting, Mr. Philip Clarke of Arroyo Pacific Academy presented an overview of his slightly-modified plans for the 183 East Palm Street property, and answered questions posed by Land Use Committee members. The Altadena Community Plan document was specifically referenced by LUC member Brian League. During public comment, 18 individuals spoke in favor of the proposed school, and 21 PSARA members spoke against the proposed school. Discussion will continue at the February 7, 2012 Land Use Committee meeting.

February 7, 2012: At its February 2012 meeting, the Land Use Commitee (LUC) voted 8 - 5 to recommend to the Altadena Town Council to once again deny the CUP application for a high school campus at 183 East Palm Street. PSARA members spoke in opposition to the CUP during this meeting, as documented in Altadenablog. The full Altadena Town Council will meet on Tuesday, February 21 to consider this recommendation by its Land Use Committee, and to vote on a recommendation to be sent the Los Angeles County Department of Regional Planning.

February 21, 2012: At its February 2012 meeting, the full Altadena Town Council voted 11 - 3 to accept the recommendation of its Land Use Committee, to once again deny the CUP application for a high school campus at 183 East Palm Street. PSARA members spoke in opposition to the CUP during this meeting, as documented in Altadenablog and in Altadena Patch. The Town Council's recomendation will be sent to the Los Angeles County Department of Regional Planning for consideration during a public hearing, tentatively scheduled for Wednesday, April 4, 2012 in downtown Los Angeles.

February 29, 2012: The Public Hearing on the Conditional Use Permit for 183 East Palm Street has now been confirmed for Wednesday, April 4, 2012 at 9:00 a.m. This hearing will be held at the Los Angeles County Department of Regional Planning facility, in Room 150, at 320 West Temple Street, located between Hill St. and Broadway in downtown Los Angeles. Case materials can be found here on the Regional Planning website.

March 22, 2012: The Los Angeles County Department of Regional Planning published some important materials for the upcoming April 4th Public Hearing. The Staff Report included within the Regional Planning Commission (RPC) Package includes a recommendation made prior to the public hearing, subject to change based on testimony and/or documentary evidence presented at the public hearing. The staff has recommended denial of Conditional Use Permit number 201100002, as documented in both Altadenablog and in Altadena Patch. The Regional Planning Commissioners will hear testimony at the upcoming public hearing in downtown Los Angeles on April 4th.

April 4, 2012: The Los Angeles County Department of Regional Planning, at its April 4th Public Hearing, has voted 3-2 to deny the Conditional Use Permit for a high school at 183 - 205 East Palm Street in Altadena. The "Denial Package" included within the Case Downloads for this CUP contains all of the details. Altadenablog and Altadena Patch have posted summaries of this public hearing. Mr. Philip Clarke, President of Arroyo Pacific Academy, has until April 18th to file an appeal, which would then go before the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors for decision.

April 6, 2012: As reported today in Altadenablog, Arroyo Pacific Academy has already purchased a 15,000 square foot property at 400 Rolyn Place in Arcadia, and intends to use it as a second campus for arts, music, robotics, technology and theater. This second campus is about 3 blocks from the main 12,000 square foot property at 41 West Santa Clara Street in Arcadia. The Rolyn Place property was purchased by Arroyo Pacific Academy in March 2012 for approximately $1.6 million, and was funded by a recent $2.8 million Small Business Association loan. The 183 - 205 Palm Street property was purchased by Arroyo Pacific Academy for $3.6 million in November 2010. Now that Arroyo Pacific Academy has established a second "arts and technology" campus in Arcadia, the school may use its Palm Street property for other purposes, or may sell it.

April 19, 2012: As reported in both Altadenablog and Altadena Patch, Arroyo Pacific Academy will not appeal the Conditional Use Permit (CUP) denial decision made by the Los Angeles County Department of Regional Planning during its April 4, 2012 Public Hearing. PSARA has actively participated during all phases of this CUP application process. A precedent has been set, making it unlikely that a school would ever be permitted to operate on the 183 - 205 East Palm Street property in this quiet residential area of Altadena.

May 2012: The many "No School on Palm" signs displayed throughout the neighborhood have now been removed. Note that Arroyo Pacific Academy still owns this 183 - 205 East Palm Street property; for any use of these parcels other than single family residential, they would still need to obtain a Conditional Use Permit.

April 2017: Five years later, following the April 2012 denial of the CUP for a high school, the 183 - 205 E. Palm Street property in Altadena remains vacant and in a state of disrepair. The property is used occasionally for filming. A CUP application was submitted in June 2014 for residential subdivision of the property; details concerning Project No. R2014-01586-(5) / Tentative Tract Map 072939 can be found on the Los Angeles County Department of Regional Planning website at http://planning.lacounty.gov/case/view/r2014-01586/

Contact:
For additional information about PSARA, please send e-mail to

info@AltadenaPSARA.org

This webpage was last updated on April 24, 2017