Chamlian Gymnasium Construction Goes Before City Council Tonight

The Glendale City Council will hear an appeal for the construction of a gymnasium at tonight. The City Planning Commission denied its construction application in January 2011.

Chamlian Armenian School is located on a residential block at 4444 Lowell Ave. that was originally the site of a public elementary school. The Commission found that the gym would be detrimental to the surrounding neighborhood, saying it would increase traffic, that it would exacerbate the school’s tight parking situation, that the school is already over the max floor area allowed, that the gym would be over the building height limit for its neighborhood, and that the school has already been granted conditional use permits over the years without consideration of the surrounding residents and homes.

Residents who live in Chamlian’s neighborhood are also concerned that the gym would decrease property value and cause increased traffic and noise.

Those in support of the gymnasium argue that it would promote a healthy lifestyle for students, be helpful during hot, cold or rainy weather, and would be the site of activities that are currently taking place outside at the school, such as athletic events, back-to-school nights and graduation ceremonies.

Rodney Khan of Khan Consulting, who filed the appeal, says that the gymnasium is a logical expansion for the school and will not overwhelm the neighborhood. Khan says the gymnasium would be set back from adjacent property lines, would have limited visibility due to the topography of the neighborhood, and would not cause increased noise or raise privacy concerns to neighbors.

Chamlian School resides on 4.59 acres with buildings that currently occupy 45,141 square feet of floor area. The max floor area allowed in Chamlian’s zone is 22,994 square feet. The gymnasium would bring the school to 54,486 square feet of floor area.

The max height for buildings in Chamlian’s zone is 25 feet, and the proposed gymnasium would be 35 feet. The school has also been allowed to operate without the required minimum number of parking spaces since the late 1980s.

See the city documents pertaining to the Chamlian School in the attachments above.

The appeal will go before the Glendale City Council during their 6 p.m. meeting tonight.