In West Hollywood, California, industry professionals say something unusual has occurred at a three-decade-old residential complex along La Cienega Boulevard: Parking, laundry rooms and excess storage were overhauled to become a half-dozen new apartments.

LaTerra Development, a Los Angeles-based multifamily owner and developer, converted these non-living spaces at 1121 N. La Cienega Blvd. into studio apartments in what real estate professionals say could be the most expansive use of building more apartment units in a single building using California’s Assembly Bill 68.

The law, signed in 2020, allows for more accessory dwelling unit construction in existing single-family and multifamily properties. The law was an attempt by the state to create incentives for more housing construction to ease an acute shortage of residential properties.

Other states and cities around the country, including Seattle, Chicago and Minneapolis, have adopted similar measures to permit these so-called ADUs in response to soaring housing costs.

In California, single-family homeowners have been the best-known adopters of the law, adding ADUs in their backyards and leasing out the space. However, some apartment owners have just begun looking at how to take advantage of the law, too, which could result in hundreds of new multifamily units added in greater Los Angeles, according to Chris Tourtellotte, managing director of LaTerra.

“We paved the way a little bit,” Tourtellotte said of building the ADUs on the La Cienega Boulevard property.

It’s still not common to see new ADUs built in existing apartment complexes, according to Jeremy Nova, founder of Louisville, Colorado-based Studio Shed, which makes and sells prefabricated ADUs across the United States.

“We’re seeing more ADUs being integrated into new developments” such as so-called microcommunities, a relatively new term — something between urban and suburban living — for a cluster of small residences on the same block, Nova said, as opposed to putting ADUs into existing apartment buildings.

In Los Angeles, ADU construction is growing in popularity. The city issued 100 permits for ADUs in 2016, but by 2022, that number rose to roughly 7,000, according to the Bipartisan Policy Center, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that promotes solutions to a variety of issues facing the United States. A breakdown of what percentage ADU construction has occurred so far at greater Los Angeles apartment complexes wasn’t available to CoStar News.

New studio apartment kitchens at 1121 N. La Cienega Blvd. in West Hollywood, California, feature modern finishes and stainless steel appliances. (Jack Witthaus/CoStar)

Despite LaTerra’s project being the firm’s first ADU attempt, it’s difficult to tell that the units weren’t original to the 33-year-old property. An existing courtyard opens up to three of the studios, which have windows letting in natural light along with modern appliances, cabinets and finishes. A newly created hallway connecting to the courtyard leads to the other three units. Each unit has a doorbell and entryway sconce.

LaTerra created the new units in 15 months between getting plans approved with the city and wrapping up construction, Tourtellotte said. The state law allows apartment owners to skip the entitlement process, which hastens the timeline.

For ground-up apartment construction in West Hollywood, the planning, entitlement and building process would have taken years longer and cost at least $800,000 to build each unit, according to Tourtellotte. For the ADUs on La Cienega Boulevard, LaTerra spent roughly $300,000 for each unit.

The developer bought the property for $29.2 million in late 2021, according to CoStar data. Beyond adding ADUs, LaTerra has been renovating older apartments at the property, including adding washers and dryers after replacing the laundry rooms with living space. Despite the ADUs, the property still has adequate parking, including those serving the new units, Tourtellotte said.

The ADU process wasn’t without challenges. LaTerra needed to move residents’ parking spaces around when construction started, and hooking up mechanical, electrical and plumbing to the new units proved difficult, according to Tourtellotte.

Plus, the developer and architect, Los Angeles-based Urban Architecture Lab, weren’t using a previous design model because it was their first time involved in such a project. They had to work with West Hollywood officials, too, on explaining the state law, Tourtellotte said. The city hadn’t encountered construction like this before.

The roughly 695-square-foot ADU studios have hit the market for $3,100 a month. While that seems pricey and not what affordable housing advocates would support, West Hollywood is among the most desirable apartment markets in greater Los Angeles due to its walkability, nightlife and restaurants and its Westside location, said Ryan Patap, senior director of market analytics for CoStar Group in Los Angeles. Further, few new apartments are built in West Hollywood, meaning that any new construction commands high pricing.

Patap said LaTerra’s ADU pricing is below what a new studio would go for in West Hollywood due to the high demand for living there. The ADUs are the lowest-priced units in the complex, according to Tourtellotte.

Beyond the West Hollywood apartment building, it’s not uncommon for new studios in greater Los Angeles to top $4,000 per month. Figueroa Eight, a newly built apartment tower in downtown Los Angeles, is marketing 625-square-foot studios for $4,105 per month.

This empty space at 1121 N. La Cienega Blvd. could one day be converted into an accessory dwelling unit, or ADU. (Jack Witthaus/CoStar)

California leads the nation with ADU construction after residential owners applied for more than 30,000 permits in 2022, according to San Francisco-based ADU digital marketplace Cottage, which tracks this data. In fact, one in six houses built in 2022 in California was an ADU.

Increasing housing density, especially in areas connected by mass transit, has emerged as a California strategy in recent years. Past policy has favored single-family zoning.

Lawmakers say high housing costs have undermined the state’s economic competitiveness and contributed to many companies and residents moving to more affordable places such as Arizona and Texas. Building ADUs, also known as casitas in California or granny flats elsewhere in the United States, is viewed as one way to address the issue.

However, other states and cities adopting ADU ordinances have seen a mixed amount of demand. Seattle saw 2,254 applications for ADU permits in 2022, which was a 25% year-over-year increase, according to Cottage. But in Minneapolis, only 176 building permits were issued for ADU structures between 2014-2022, according to the Star Tribune.

Looking ahead, LaTerra is interested in adding a few more ADU units at the La Cienega Boulevard property and some of its other California multifamily complexes. Tourtellotte said he looks at apartment properties differently now because of the ADU construction experience. When he tours multifamily sites, he said he finds himself thinking about where to add new ADUs.

Tourtellotte said that the best apartment candidates for ADUs are ones that are low-density, have ample parking and feature storage spaces or laundry rooms. Some California apartment brokers are starting to market multifamily properties with ADU potential, showing that the trend of building these apartment units is catching on, Tourtellotte said.

“It’s a whole new way to add value,” Tourtellotte said.

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ONE tiny home community is allowing residents to find permanent housing by living in an unusual piece of equipment.

As Americans look to lower their monthly spending, tiny homes have surged in popularity.

The tiny home village serves the homeless population in Santa BarbaraCredit: DignityMoves

Many tiny home fans have formed groups and created their own communities as well, where rent is cheap and the sky’s the limit on their custom built tiny home designs.

However, one community, DignityMoves, opened as a zero-rent prefab tiny home village in Santa Barbara, California last year.

It was designed to house homeless residents in the city, and just a year out, more than half of its residents have been able to find a permanent home.

The community originally housed 66 people, but 36 are in their own living spaces today.

Read more about tiny homes

However, the space’s building blocks are a bit unorthodox – all units were completely built from shipping containers.

The village rests in a former parking lot surrounded by palm trees and a mountain view.

The entire group of homes cost $1.7million to build last year after Santa Barbara County provided $700,000 to finance it.

SIMPLE LIFE

The project’s tiny homes were constructed by Boss Tiny House for simple but aesthetic living.

Each home includes a bed, window and desk alongside an air conditioner and heater.

Across the tiny home community, residents have access to case workers, a dining hall, computer lab and gardens.

This is in addition to Dignity Moves’ laundry, bathroom and shower units.

Each private space has a lock too, ensuring that residents will get privacy in the comfort of their own home.

“We take for granted what it feels like to be able to be alone,” Elizabeth Funk, the founder and CEO of Dignity Moves, told Insider.

All in all, there are roughly 3,500 homeless people living in Santa Barbara county, but last year, 66 got to live in the new village.

Funk said over the past year, she’s seen “shocking transformations” in the residents.

There are other Dignity Moves communities set up in Sonoma County and San Francisco, but there could soon be plenty more to come.

Regarding the Santa Barbara location, Funk hopes to add in an additional 400 beds, but it’s unclear when this could be possible.

MORE TINY HOME COMMUNITIES

Other tiny home communities are increasingly popping up across the United States.

In Kennewick, Washington, a village called Lilac Homes is open to people in need.

The 16 houses shelter those who are most at risk in the community.

“We are going to be able to house individuals who we have targeted,” Lona Hammer, a representative of the housing authority, said.

“That includes homeless veterans, homeless people with disabilities, and homeless families with children.”

Meanwhile, in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood, Raven Village has 22 units on the market.

Residents have access to a community kitchen, bathrooms, showers, and a laundry facility on set, as well as staff offices and a garden.

TINY HOME ADVICE

If you would like to live in a tiny home on your own, you’ll need to be in charge of finding and building your unit.

The most common type of unit tends to be either a shed or an RV, and both have pros and cons.

While RVs give you the flexibility of traveling wherever you’d like, some town ordinances require you to only be parked in certain spaces for a short period of time.

Sheds also require you to know your state and county’s zoning laws, as you typically can’t just live in a shed on someone else’s home property.

Keep in mind, you’ll also be responsible for adding all the required plumbing and electrical services.

You also need to ensure you have a space to put your tiny home.

This means you’ll likely need to search for land to rent.

Spaces are routinely put up for auction on sites like Facebook Marketplace, or you can apply for land in an established tiny home community.

One tiny home guru purchased a mini house for $20,000, and their space saving techniques allow them to have an extra room.

Meanwhile, a family of four is able to live in a neighborhood full of $800,000 homes due to their tiny house priced at just $100,000.

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Aug. 23, 2023Updated: Aug. 23, 2023 5:26 p.m.

The maximum temperatures measured across the Bay Area on Wednesday afternoon.

Baron/Lynx

The marine layer usually acts like a natural A.C. for the Bay Area coast, but it has been out of the picture today. This unusual August weather paved the way for near record-breaking temperatures Wednesday in cities along the coast and San Francisco Bay shore. 

Downtown San Francisco registered 85 degrees this afternoon, just 4 degrees shy of the daily record high of 89 set back in 1931. That’s 17 degrees above average for this time of year in the city.

Even hotter temperatures set up shop on the Peninsula, where San Francisco International Airport measured a daytime high of 90 degrees, just 2 degrees away from today’s record of 92 degrees set in 2010.

And weather models predict that this rare August heat will continue into Thursday — if a bit less intensely. Residents along S.F. Bay can expect a repeat of hot afternoon temperatures in the upper 70s to lower 80s — about 7 to 10 degrees above average. Nighttime temperatures will also run on the warmer side — lower to mid-60s.

An area of low pressure arrives in the Bay Area on Friday morning, which should help crank up the marine layer’s cool winds and fog, and bring temperatures down closer to average by the weekend.

Reach Gerry Díaz: gerry.diaz@sfchronicle.com; Twitter: @geravitywave

Gerry Díaz is The San Francisco Chronicle’s first ever Newsroom Meteorologist.

He previously served as a meteorologist for the National Weather Service Bay Area, working from the agency’s Monterey office. In that position he led an initiative aimed at increasing outreach to Spanish speaking communities during extreme weather events.

Most recently he worked as a meteorology specialist for the utility Southern California Edison.

Díaz enjoys hiking through California’s national parks and working on his panoramic photography skills, with a big interest on photographing the Central Coast’s state parks.

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SAN FRANCISCO — A two-way bike lane down the center of busy Valencia Street in San Francisco’s Mission District was supposed to make it safer for cyclists, but the unorthodox design has caused confusion and is even being blamed for some crashes.

Bruce Halperin lives near the corner of Valencia and 23rd Street in San Francisco. He doesn’t own a car. His main form of transportation for both him and his dog is his bicycle.

“I do all my shopping, I patronize restaurants and what not on Valencia Street. It’s my main route to work on days when I work downtown. So yeah, I use Valencia for basically everything,” said Halperin.

Halperin says Valencia Street has long been an issue for cyclists. The often busy thoroughfare’s narrow lanes and limited parking all combine to create safety concerns.

ALSO READ: Bike lanes coming to middle of busy Valencia Street in San Francisco

Earlier this year, San Francisco officials announced the launch of a pilot program to test out a new center-running bike lane on Valencia between 15th and 23rd Street.

It’s a design they said they believed would make the street safer for all. 

“We’ve restricted the ability of drivers to make left turns. So banning left turns and separating the traffic with the center running bike lane reduces the risk to pedestrians. Somebody was killed at this intersection walking across the street with a green light just a few months ago. Secondly, we’ve physically separated the cyclists from the moving traffic,” said SFMTA Streets Director Tom Maguire.

Halperin says he was nervous about how well the new design would actually work, but he initially tried to keep an open mind.

“Once it was approved, I was willing to give it a chance and the rollout has been an absolute disaster I think,” said Halperin.

He says in just the few weeks the bike lanes have been fully open, he has already witnessed multiple crashes.

“In one, the woman was injured. She has a gash in her head and had to be taken away by ambulance. And I think that’s going to keep happening,” said Halperin.

He said the center lanes make it difficult for cyclists to get on and off the road. He also has already seen multiple cars driving over the protective barriers and down the bike lanes.

But the worst part he says are the turn lane boxes that force cyclists to stand within inches of passing cars.

“And the car traffic is just whizzing right by you and there’s no physical protection whatsoever. It’s really scary,” said Halperin.

Still, SFMTA officials are standing by the design. They argue that, in the long run, this design will be a safer option.

“We think that this a big step forward for safety on Valencia. It does not solve every single problem and it’s not perfect, but it’s a big step forward,” said Maguire.

Halperin still doesn’t agree. His hope is that the city removes the center lanes as soon as possible and goes back to a more traditional side-lane design.

Until that day, he says he has no choice but to use the lanes since they’re right outside his front door.

“I’m young. I’m relatively confident as a cyclist, but it’s still scary,” said Halperin.

The pilot program is expected to last a year. SFMTA says the first report on how the lanes are working will come out in the fall.

More from CBS News

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Comedian John Oliver picked a San Francisco cartoon museum as the host of his unusual art collection in a nationwide grant contest Petaluma’s mayor also entered on behalf of her city.

The contest, announced in October 2020 on Oliver’s HBO show “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” was to find a temporary home for his art collection, as well as for two $10,000 donations to a museum and a food bank in the same area.

Oliver’s goal was to support museums and food banks that were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Petaluma Mayor Teresa Barrett, a big Oliver fan, entered the Petaluma Historical Library & Museum and Redwood Empire Food Bank into the contest.

“I just thought, why not,” Barrett told the Petaluma Argus-Courier in November 2020. “I wrote a letter and sent it off.” In the letter, she noted the museum had taken a revenue hit during the pandemic and that the Santa Rosa food bank has provided thousands of meals to wildfire survivors.

The “John Oliver has your Rat Erotica” grant was inspired by Oliver’s collection of three bizarre paintings, including one of two rats in an erotic embrace, one of talk show host Wendy Williams eating a pork chop and a painting of Fox Business Network host Larry Kudlow’s ties (painted by Kudlow’s wife).

The Cartoon Art Museum is hosting those pieces in its gallery from Jan. 4 to 25. Advance ticket purchase is not required to see the pieces — visit cartoonart.org for more information.

The San Francisco museum was awarded a $10,000 donation and the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank will receive a $10,000 matching donation.

“We’re honored to be chosen as the West Coast venue for the exhibition’s tour and look forward to showcasing its quirky and offbeat works,” said Ron Evans, chairman of the museum’s Board of Trustees, on the museum’s website. “I think we can all do with a little added levity these days.”

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At the age of 63, Donald Vanneman III, who lives in San Francisco, was all about the thrill and experienced one adventure after the next. Last month – on a solo road trip to charming hot springs that were closed due to the pandemic and hidden deep in California’s most unforgiving desert valley – he went too far.

Vanneman wasn’t the first to die in Saline Valley Warm Springs, an extremely remote collection of hot spring baths and camping areas that were colonized by hippies, survivors, and rock dogs in the 1960s and annexed to Death Valley National Park in 1994.

“A long time ago, before the place became known and popular, people died at the springs and people along the street,” says Tom Ganner, the springs’ former camp manager. “Cars would break down, people would drive off looking for help, and they would expire.”

Park spokeswoman Abby Wines says she cannot recall any deaths in the area in recent years. Regardless of whether there have been others, Vannemans is unusual. It has caused a stir in the large community that still holds these hot springs sacred, as demonstrated by heated discussions in internet groups devoted to the site. Some group members expressed confusion about how this could happen. Others expressed their condolences. Many are angry. They say Vanneman did not respect “the source”.

Vanneman’s life, as portrayed on his Facebook page and described by his sister Donna Kerr Vanneman, was tumultuous. He grew up in Southern California, attended Cornell University, and developed HIV as a young gay man, his sister said.

“He was [one of] The first 500 men to receive the new drug in this study, ”she wrote in a post recalling her brother on Facebook. “A year later he was the only one alive. He took these drugs until he was around 40 years old. “

Vanneman has lived at the Castro for the past three decades, just a block from the Castro Theater, his sister said, and his two great loves were his partner Allan Sanchez and his service dog Shakespeare. Despite struggling with mental health problems, his sister said he had a “wonderful” job managing the Plaza Hotel, and in his spare time he loved traveling and camping.

Vanneman’s Facebook page is mostly made up of photos of him and his old mutt Shakespeare. Together they traveled all over California, visiting the mountains, beaches and deserts, and Saline Valley Warm Springs was clearly a special place for Vanneman.

On his featured photos, he shows a picture of one of the pools in Saline Valley Warm Springs with the meaningful caption: “Fled to Death Valley by the bishop 03/19/2008 to die, instead found paradise and pagans without leaving until 04/09. 2008. ”

For those intrepid enough to find the Saline Valley, it has often made such an impression. The springs are in the remote northwest corner of Death Valley National Park, 35 miles from the nearest paved road. In the 1950s, when the area was still under the control of the Bureau of Land Management, early settlers developed bathtubs and art installations there. They also built makeshift dishwashing stations, showers and latrines, and planted lawns and palm trees. Charles Manson and his followers are said to have visited, and the place was apparently quite wild.

“In the past, you could undress with a six-shooter in one hand and a can of beer in the other and ride a motorcycle through the dunes,” jokes Ganner, the old warehouse manager. “Now they’re making you wear a helmet and put your beer down. And no weapons. It’s no longer fun. “

The area was placed under Park Service control under the California Desert Protection Act in 1994, and while public nudity is still widespread at the sources, lewd behavior is now prohibited, according to the Death Valley website.

There is no camping or day use fee, but valet parking allows guests to stay at the springs for only 30 days in any given year. Many are taking advantage of this, although weather conditions can be harsh and there are no services at all.

The main attraction is the three tier system of hot springs lined up along a 3 mile stretch of road in the valley. Each level has multiple soaking pools with names like Dragon Pool, Volcanic Pool, and Wizarding Pool (named after the man who lived the longest on the property and who served as the caretaker until his death). There are also moving burros, a dirt runway, and the occasional low-flying jets, as the area is part of the US military’s R-2508 Special Use Airspace Complex. For those taking the treacherous 3 to 4 hour washboard road ride from Big Pine over the pass into the Saline Valley, this bizarre place and welcoming community often becomes a haven.

Of course, there are a few unspoken rules, mainly so as not to take photos of naked people and not to destroy the place. But here’s a big question: don’t bathe in the spring pools. They not only supply the other pools, but also the communal kitchen with water. So if they get contaminated with the naked body, for example, problems arise. For some of the people who have been visiting this oasis for decades, the spring pools are considered sacred.

During the pandemic, the Park Service closed the camping areas and emptied the bathtubs at Saline Valley Warm Springs. On December 20, Donald Vanneman drove to the construction site with Shakespeare anyway. When he found that the thermal pools were empty, he bathed in one of the spring pools and ignored a sign telling people not to enter, Park Operator Wines. “Our hydrologist’s best guess is that the pool was likely around 105 degrees Fahrenheit,” Wines wrote in an email.

What happened next was “not publicly known,” said Ganner, one of several people aware of the details of Vanneman’s death. “He was out there and copied,” says Ganner. “I am not at liberty to go into the details.”

A press release issued by the Park Service said the campsite volunteer host noticed Vanneman’s vehicle early December 20 but could not find it. “Later that day, two park visitors discovered his body in the Palm Springs spring pool,” the press release said.
When asked about Vanneman’s cause of death, Wines wrote, “It was an accident – no further details available.”

When asked if Vanneman’s personal belongings were found by the pool or if anything unusual was found in his person, Wines wrote: “He was bathing.”

The Inyo County Coroner Bureau declined to produce Vanneman’s coroner report, citing an open investigation. Vanneman’s sister revealed the cause of Vanneman’s death to SFGATE, which was quite unusual. “I had to look it up,” she said. But Vanneman’s sister asked that, due to her personal nature, the cause not be published in this story. He has problems with his heart, she added, and has struggled with bipolar disorder in his final years, she said.

According to his sister, Shakespeare joined Vanneman in his final adventure and was found in the Saline Valley. “[He] was alive but old so they had to put him down, ”she wrote on Facebook. “I will pray a long time for Shakespeare and my brother.”

When frequent visitors to Saline Valley Warm Springs learned of Vanneman’s death in a spring pool, they were distraught, confused, saddened, and even angry.

“That’s sad, but seriously, WTF?” A member of the Saline Valley Warm Springs Facebook group posted about the incident. “The pools are closed and drained and he was in the middle spring source pool. Ignorant? Entitled? Both?”

“Who would ever go to the source pool, closings or not?” another group member wrote. “Basic pool protocol and a no no at all levels. Sad but stupid. “

Confusion arose as to which spring pool Vanneman died in as the main spring pool is extraordinarily hot (he was not in this one). Some group members thought Vanneman might be a man they knew who was referred to as LED Don, but another member disagreed.

“No way would LED disregard the source,” she wrote.

Concerns have been raised about whether the valet service could take steps to close the springs or fence off areas. Wines clarified this in an email to SFGATE. “NPS has no plans to take any additional action,” she wrote.

Troubled by the tone of the conversation, a group member came to Vanneman’s defense. “Who cares whether they should be in there or not,” she wrote. “These mean comments are very inconsiderate. The poor guy is gone. “

“It’s a cautionary story for all of us,” wrote another user.

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