Academy Museum of Motion Pictures Project
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Department of City Planning - Environmental Analysis Section City Hall • 200 N. Spring Street, Room 750 • Los Angeles, CA 90012 Volume 4 of 9 Appendices H-1 through H-2 Part 1 DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT WILSHIRE COMMUNITY PLAN AREA Academy Museum of Motion Pictures Project Case Number: ENV-2013-1531-EIR State Clearinghouse Number: 2013051086 THIS DOCUMENT COMPRISES THE FIRST PART OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT (EIR) FOR THE PROJECT DESCRIBED. THE FINAL EIR WILL COMPRISE THE SECOND AND FINAL PART. Project Address: 6067 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California 90036 Project Description: The proposed Academy Museum of Motion Pictures (“Project” or “Museum”) would involve rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of the historically significant May Company Building, and construction of a New Wing, which would require demolition of a 1946 Addition to the May Company Building. The Project would retain important historic features of the Original Building constructed in 1939, including rehabilitation of its primary façades, while retrofitting the building interior to accommodate Museum uses. The New Wing would be constructed on the north side of the Original Building and include a Museum entrance, a 42,300- square foot Sphere housing a state-of-the-art Main Theater with seating for up to 1,000 persons, a 10,000-square foot enclosed View Deck within the Sphere, pedestrian bridges linking the Sphere to the Original Building, and an outdoor Piazza. Council District: 4, Tom LaBonge APPLICANT: Homewood Foundation PREPARED BY: Environmental Review Section Los Angeles City Planning Department August 2014 H‐1: Methane Report Prepared for Homewood Foundation 8949 Wilshire Boulevard Beverly Hills, California 90210 Methane Report Academy Museum of Motion Pictures Prepared by 10875 Rancho Bernardo Rd. Suite 200 San Diego, California 92127 Project Number SC0683 July 2014 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................ 1 1.1 Purpose and Scope ....................................................................................... 1 1.2 Project Description ...................................................................................... 1 1.3 Regulatory Context ...................................................................................... 2 1.3.1 Cal/OSHA ....................................................................................... 2 1.3.2 City of Los Angeles ........................................................................ 2 1.3.3 Regional Water Quality Control Board .......................................... 3 1.3.4 City of Los Angeles, Industrial Waste Management Division ....... 4 1.3.5 RWQCB and California Department of Resources, Recycling, and Recovery ..................................................................................................... 4 1.4 Regulatory Oversight ................................................................................... 5 1.4.1 Cal/OSHA ....................................................................................... 5 1.4.2 City of Los Angeles ........................................................................ 5 1.4.3 LARWQCB ..................................................................................... 6 1.4.4 LAIWMD ........................................................................................ 6 1.4.5 RWQCB and CalRecycle ................................................................ 6 1.5 Report Organization .................................................................................... 7 2. EXISTING CONDITIONS .................................................................................. 8 2.1 Geology ....................................................................................................... 8 2.2 Groundwater ................................................................................................ 9 2.3 Historic Oil Production .............................................................................. 10 2.4 Subsurface Gas Conditions ........................................................................ 10 2.5 Adjacent Properties .................................................................................... 12 3. THRESHOLDS OF SIGNIFICANCE AND METHODOLOGY ...................... 13 3.1 Air Quality ................................................................................................. 14 3.2 Hazards and Hazardous Materials ............................................................. 14 3.3 Geology and Soils ...................................................................................... 14 4. PROJECT DESIGN FEATURES....................................................................... 15 4.1 Construction Controls ................................................................................ 16 4.2 Operational Controls .................................................................................. 17 2014_07_03_Methane report.Final.docx ii 13.12.17. 4.2.1 Original Building and Underground Utility Corridor ................... 17 4.2.2 Paved Areas ................................................................................... 19 4.3 Operations and Maintenance Plan ............................................................. 19 4.4 Emergency Plan ......................................................................................... 20 5. IMPACT ANALYSIS ........................................................................................ 21 5.1 Construction ............................................................................................... 21 5.1.1 Original Building .......................................................................... 21 5.1.2 New Wing ..................................................................................... 22 5.2 Operation ................................................................................................... 23 5.2.1 Original Building .......................................................................... 23 5.2.2 New Wing ..................................................................................... 23 6. REFERENCES ................................................................................................... 25 — List of Tables — Table 1: Minimum Methane Mitigation Requirements City of Los Angeles Methane Zone — List of Figures — Figure 1: Site Vicinity Figure 2: Methane Zones Figure 3: Methane Mitigation System Details (I of II) Figure 4: Methane Mitigation System Details (II of II) 2014_07_03_Methane report.Final.docx iii 13.12.17. 1. INTRODUCTION Geosyntec Consultants, Inc. (Geosyntec) has prepared this Methane Report (Report) on behalf of the Homewood Foundation (Homewood) in support of their proposed Academy Museum of Motion Pictures Project (Project) located at 6067 Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, California (Site) (Figure 1). The Site is within the City of Los Angeles Methane Zone (LADBS, 2003); therefore, methane mitigation of the building is necessary during Project construction and operation (Figure 2). 1.1 Purpose and Scope The purpose of this Report is to address subsurface gas related hazards and hazards arising from construction and operation of the gas mitigation system for the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the Project. A review and evaluation of the existing site conditions and methane mitigation regulatory standards applicability is provided. The evaluation focuses on the potential impacts of the subsurface gas conditions on construction and operation of the Project and methods to mitigate the impacts. Additionally, the evaluation discusses the potential impacts of construction and operation of the gas mitigation system. 1.2 Project Description The Project would involve rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of the Original May Company Building constructed in 1939 (“Original Building”), and construction of a new wing (“New Wing”) and an at-grade piazza (“Piazza”). The Museum would be dedicated to films and filmmaking and would include permanent and changing exhibition space; three theaters with a combined seating capacity of up to approximately 1,350; banquet and conference space with a maximum occupancy of approximately 1,200 persons; an approximately 4,000-square-foot café (“Museum Café”) with seating for up to approximately 150 persons; an approximately 5,000-square-foot store (“Museum Store”); and ancillary spaces including administrative offices, educational spaces, exhibit preparation, a conservation laboratory, and maintenance and receiving areas. Parking would be provided through joint use of existing LACMA parking facilities and existing off-site parking facilities in the immediate vicinity. The design concept would retain important historic features of the Original Building, including rehabilitation of its primary façades and seismic reinforcement, while retrofitting the building interior to accommodate Museum uses. Circulation elements, including escalators, elevators, and potentially stairs would be accommodated within 1 13.12.17 the Original Building in the area along the North façade where the above-grade portion 1946 Addition would be removed. Removal of the above-grade portion of the 1946 Addition would allow construction of the approximately 42,300-square-foot New Wing and Piazza. The New Wing would include a Museum entrance; a spherical structure (“Sphere”) housing a state-of-the-art theater with seating for up to 1,000 persons (“Main Theater”); an approximately