III. Responses to Comments (Continued)
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III. Responses to Comments (Continued) III.D Comment Letters Comment Letter No. 100 Barbara Bruser Co-Chair, Archer Board of Trustees [email protected] Comment No. 100-1 Archer’s Campus Preservation and Improvement Plan will help ensure that girls in Los Angeles have the opportunity to obtain a first-class education in a diverse, ambitious and joyful environment. I am writing to request your support for the plan as the public review process moves forward. Archer students train for and perform in award-winning arts programs, including: dance, theater, choir and orchestra. They also compete in a number of different sports with other local independent schools. Currently, Archer spends a great deal of resources renting off-site venues for practices, games and performances. Our plan envisions providing the essential facilities that will allow our students to participate in these activities onsite—facilities that most independent schools in the area already have. The new facilities we are proposing will greatly help advance the school’s mission to provide a 21st century education for girls across the city. Our innovative plan is consistent with the promises we made to our community, and we will continue to be a good neighbor. We have had a continuous dialogue with the community throughout this process and we plan to continue to work with local residents and stakeholders moving forward. As the Draft EIR for the Archer Forward Plan has now been released, we hope that you will add your support to this project. We look forward to working with you and your office. Response to Comment No. 100-1 This comment indicating support for the Project is noted for the record and will be forwarded to the decision-makers for review and consideration. City of Los Angeles Archer Forward: Campus Preservation and Improvement Plan SCH. No. 2012011001 November 2014 Page III-878 WORKING DRAFT – Not for Public Review III.D Comment Letters Comment Letter No. 101 Tanya and Alex Bryzgalova [email protected] Comment No. 101-1 I have a daughter at Archer and I live in CD 11. I am very excited and strongly in support of the Archer Forward plan. My daughter chose to attend Archer because the School is truly unique in Los Angeles. The only secular girl’s school in the west side of Los Angeles, Archer’s student body reflects the diverse character of the entire City. With a high-quality curriculum, I believe that Archer is truly educating the future leaders of this country. But to fully deliver on Archer’s promise to the City, the School needs adequate facilities to create a 21st century campus. The Archer Forward plan would provide what the School really needs: modem classrooms, athletic fields and facilities and visual and performing arts spaces. Archer girls fully participate in academic, arts and athletics, and need the facilities to support these activities. You should see the girls trying to put on a performance on the small stage they currently have—girls are literally spilling off the ends! And the school currently doesn’t have a space where the entire campus can be together to watch a performance, hear a speaker or listen to announcements from the Head of School. I recognize that there are concerns about development in Brentwood, but it’s important to acknowledge that Archer has fully complied with the most stringent conditions imposed by the City on any independent school in Los Angeles. In fact, Archer has gone beyond the City’s requirements to ensure that the school has a minimal impact on traffic. I believe that track record should be celebrated, and the City should help Archer move forward with the reasonable new hours and operations they’re proposing. Archer is a jewel in Los Angeles, and I hope that you, Councilman Bonin and the rest of the City will help move the Archer Forward project quickly through the City process. Thank you. Response to Comment No. 101-1 This comment indicating support for the Project is noted for the record and will be forwarded to the decision-makers for review and consideration. City of Los Angeles Archer Forward: Campus Preservation and Improvement Plan SCH. No. 2012011001 November 2014 Page III-879 WORKING DRAFT – Not for Public Review III.D Comment Letters Comment Letter No. 102 April M. Bujent 1601 Marine St. Santa Monica, CA 90405 Comment No. 102-1 My daughter is a student at Archer School for Girls, and I am writing to let you know that I support Archer’s Campus Preservation and Improvement plan, Archer Forward. The Archer Forward plan will allow the school to provide an even better education for Archer students, by adding modern classrooms, a regulation-size athletic field, a gymnasium and spaces for swim, performing and visual arts. Archer students are actively involved in the community: they volunteer at Brentwood Green, tutor students at Brentwood Science Magnet School, participate in local recycling and conservation efforts, volunteer at Daybreak Women’s Shelter and more. Archer has a great track record as a responsible neighbor in the community. For example, much time and energy has been poured into the school’s traffic control system. Every parent is well versed in parking and driving restrictions in the area during school hours, and we know that if we do not follow the rules there will be consequences. This is done out of Archer’s high level of consideration and respect for its neighbors, who don’t like sitting in traffic any more than I do. I believe that the Archer School for Girls is a valuable and upstanding member of the local community, and has done everything in its power to ensure that this plan presents every benefit possible to its neighbors. I hope you’ll help move this project quickly through the city’s process. Response to Comment No. 102-1 This comment indicating support for the Project is noted for the record and will be forwarded to the decision-makers for review and consideration. City of Los Angeles Archer Forward: Campus Preservation and Improvement Plan SCH. No. 2012011001 November 2014 Page III-880 WORKING DRAFT – Not for Public Review III.D Comment Letters Comment Letter No. 103 Suzanne Bunzel 485 N. Bowling Green Way Los Angeles, CA 90049 Comment No. 103-1 I oppose the Archer Forward Plan as Proposed and recommend that the alternative be accepted. I’ve lived here for 54 years, and have been a member of BHA since it started. Now I have signed the Archer Neighbors Alternative Plan Petition and am writing you to urge your denial of the proposed Archer Expansion Plan. Response to Comment No. 103-1 This introductory comment expressing opposition to the Project is noted for the record and will be forwarded to the decision-makers for review and consideration. Refer to Topical Response No. 14, Residential Neighbors’ Proposed Alternative, for a detailed response to the alternative proposed by the Residential Neighbors of Archer. Specific comments regarding the Draft EIR are provided and responded to below. Comment No. 103-2 The traffic is already appalling and if the Archer proposal is accepted, it will make Brentwood and surrounding environs practically unlivable. Response to Comment No. 103-2 As described in Topical Response No. 10, Traffic Congestion Along Sunset Boulevard, traffic in the area of the Project has recently been improving as construction on the I-405 Sepulveda Pass Improvement Project has neared completion, with the opening of the HOV lane on the northbound I-405, and with substantial completion of the I-405/Sunset Boulevard interchange modifications. As further discussed in Topical Response No. 5, Additional Mitigation Measures to Eliminate Significant Traffic Impacts, in response to comments on the Draft EIR, additional operational mitigation measures are proposed to reduce the significant operational traffic impacts related to School Functions and Interscholastic Athletic Competitions to below a level of significance. City of Los Angeles Archer Forward: Campus Preservation and Improvement Plan SCH. No. 2012011001 November 2014 Page III-881 WORKING DRAFT – Not for Public Review III.D Comment Letters Comment No. 103-3 I urge you to reject this proposal outright and accept the alternative plan proposed by the Residential Neighbors of Archer. Response to Comment No. 103-3 Refer to Topical Response No. 14, Residential Neighbors’ Proposed Alternative, for a detailed response to the alternative proposed by the Residential Neighbors of Archer. In response to comments on the Draft EIR, several of the modifications proposed by the Residential Neighbors of Archer have been incorporated into the Project. City of Los Angeles Archer Forward: Campus Preservation and Improvement Plan SCH. No. 2012011001 November 2014 Page III-882 WORKING DRAFT – Not for Public Review III.D Comment Letters Comment Letter No. 104 Tami Burks 5520 Eileen Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90043 Comment No. 104-1 I’m an incoming Archer parent and I am writing to show my support for the school’s campus plan Archer Forward. There are several independent schools to choose from in Los Angeles, but after coming to Archer and meeting its current students and the faculty and staff, I knew this was the right choice for my daughter. Archer is a [sic] innovative school that creates an atmosphere that encourages girls to take risks and try new things. In doing so, the girls realize their strengths and become leaders. The Archer faculty thinks outside of the box and caters their lessons to the way girls learn best. We know our child will thrive at Archer and we are excited to see the young woman she will become. The only thing that would make this school even better is if it had better facilities.