We may have been a bit premature when we declared the War On Tara to be over back in February. The wheels of justice turn slowly, my friend. The preservationists were dealt a blow this week when LA Superior Court ruled that the city of Weho may have had a point when it claimed that Save Tara filed its suit against the city outside the statute of limitations. Four out of five complaints in the Save Tara lawsuit were dismissed.
The city is ebullient over its win - you can just hear it in City Attorney's Michael Jenkins statement, “The Superior Court sustained the City’s demur [request for dismissal] without leave to amendment on the first through the fourth causes of action. The fifth? was sent to the writs department.” At issue is Elsie Weisman’s gift of the property to the city in 1997 - did she stipulate the property was to be preserved or can the city of West Hollywood use it to build housing for the elderly?
But all is not lost for the preservationists. They may have lost this round but they did win their Appellate-level suit that confirmed the public was not involved in the decision making process.
Scorecard thus far: Mayor John Duran, Weho elderly: 1. Preservationists: 1. Who will win this rumble in the jungle smackdown in boys town?
· War On Tara Ends Too [Previously on Curbed LA]
· Tara Getting a Makeover [Previously on Curbed LA]