Every once in a while we become aware of a construction project so inane, so ridiculous, so mindbogglingly dumb, we just have to share it with you. Six months ago we got our collective panties in a twist about the Garagemahal; now a reader sends in a new contender for LA's Most Ridiculous Construction projects on a spec house currently under construction in Bronson Canyon:
Now I know infill development is the necessary wave of the future, but this is just stupid. Located on a tiny street called Lorae Place in Bronson Canyon, close to the western entrance of Griffith Park, is a REALLY fucking steep hillside lot. We're talking like, sheer drop-off -- basically a water run-off ravine. Yet the land couldn't have been all that cheap, so between the construction cost of digging out the hillside, building a foundation, and eventually what will be a unsightly stucco box, this hardly seems like the most prudent of investments. Especially in this tenuous market. There are also two approx 100 year-old oak trees on the lot, which are protected by the Native Tree Ordinance and are roped off. The lot falls into The Oaks HOA, as well as the area where an Interim Control Ordinance is pending. So if in a couple years there's someone out there who wants a million-dollar-plus 2,500-square foot monstrosity with NO yard or view that's pressed against the hillside like a terrified bystander during the running of the bulls in Pamplona, this house will be waiting...
We have a feeling those oak trees might last longer than this project.