By Jason Islas
Lookout Staff

February 10, 2012 -- Poised to become the most heated development battle in seven years, a plan to comprehensively redevelop the Miramar Fairmont Hotel drove some 80 speakers to testify before the Planning Commission Wednesday night.

After listening to nearly four hours of public comment, the commissioners with little discussion voted to continue the item until February 22, when they will decide whether to recommend if City Council should enter into a Development Agreement.

The proposed plans for the hotel, which occupies the a full city block between Ocean Boulevard, Second Street, California Avenue and Wilshire Boulevard, has divided Santa Monicans leading to Wednesday's showdown.

Supporters argued that the plan to add as many as 120 condominiums on the upper floors of three new buildings that would replace the two main buildings would also add open space to the site and provide more revenues for the City.

“The city will be enriched by the renovation of the Miramar in many was,” said Irene Zivi, co-chair of Friends of the Miramar, a coalition in support of the redesign plans. The additional revenue generated by the plan, Zivi said, would help the City pay for its many social and “humanitarian” programs.

“The open space is great," said Aaron Young, CEO of the Boys and Girls Club of Santa Monica. "The new hotel, the facilities, the restaurants, the shops will enhance the entire downtown area.”

His sentiments were echoed by about half the speakers at the meeting.

The regional hospitality workers' union also supported the plan. Pico Neighborhood activist Maria Loya read a letter from UNITE HERE Local 11 citing the hotel's history of fair treatment of workers and the benefits that they believe will come with renovating the hotel, including more jobs.

But opponents, who dubbed the proposed redevelopment “Miramarmageddon,” came out in full force as well, the arguing that the scale of the project would be well out of proportion with the surrounding neighborhood.

Robert Gurfield, a resident of the neighborhood and a member of Santa Monicans Against the Miramar Expansion, a group he said represents over 800 Santa Monicans, reiterated the the group's position. He said the larger buildings would create a “canyon” along Wilshire Boulevard and obstruct the views of residents and the neighboring Huntley Hotel.

“The design that's proposed creates a giant wall along second street,” said another local resident.

The proposed plans for the site would replace the two-story administration building on Second Street with an 11-story building and a 30-foot tall by 95-foot wide open-air arrival court.

The 10-story Ocean Tower toward the center of the property would be demolished and replaced with a 12-story tower, and an entirely new 10-story building is proposed along California Avenue.

The Miramar redevelopment may be the most hotly debated Santa Monica project since Macerich proposed a major redevelopment of Santa Monica Place that would have replaced the indoor mall with an outdoor shopping venue topped with three 21-story condo towers, an apartment building and an office complex.

Some opponents complained that representatives of the Miramar have done no public outreach.

But Alan Epstein, an executive with MSD Capital, which owns the Miramar, said that the hotel had organized a number of public outreach meetings to which neighbors have been invited.

After hours of public testimony, Planning Commission Chair Jim Ries estimated that there would be at least two more hours of discussion by the Commission before any decision would be made.

Commissioner Richard McKinnon said that he favored continuing the item so that more people could hear the Commission's deliberation.