Actress up against city, neighbors over gate

CITY HALL — Actress Eva La Rue, of “CSI: Miami” and “All My Children” fame, has found herself in a real-life soap opera of sorts at City Hall, where her fight to keep a recently built gate has sparked impassioned accusations among City Council members and focused political heat on the city’s review process.

The controversy centers on a wood gate La Rue constructed in 2007 without permits at the front of her Cordova Avenue home in North Glendale, which she said she built to guard her and her daughter from an alleged stalker.

“I am asking please, please to keep my gate,” La Rue told the City Council last week. “I’m a single mom. I know that this gate can’t really protect me from somebody that wants to do me and my 8-year-old harm, but at least it is some sort of barrier.”

But city officials have said they are disallowed from considering public safety elements in reviewing land-use disputes, a restriction that has played a part in the ensuing drama at City Hall.

After the house was cited by city code enforcement officials, a zoning administrator granted La Rue a variance for the gate, which was built too close to the public right-of-way, according to city zoning laws. That decision generated discontent from neighbors and homeowner’s groups, who argued it was an unfair exception for blatantly illegal construction.

After an inquiry from Planning Director Hassan Haghani, the case made its way to the Planning Commission, which overturned the variance. La Rue and her attorneys appealed the ruling, pushing the issue to the City Council, where it has been embroiled in deadlock and heated debate since.

Councilman Ara Najarian has been La Rue’s most vocal supporter, arguing the case is evidence of 30 years of an unfair appeals process.

“Our laws are our laws, and we need to follow them,” he said Wednesday. “If we’ve been doing the wrong thing, we need to admit we were doing the wrong thing and correct it.”

The appeal first reached the dais last week, when four council members deadlocked after several hours of discussion. Councilman John Drayman recused himself to avoid potential conflicts because he said he rents a home in the area.