LA City Attorney cracks down on Hollywood Hills 'party houses'
LOS ANGELES,Calif. (FOX 11) - The party will be over at two Hollywood Hills houses and other ``nuisance'' party spots if City Attorney Mike Feuer has his way, as his office filed criminal charges against the owner of a home and the manager of another he said have been the source of excessive problems.
``The party's over for out-of-control nuisance houses,'' Feuer said. ``It's completely unacceptable for residential homes to be rented out every few weeks for massive parties that attract hundreds of guests, blast music
throughout the night and block streets, disrupting peace and quiet in our neighborhoods.
``My office will continue to work closely with the Los Angeles Police Department and members of the community to help restore the quality of life our residents should be entitled to expect.''
It's a ''first world'' problem for sure, but a problem nonetheless. Massive late night loud crowded parties in the Hollywood Hills, flooding narrow streets with cars, people, upsetting neighbors.
Typically they're done in rented houses and publicized through social media. Police are called, sometimes they're shut down - sometimes they're not, only to have another party with another sponsor the next night...or the next week or the next month.
If you live next door, or nearby - it's a nuisance, no matter how fun loving you may be. It's also a potential life and death situation, if cars crowd both sides of a narrow street in the Hills and an emergency vehicle needs access.
According to a criminal complaint Feuer's office filed, Kamran Younai, 46, is the owner of a large single-family home located at 7842 Electra Drive and frequently rents it to short-term tenants who use it as a party house, generating loud noise and crowded streets.
Younai is facing 16 criminal counts including 10 counts of maintaining a public nuisance after receiving written notice and six counts of engaging in illegal short term rentals. If convicted, Younai could face up to eight years in jail and $16,000 in fines.
Rose Garcia, 43, the property manager of a large single-family home at 2649 La Cuesta Drive, was charged with 10 criminal counts including seven counts related to loud parties at the residence. If convicted, Garcia could face up to three years in jail and $7,000 in fines for all counts.
``I commend City Attorney Mike Feuer in his effort to protect the quality of life of our residential neighborhoods and prioritize public safety,'' said Councilman David Ryu.
What's more, City Councilman David Ryu has sponsored a new ordinance designed to give authorities more teeth to immediately cite and prosecute not just property owners, but the people they rent to.
As Ryu put it, the party houses are a "very small number of the houses in the Hills, but they affect many, many numbers of homes.''
``Egregious party houses represent a small percentage of the homes in the hillside communities I represent, however, we must continue to assist LAPD with effective enforcement tools that will bring relief to the overwhelming majority of residents who are besieged by these inconsiderate neighbors.''
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