As an architect, design and functionality are key concepts in Thomas Small’s work but also in his approach to social and civic matters. As Culver City continues its development after a hiatus during the recent recession, Small thinks these beliefs make him an ideal candidate for one of the city three seats on the City Council this year.
A current member of the city’s Cultural Affairs Commission, Small’s campaign literature touches frequently on “smart” urban design, sustainability and environmentally -sound building practices and is one of the only candidates to talk about the need for affordable housing. He also focuses a great deal on traffic.
Traffic is a subject that Small wants to tackle head on if he is elected. He says his connections with many of the architects who are designing many of the projects locally and nationally gives him an advantage in influencing not only the design and scope of the projects but also how they could impact vehicle congestions.
“Each one, as they come online, will bring about 1,500 cars and I want to help, from the point of view of the families and the city, to make sure that all of these design elements are good,” he explained in a recent interview. “As the city develops, I have this knowledge, this experience and these relationships in the design community that I can bring to help the city develop in a way that will be excellent. And traffic is sort of the way that manifests most directly to the voters that I talk to.”
Many of the planned developments have been approved or are moving forward in the planning process. Asked what he could do to influence these projects, Small responded, “The main thing that we can do is look for alternative modes of transportation. A lot of this is coming from the [Ivy Station near the Expo Line] project, a transit –oriented- development. And if we can develop new and excellent ways to get people to and from the train station, that’s what will get people out of their cars.”
City leaders are already considering doing exactly what Small wants to do, including the possibility of shuttles, and recently council candidate Scott Wyant floated the idea of getting ride sharing services such as Uber involved.
“We won’t be able to effect traffic much at this stage,” Small acknowledged, “but what we can do is try to make the quality of life better for everyone in Culver City by trying to get more people out of their cars.”
Asked if convincing people to ride or bike to the train station and other locations would require a financial investment as well as a change in the public mindset, Small said the trend is already moving in that direction. “I’ve been working with a number of these developers over the last few years and they know that these new modes of transportation enhance their projects and the quality of life for people who are going to be living and working there,” he said. “So they’re eager to help with this.”
Small has said in his campaign literature that many of Culver City’s communities are “fragmented” and he can bridge those gaps, particularly in the architectural community, because of his professional relationships.
Small said Culver City is not over developed, but it is changing. That opened the door to his view on large-scale residences that some feel are not compatible with a particular neighborhood known as “mansionization.”
“We need better design plans for neighborhoods and it needs to be neighborhood by neighborhood,” he recommended.
The council has made good progress toward this goal with an ordinance that changed some requirements related to floor area ration in January, Small said, but he believes it has to go farther.
Small agreed with the decision to hire an outside consultant because Culver City planners have “got of stuff on their plate right now. It’s also a great community move because it shows that resources are being dedicated to this.”
Culver City has not been as diligent with building affordable housing as other communities have, says Small. “This is really the problem,” he asserts. “It’s one of the biggest mistakes that my predecessors have made in not addressing affordable housing. It’s a hard problem and a regional problem, but other cities like Santa Monica have had the political will to do it and their constituencies had the will. And that’s what we’ve got to have here in Culver City,” Small added. “It’s daunting, but it’s one of the problems that I’m really excited about tackling.”
Fox Hills is a community that many feel has been neglected politically for several decades and Small says that he plans to do more outreach but has not done so to date. He called a failed city council proposal to build a number of billboards near Fox Hills a “big mistake” but said the city missed a golden opportunity for the area.
“I actually think that area has the greatest potential in Culver City,” he said. “It’s in a very special location but it doesn’t have an identity. We have all of these high-tech companies just a stone’s throw away in Playa Vista. If we had some high-quality hotels there we could draw some of the people who fly into Playa Vista from Silicon Valley,” he said.
Where city officials missed an opportunity, according to Smalls, was not to continue discussions about revitalizing the area surrounding Fox Hills. “We had such a success creating character and identity downtown and we could do that there with hotels, “he said.
He proposed holding a series of design competitions with architects in order to create new concepts to redevelop a portion of south Culver City along Sepulveda Boulevard, which he thinks could be a boon for the local businesses and residents of nearby Sunkist Park, along with Fox Hills. That would stimulate a great discussion and a lot of excellent ideas,” he said.
Small was one of three candidates endorsed by the Culver City Democratic Club, which has been a mixed bag for candidates over the last several years.
A significant endorsement came from the Los Angeles League of Conservation Voters on March 11. “The board of the (organization) is proud to endorse Mr. Small because of his passion for sustainable urban design, linked with smart transportation,” said Los Angeles League of Conservation Voters Vice President Stephanie Molen in a press release. “Thomas will be a strong environmental leader on the Culver City Council, fighting for a strong sustainable future for the city.”
Small says Culver City is on its way to becoming an environmental city but “lags far behind a lot of other cities. We have an opportunity to be a shining example of sustainability but we just haven’t done it yet. For a lot of people here who say they’re ‘environmentalists,’ it’s all smoke and mirrors,” he said.
He would like to see at least 10 additional stormwater treatment facilities in Culver City in order to tackle the regions stormwater problems and suggest developers could help fund the sites.
Small, who has Filipino roots, was surprised to learn how the regional Filipino political community has rallied to his campaign. “I’m very excited about that possibility and Cerritos Mayor Mark Polito, who is Filipino, has hosted a couple of events for me. I’ve never had such a welcome in my life as I’ve had with members of the Filipino community,” Small said with a smile.
He will win the election, he says, because “everyone whom I talk to understands that these are the issues central to our lives in Culver City and that I have the experience and the relationships to help navigate this evolution that Culver City is going through right now.”
Election day is April 12.
Gary Walker contributed to this story.