1659 West Colorado Boulevard (ENV-2025-6118-CE)
Summary
SCH Number
2026010844
Public Agency
City of Los Angeles
Document Title
1659 West Colorado Boulevard (ENV-2025-6118-CE)
Document Type
NOE - Notice of Exemption
Received
Posted
1/27/2026
Document Description
The proposed project is a change of use from Oil Station to Office, including repairing and painting walls and the roof of the existing one-story historic building with a canopy. The project is the rehabilitation of the one-story building (214 square feet) to office use and the construction of a new, detached 157-square-foot restroom building with a height of approximately 11 feet located at the rear of the project site, located in Subarea II of the Colorado Boulevard Specific Plan. The project also includes a new fence and a new gate internal to the site. The Applicant is utilizing AB 2097 allowing for zero (0) parking spaces. The building is identified as the Jay Risk Standard Oil Company Service Station, designated as a City of Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument (HCM) No. LA-1286.
The subject site is located at 1659 West Colorado Boulevard on the north side of the street between Mt Royal Drive and Vincent Avenue. The site is located within Subarea II of the Colorado Boulevard Specific Plan and the Northwest Los Angeles Community Plan. According to ZIMAS, the lot encompasses 3,002.8 square feet. The site is zoned [Q]C4-1XL and has a General Plan Land Use Designation of Neighborhood Commercial. Properties to the north are zoned R1-1, and properties to the south, west and east are zoned [Q]C4-1XL and improved with commercial uses. The site is separated from the residential uses by an alley on the north. The neighborhood properties are generally improved with one-story residential buildings and one- and two-story
Contact Information
Name
Debbie Lawrence
Agency Name
City of Los Angeles, Department of City Planning
Job Title
City Planning Associate
Contact Types
Lead/Public Agency
Phone
Name
Keyur Maru
Agency Name
Sajni Design & Architecture
Job Title
Representative
Contact Types
Parties Undertaking Project
Phone
Email
Location
Cities
Los Angeles
Counties
Los Angeles
Regions
Southern California
Cross Streets
Colorado Blvd & Mt Royal Dr
Other Location Info
PROJECT LOCATION:
1659 West Colorado Boulevard - Mt Royal Drive and Vincent Avenue
Other Information
NAME OF APPLICANT / OWNER:
Ken Hsiang Jr., Paradigm Collaboration LLC
Notice of Exemption
Exempt Status
Categorical Exemption
Type, Section or Code
Section 15303 / Class 3, Section 15331 / Class 31
Reasons for Exemption
The project is exempt because of Categorical Exemptions Class 31 (Historical Resource Restoration/Rehabilitation) and Class 3 (New Construction or Conversion of Small Structures ) Class 31 consists of projects limited to maintenance, repair, stabilization, rehabilitation, restoration, preservation, conservation or reconstruction of historical resources in a manner consistent with the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties with Guidelines for Preserving, Rehabilitating, Restoring, and Reconstructing Historic Buildings (1995), Weeks and Grimmer. Class 3 allows for the construction and location of limited numbers of new, small facilities or structures; installation of small new equipment and facilities in small structures; and the conversion of existing small structures from one use to another where only minor modifications are made in the exterior of the structure. The project includes the construction of a 157-square foot restroom building detached from the primary existing building. As this involves a small new structure, the Class 3 exemption is applicable. The project is a change of use from Oil Station to Office within an existing historic commercial building, which will be rehabilitated. The new use is allowed by the subject site’s zoning. None of the exceptions to the Categorical Exemption Under CEQA Guidelines Section 15300.2 applies to the proposed project. (a) Location: The project is not located within a hillside area or within the Santa Monica Mountains Zone, the subject site does not contain an officially mapped environmental resource of hazardous or critical concern. The site is identified as having low potential for biological resources and mountain lions; (b) Cumulative Impact: The project will not result in significant cumulative impacts from successive projects of the same type in the same place; (c) Significant Effect: The project will not have a significant effect on the environment due to unusual circumstances. Most adjacent lots are developed with commercial buildings or residential uses, and the subject site is of similar size and slope to nearby properties. The project site is located in a typical urbanized area of the Northeast Los Angeles Community Plan, and the project would be consistent with the designated zoning and would adhere to all requirements of the LAMC, with the approval of the SPPC/DRB Director Determination. The project is not unusual for the vicinity of the site, and is similar in scope to other existing commercial uses in the area. Furthermore, there is not a reasonable possibility that the project would have a significant effect on the environment due to unusual circumstances. The project site is not located in the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone; (d) Scenic Highways: The project is not in the vicinity of a state scenic highway and will not damage scenic resources in a state scenic highway; (e) Hazardous Waste Sites: The project site is not on a list compiled pursuant to Government Code Section 65962.5 related to hazardous waste sites. According to Envirostor, the State of California’s database of Hazardous Waste Sites, the subject site is not identified as a hazardous waste site. (f) Historical Resources: Per ZIMAS, SurveyLA, and/or Historic Places LA, the project site is identified as a historical resource. The building is designated by the City of Los Angeles as Historic-Cultural Monument No. LA-1286. Known as the Jay Risk Standard Oil Co. Service Station, the one-room service station was built in 1919 and originally constructed on Spring Street in downtown Los Angeles. It was moved to its current site 1931. It was listed on May 23, 2023. Building Permit No. 25016-10000-22849 for the project was cleared by the Office of Historic Resources (OHR) on September 23, 2025. Per OHR staff, the proposed project does not impact the integrity of the building’s HCM designation. The project will not cause a substantial adverse change in the significance of a historical resource.
County Clerk
Los Angeles
Attachments
Notice of Exemption
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