Beverly Hills Community Character Study

As part of the General Plan update process, the City Council created a Community Character Committee to consider how character might be protected and scenarios for the future of the City. The process was carried out with the overall goal of informing and directing future development.

The Committee considered three main areas: Character Defining Elements of Streetscapes, Historic Preservation, and Gateways. The Committee’s work was guided by three main goals: enhancing the quality of life by creating and sustaining attractive buildings and open spaces, walkable areas, outstanding community facilities, and cultural opportunities; maintaining and encouraging commercial development that is compatible with residential neighborhoods; and maintaining urban design standards with respect to scale, materials and uses.

The process included:

• Briefing sessions with experts and a bus tour of the city
• Visual preference survey, in which the committee brought in images of the City that typified existing good and bad examples of character
• Brainstorming elements of City character and values, and a discussion of how to move from current conditions to ideal values
• Developing recommendations (mostly aesthetic improvements), such as planter boxes, street light improvements, and landscaped medians
• Developing implementation strategies, such as incentives to business owners for meeting design guidelines
• Joint meetings with other committees to obtain feedback, gauge overlap, and collaborate
• A Farmers' Market Outreach Campaign, at which residents were given a Visual Preference Survey
• Mail survey to residents about gateways and historic preservation

As a component of the General Plan update, this Committee's work was completely funded by the City and mandated by the City Council.