Altadena Town Council sends letter urging Regional Planning to heed neighbors on Maguire Drive meditation center

The Altadena Town Council voted Tuesday to send a letter to Los Angeles County Regional Planning asking officials to take into account neighbors’ concerns about a conditional use permit (CUP) for a meditation and learning center proposed at 2637 Maguire Drive.

Land Use Committee members summarized dozens of emailed objections from adjacent residents who said Maguire Drive is a one‑lane private road maintained by 13 households and that adding a public use could increase traffic, complicate emergency access and shift maintenance burdens onto neighbors. The council read letters into the record from residents including Judy Hill, Jim Axel and Kuai Cao detailing parking constraints, potential emergency access problems and septic system questions.

"There is no room on this small one‑lane private lane street for all these extra cars," a neighbor wrote in a comment read aloud by committee members. Letters asked whether code enforcement or the sheriff could realistically enforce permit conditions on a private drive and expressed concern that a CUP could persist after the current owner sells the property.

Council members noted limits on local authority: because the proposal involves a religious use, federal and state protections narrow the grounds on which the county can deny an application. Vice Chair Morona said the town council’s role is to elevate neighbor concerns to county planners and urged Regional Planning to listen to the residents before issuing a final decision.

The council moved to send a PDF package of neighbors’ emails along with a letter requesting that the Department of Regional Planning weigh the documented neighborhood impacts into its decision. The motion passed after discussion.

Ending: The council will forward the letters and requests to Regional Planning; no local permit decision was made by the town council itself.