NORTH HILLS : Security Restrictions for Motel Reduced

City officials Tuesday lessened operating restrictions on a crime-plagued motel, granting the owner’s request to hire part-time instead of 24-hour security guards.

But the owners of the Redwood Inn at 9111 Sepulveda Blvd. received only a partial reprieve from the Board of Zoning Appeals.

Even as it reduced the security guard demand to Thursdays through Sundays from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m., the board denied owner Yung Tsai’s request to waive the $4,052 in city fees from the revocation proceedings that led to the security and other actions imposed on the motel.

The actions stemmed from a police study of the Redwood Inn, which indicated that the motel had had problems with prostitution, drug use and other crimes.

The plan to have a part-time security guard will be tested for 90 days to determine whether problems decrease or whether the service should be increased to 24 hours.

Last September, a city zoning administrator imposed 25 other conditions on the motel. Tsai was prohibited from renting rooms for less than a night’s stay. He was told to prohibit drug and alcohol abuse and to require customers to present identification.

Tsai could not be reached for comment.