Renovations

Mariner Village will be completing the channel walk/promenade renovation. The County of Los Angeles must approve our design and construction plans to proceed.

Renovations are currently planned to commence late 2023 or early 2024 based on the timing of final approvals.

We have developed a 5-year project plan for all building, apartment, and site work. We will have various elements of the renovation going on throughout the property during those 5 years, so it won’t be concentrated in one specific area.

We are working through the renovation schedules and timelines with our general contractor and will share more updates as they become available. Before we begin work on an apartment building, we will first hold a meeting with residents in that building to ensure there is ample notice for the residents to prepare. For in-unit work that requires temporary relocation, we will provide residents a 90-day notice before the renovation work commences.

Depending on the specific buildings and their renovation scope, multiple buildings may undergo renovation at the same time. As mentioned in the prior answer, once we have more details available regarding the renovation schedule, we will update the residents.

We are finalizing the details of our renovation plan and will share more information as it becomes available. Because of the vastness of Mariners Village, we are dividing the renovation project into phases, then further into sections.

Phase 1: Staging and Setup – Contractors will bring equipment, storage containers, fencing, and signage. This stage should have minimal impact on residents.

Phase 2: Infrastructure and site work – Contractors will set up the utility infrastructure outside, upgrading gas lines and electrical systems.

Phase 3: Exterior Work — Focusing on roofs, windows, stairwells and bridges.

Phase 4: Interior Work – walls, floors, kitchens, bathrooms, Wi-Fi system, appliances, and more.

With 981 apartments, we aim to disrupt as few residents as possible using a stacking approach. We’ll start two new stacks of apartments every week and progress building by building through the above phases.

After that, we’ll refresh the landscaping throughout the community. Throughout these phases, we’ll also be upgrading community amenities like the tennis court, barbecues, and a new dog park.

The Village’s renovation will be concurrent with the apartment buildings’ interior work. The channel/promenade will be renovated in the final phase of the renovation.

For buildings 1A and 1B (14014 Northwest Passage, 14013 Captains Row, 14010 Captains Row, and 14013 Old Harbor Lane), our goal is to first renovate the vacant apartments as they become available through regular move-outs, then renovate occupied apartments one unit at a time. These specific buildings do not need to be completed in a stacking approach.

For all other buildings, the apartments must be renovated in stacks. (A stack is made up of units at the same location on the first, second, and third floor in a specific building, e.g., 2A101, 2A201 and 2A301). Stacking allows us to install the infrastructure connected in the common walls. Without access to the entire stack of apartments, we cannot connect the infrastructure systems to operate the new appliances within the apartment.

While there will not be any changes to the existing roads, we do recognize the shift in recent years regarding package and mail delivery. The flow of this service will be reviewed to increase efficiency.

Construction is a moving target, and our renovation schedule may change despite our best efforts. For Buildings 1A and 1B, we plan to start interior renovations in vacant apartments in early 2024 . Occupied apartment in 1A and 1B are not expected to begin unit interior renovations until 2025 or later.

For Buildings 1A and 1B, it will take less than 29 days to complete the interior upgrades. For Buildings 2 – 9, it will take approximately 29 days to complete the interior upgrades in each apartment .

Please refer to the Resident Impact section of the FAQs for more information on how we are accommodating residents during their apartment’s renovation.

The preliminary plan is for all residents with first-floor, ground-level patios to be able to exit the patios through a gate. Note that the plan has not received final approval by County of Los Angeles so these plans could change.

Scaffolding will only be used in locations where trees are not affected.

The renovated buildings will have a new fire alarm system, which will have new alarm horns inside the apartment units that will be connected to the hallway alarm horns/strobes. All fire horns will sound in the entire building (inside and outside of the apartments) when the corridor fire alarm is pulled anywhere in that building. There are no plans currently to install fire sprinklers.

As part of the renovation, battery emergency lighting will be installed in the hallways.

Yes. The indoor gym located at The Village will be expanded with more space and equipment to be enjoyed.

Yes. The current approved plans will add a ramp to the upper level of The Village to make it accessible.

The planned renovation for The Village includes the following:

– A new ADA-compliant entry ramp leading into The Village
– Expansion of the fitness center, package lockers, and bathrooms
– New air conditioning in our main clubhouse
– New decking, railing, roofing, gutter/downspouts, siding, windows, doors, flooring, lighting, and signage
– Refurbished skylights
– Upgraded interior programming, which represents how the space and rooms within The Village will be used
– Consolidated office spaces to create more rooms available for resident amenities. For example, we will keep the cafe, but the space across from the cafe, which is currently our Resident Services Office, will be turned into a resident lounge.

Laundry facilities in Buildings 1A and 1B will be renovated. Apartments in Buildings 2-9 will have in-unit washer/dryer, and the laundry facilities in those buildings will be repurposed.

Yes, all existing exterior pools and exterior spas will remain.

We will have at least one pool open at all times.

All outdoor amenities at Mariner’s Village (such as the proposed dog park) will remain exclusively available for our residents and their guests. The channel walk/promenade and the view piers are the only outdoor amenity areas that will be converted from private resident access to shared public access managed by The County of Los Angeles. (Please refer to page 21-25 of the resident meeting presentation.

The renovation plan keeps two of the current four tennis courts. The remaining space on the sports court deck will be reprogrammed to include additional features for our residents to enjoy.

The tennis courts are not approved to be used by coaches or trainers to instruct students per our leasing agreement. If you see a violation of this policy, please report it to the main office at mv@esring.com or (310)821-4916. There are high-traffic periods on some days with the tennis courts, but there are also times when the courts are open and available.

We favor electric vehicle (EV) charging stations and will explore whether they can be installed.

All interior units are in the plan to be renovated. Please refer to the next question for details.

All units will receive the following renovations:

• Kitchen: cabinetry, quartz countertops, subway tile backsplash, stainless steel appliances such as stove, refrigerator, dishwasher and microwave, plumbing fixtures, light fixtures, door hardware, paint and flooring.
• Bathroom: cabinetry, countertops, plumbing fixtures, light fixtures, door hardware, flooring, paint, bathtub enclosures and mirrors.
• Living Area (living and dining room, den, all bedrooms): light fixtures, door hardware, window coverings, flooring, paint, and data telecommunication services for TV and high-speed Internet.
• Safety Monitoring Devices: smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors, fire alarm horns, and GFI-protected outlets.
• Renovated apartments in buildings 2 – 9 will have in-unit washer and dryer and air conditioning.

No, W/D hookups will not be available. Due to the economic conditions during our renovation planning, we made the difficult decision of forgoing in-unit washer & dryer for buildings 1A and 1B. Therefore, these two buildings will not receive the infrastructure upgrades required to support washer and dryers in any capacity.

Mariners Village, through the ground lease, is required to install washers/dryers and HVACs in a minimum of 50% of the apartments. We are exceeding this requirement and providing these upgrades in buildings 2 – 9. Unfortunately, due to economic conditions, buildings 1A and 1B will not have washers/dryers and HVAC.

There will not be any concessions for residents of 1A and 1B due to the renovation scope not including washer/dryer and AC.

It is a requirement of the Lease with the County of Los Angeles that all units receive new windows. One of our goals for the renovation is that we maximize efficiency where feasible to reduce consumption of energy and to improve the overall comfort of the apartment homes. With the renovation, we will install new dual-pane windows that will help with heat insulation and noise reduction.

The exact layout of the kitchen will depend on which unit you live in. Certain floor plans, such as the renovation model unit, will have an open-concept layout. Others may retain their existing layout. All renovated apartments will have new cabinetry and quartz countertops.

The renovated units will have brand new flooring, including vinyl plank flooring in the living room, kitchen, dining room hallways, and bathrooms. We are currently exploring the carpeting for bedrooms and lofts.

We are exploring plank flooring materials which may help reduce the noise between floors.

We won’t take away or encapsulate the wood beams in the third-floor apartments. Depending on when residents moved into their apartments, some third-floor ceilings are painted while others are not. With the renovation, the third-floor ceilings will have a uniform look, but the natural character of the wood beams will stay.

The square footage of the apartments will remain the same.

We will not alter the existing materials in the loft.

The exact layout of the kitchen will depend on which unit you live in, which will require us to work within the constraints of the building’s infrastructure. Certain floor plans, such as the renovation model unit, will have an open-concept layout. Others may retain their existing layout.

All renovated apartments will have new stainless-steel appliances.

Replacement of the windows is a requirement of the land lease. The final window design is configured to meet desired air flow while staying compliant with all applicable building codes.

The Lease with the County of Los Angeles requires the window coverings to be replaced. Currently, we are required to replace all window coverings, which are likely going to be what’s shown in the renovation model.

The design plans for the buildings that showcase the windows from the exterior are for conceptual purposes only. The design renderings may not be an exact depiction of how the window glass will look when it is installed. The new retrofit windows will allow natural sunlight into the unit interiors.

Currently, the plan is for standard vertical blinds as shown in the renovation model.

Apartments in Buildings 2-9 will have gas ranges while units in 1A and 1B will have electric ranges.

We are exploring lighting options and will share more updates as they become available.

Outlets will be installed to meet applicable LA County electrical code.

If a unit currently has a fireplace, our goal is to keep it.

The Lease with the County of Los Angeles requires that all appliances must be replaced.

All popcorn ceilings will be removed and refinished to be smooth as seen in the renovation model units.

No determinations have been made regarding concessions during construction. Concessions may be considered at the time, but they are not mandatory and cannot be guaranteed. These decisions will be made during the actual renovation’s construction phase and will depend on a variety of construction and market conditions.

No resident will be required to permanently relocate during construction. Once we begin the construction phase, we will work with residents on temporary relocation plans within the community if/as needed. For most residents, it will require a one-time temporary relocation of 29 days or less.

The first step in this process will happen well in advance of the temporary relocation. The Resident Coordinator will be working to develop one-on-one communications with each resident. We will hold meetings with residents of each building to work through a plan that meets your needs and address any concerns so that the transfer can be on time with limited impact to you.

The second step is we’ll provide a temporary transfer on-site to one of our hospitality units. We will pay for a third-party moving company to move your belongings to a professional storage facility.

Upon completion of your apartment’s renovation, the third-party moving company will transport your belongings back into your newly renovated apartment.

In less than one month, you will be back in your fully renovated apartment home, with no change to your rent.

For residents in buildings 1A and 1B, the duration of the temporary relocation will be even shorter. Our Resident Coordinator will work with you individually regarding your temporary relocation.

Please refer to the previous Q&A.

If anyone does not want to relocate temporarily to the hospitality units on the property to facilitate the renovation of their apartment later in the renovation, as required by the ground lease with the County, we will come into the occupied units and perform renovations that can be reasonably accomplished.

Because of the extent of the infrastructure work required and to ensure the safety of our residents, all residents must temporarily relocate to an on-site hospitality suite for 29 days or less during their apartment’s renovation. This will include moving all the furniture and personal items out of the apartment.

We will provide residents with packing materials for their belongings, and we request that residents pack their own items. On the designated moving day, the movers will pick up the residents’ packed belongings and transport them to a professional storage facility.

For any precious items or items for personal needs, such as medication, we advise residents to move these items themselves.

We will conduct pre-move inspections for each apartment with the third-party moving company. This will ensure that they have the proper tools and personnel to handle each apartment’s moving needs. It will also enable us to discuss your specific needs to see what can be accommodated and what cannot.

We will conduct pre-move inspections for each apartment with the third-party moving company. This will ensure that they have the proper tools and personnel to handle each apartment’s moving needs. It will also enable us to discuss your specific needs so we can advise you on what we can do and what we cannot.

Residents will receive a minimum of 90-day notice before they are scheduled to relocate to their hospitality suites.

We’re going to have a series of in-person residents meetings on a building-by-building basis to address residents’ specific questions. Once our renovation schedule is more fleshed out, we will update residents.

We will be providing residents with packing materials. Given the short duration of the move, we believe it’s best for residents to pack their belongings so that residents can keep track of items that are valuable, essential, needed to be accessed quickly, etc.

Yes, Mariners will pay the storage fees directly with the storage facility.

This is a service that we are exploring. More information to come.

To ensure the safety of your belongings, we request that all furniture’s’ drawers be emptied prior to the move.

With the renovation, the existing lease will still be in effect for every apartment. There won’t be any void, or any change, or any gap in your existing leases. You will temporarily move to the hospitality unit, but you’ll still be the leaseholder of your existing apartment.

In general, in a rent-controlled apartment community, after the initial term of the lease, the lease term becomes month-to-month. Please refer to the rent control ordinance for the protections it offers.

There is no change to your current lease because of the renovation.

A resident will not experience a rent increase due to their unit – or someone else’s unit – being renovated. Rent increases are governed by the Los Angeles County Rent Stabilization and Tenant Protections Ordinance (RSTPO). There will be no rent increases beyond those permitted by the ordinance.

Your rent will not be affected due to the renovation. The rent control ordinance does not have requirements pertaining to when you moved in. All residents were eligible at the time the rent control ordinance began. Any rent increases will follow the rent control ordinance.

Currently, some of the utilities at Mariners Village are on group billing, and we break it down by square footage and occupancy. The renovation in Buildings 2 through 9 includes installing a new meter system, which encompasses new water meters, gas meters, as well as a meter system for the new HVAC system in your apartment. The apartment-specific meters will provide residents better control over the utilities that are used in the apartments.

With the renovation, Mariners Village will continue paying for amenities like the pools and water fountains and the water streams outside of the apartment buildings. Residents will pay for the utility usage inside of their renovated apartments .

Yes, the digital services agreement will remain in place. There may be modifications to the specific services as those contracts renew over time.

The renovation will include a variation of new 3’-6’ tall fencing along the entire length of the channel walk/promenade that will have access-controlled gates at sidewalk paths leading to and from the promenade. The new fencing will delineate the private resident buildings from the planned, public-access promenade.

It’s important to understand that, as outlined in the tenant lease, Mariners Village does not provide security and neither do most multi-family dwellings. We do however have contracted courtesy patrol to improve oversight of the community and to respond to incidents on the property. Management will be working with LA County Sheriff’s Department during and after the renovation for increased presence as/when necessary .

As explained in the previous Q&A, Mariners Village does not provide security. We are looking into the feasibility of installing electronic garage gates and additional surveillance cameras. We will provide more information as it becomes available.

Currently, the channel walk/promenade is occasionally used by Maintenance and vendors for work on the property. Once the channel walk/promenade is open to the public, it will be patrolled by the LA County Sheriff’s Office. If you see any concerning activity, please call them at (310) 482-6000.

Motion-sensor lights are a good suggestion that we will take into consideration.

The current renovation plan includes the installation of access-controlled gates at all pools.

We have had preliminary discussions with the County of Los Angeles Beaches & Harbor, who have jurisdiction of the channel walk/promenade. It is unlikely it will be closed given other county facilities, such as beaches, remain open.

The three-foot fences are designed for specific individual patios. The six-foot fences will have electronic access control gates and delineate the Mariners Village community from the channel walk/promenade. In addition, existing and upgraded Mariner’s Village amenities within the community will maintain or receive new access control systems during and after the renovation, such as the tennis courts and The Village, the dog park, etc. Courtesy patrol is on-site 24-hours and will continue to monitor the use of our community amenities. Courtesy patrol’s contact information is available in your resident materials.

The channel walk/promenade and its use will conform to what the County of Los Angeles permits at the time the renovation is complete which we estimate will be in five years from now.

Management will be working with LA County Sheriff’s Department during and after the renovation for increased presence when and where necessary. However, Mariners Village cannot guarantee specific actions taken by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

Thank you for the suggestion, but we will not be able to provide a manned station as described.

Yes, as part of the overall renovation, there will be a public promenade with viewing areas along the waterfront.

The awnings and sail shades are fully engineered to handle wind loads. Bird droppings will dissipate when screens are rinsed off by Maintenance, when it rains, and when sun and other elements deteriorate them. Awnings will be replaced when needed .

Mariners currently has both an arborist and an ornithologist that monitor the urban forest and birds that inhabit it. No nests have been removed nor can they be removed, unless the tree poses a health and safety issue, as the nests are protected per the Local Coastal Development Permit. It is not uncommon for colonial nesters to use and take nesting material from an old nest from the prior year to use in constructing new nests for the current year.

We appreciate the question and will take it into consideration in our design plans.

While there will not be any changes to the existing roads, we do recognize the shift in recent years regarding package and mail delivery. The flow of this service will be reviewed to increase efficiency.

The number of parking spots will remain the same.

Yes.

Yes, the current view piers will be completely renovated, subject to appropriate approvals. While they are being renovated, they will not be open for use. The timing of their renovation, as part of the plan, is still to be determined .

The Design Control board approved the following design suggestions residents made. We changed features such as new windows and doors which will go from single pane to dual pane, allowing for noise reduction, vertical balcony railings to maintain your views, and balcony dividers to separate your balcony from your neighbor’s, allowing for more privacy. The building exteriors will continue to be enhanced, just like Mariners Village, with roofing, siding, paint colors, lighting, and signage.

We understand that people appreciate the current design, features and amenities and will keep this input in mind regarding the new design. There are certain requirements of the Lease with the County of Los Angeles that require enough updating in materials, design and space utilization that will allow Mariners Village to maintain its place in the community for decades to come.

The rookery will be preserved.

The herons may nest in any tree within The Village that they find to be suitable for nesting. There is no set number of heron trees in the plan and no trees within the plan are to be removed.

Mariners currently has both an arborist and an ornithologist that monitor the urban forest and birds that inhabit it. No nests have been removed nor can they be removed, unless the tree poses a health and safety issue, as the nests are protected per the Local Coastal Development Permit. It is not uncommon for colonial nesters to use and take nesting material from an old nest from the prior year to use in constructing new nests.

The renovation will include a Low Impact Development (LID) plan including new Filterra catch basins as shown in our March 16, 2023 Design Control Board approval. Thank you for your thoughts and suggestions. We will keep these under consideration. All renovation activities follow LA County’s Building Code.

Preserving the urban forest will be a special focus. We will work in consultation with experts for proper care and treatment of wildlife and the trees before and during the renovation.

All current wildlife preservation efforts will remain intact, and we will work with the County of Los Angeles to mitigate any disruptions due to construction at the time.

When we must remove a tree or dispose of a fallen tree, we communicate with the County of Los Angeles Beaches & Harbors Department as is required by the Local Coastal Program. In addition, the County provides ongoing input to our tree management plans. These plans are developed with a panel of experts (arborists, biologists, etc.). The County has instructed us that tree removal should only occur when necessary for safety reasons, or as part of a plan approved by the Marina del Rey Design Control Board. If it is determined that replacement of trees is required, it will be done during the construction phase – which will follow the County-approved renovation plan.

We will only remove a tree if it poses a risk to public safety or impedes functionality of the infrastructure. For example, if a tree must be removed because its roots are too close to a natural gas line and causing damage, leaning against a building, or in imminent danger of falling.

Mariners Village currently has both an arborist and an ornithologist that monitor the urban forest and birds that inhabit it. A pruning program is prepared every year specifying the pruning treatment for each of Mariners Village’s trees. The annual pruning plan is submitted to Beaches & Harbors for approval. All pruning is conducted under the direct supervision of the certified arborist. There was a reference to a specific tree being over trimmed leaving one nest in it.

Note there are instances where a tree become unsafe such as this tree was. The certified arborist conducted a tree risk assessment of all the trees within Mariners Village earlier this year and determined that the tree was in imminent risk of failure potentially causing injury or death if the tree fell. Beaches & Harbors staff were immediately notified and met the arborist on site to examine the tree in question. Beaches & Harbors staff concurred that the tree was in imminent risk of failure and agreed with the plan to use hand tools to remove most of the tree during the nesting bird season. The tree was significantly trimmed to reduce the weight on the tree, thereby reducing the risk to public safety until it could be removed during regular pruning in the fall (non-nesting period). The branch with the inactive nest was left intact for exactly that reason.

We appreciate residents’ interest in participating in discussions regarding wildlife and tree preservation/management. We are working with The County of Los Angeles on this effort.

We have gone through an extensive resident and public input process over many years which got us to the point of the Design Control Board’s final approval of the renovation plan. We anticipate the Design Control Board will continue to get public and residents’ input on the promenade and related security questions.