ELYSIAN VALLEY : New Parking Lot for Solvent Firm Rejected

Neighbors annoyed at a cleaning solvent factory that they say generates fumes and noise scored a victory last week when the Los Angeles City Council upheld a decision by city planners not to allow the business to build a new parking lot.

Residents were concerned that allowing Mission Kleensweep Products Inc. to convert a vacant parcel into a 25-space parking lot for employees would be a step toward expansion of the business. But owner Bob Rosenbaum denied that the company has such plans, saying the almost two-acre lot merely would have provided employees an alternative place to park than the street.

The decision ends nearly a year of opposition effort by residents of Elysian Valley, Echo Park and other communities.

Residents complained that the factory already intrudes on the neighborhood, rattling nerves with fumes, heavy truck traffic and noise.

Los Angeles City Councilwoman Jackie Goldberg’s office supported the community’s objections, spokesman David Hershey-Webb said.

“The company has not been a good neighbor,” Hershey-Webb said.

Virginia Adams, one of the residents who led the drive to oppose the parking lot at 2428 Birkdale St., said she is relieved the battle is over.

“We’ve been fighting this for a long, long time,” Adams said. Mission Kleensweep has been “a public nuisance.”

Rosenbaum said the company may resubmit the application after further consultation with residents.