Over the summer, the City of Westlake Village considered a senior living project by applicant “180”, at the former Westlake hospital site. At that time, the council decided not to approve the project. As a result, council directed City staff to prepare the proper resolutions to formally deny the project. Effectively, several weeks ago was the time of the denial — but since there was not a resolution to vote on at the time, the vote to deny was tonight. Tonight was not a discussion about whether to approve the project — only what type of denial (with or without prejudice).
“Without prejudice” means that the applicant can resubmit their application without waiting. In reality, an applicant that submits a proposal again would change the proposal if it expects a different outcome. The council comments confirmed this as well. Some people would read this as an indication by the Council to the applicant that they proceeded in an appropriate, and respectful way — and some of the council comments reflected that.
Ultimately, the council considered the two forms of resolution (with or without prejudice), heard public comment and voted, 4-0 to deny the project “without prejudice.” This is common for this type of project, but is always at the discretion of the council. You should not read these votes as a reflection of support of the project or not, it’s purely about the TYPE of denial (with or without prejudice).