WHITTIER >> The City Council on Tuesday delayed a decision on a proposed 76-unit apartment complex across the street from East Whittier Middle School on Whittier Boulevard.

“I don’t think this is quite ready for prime time,” said Councilman Joe Vinatieri.

A standing-room crowd of more than 80 people attended the public hearing, with 23 residents speaking against the proposed apartment complex. No members of the public spoke in favor of it.

“The area is too small and occupancy too high,” said Douglas Halliday, one of the speakers and member of the city’s Parking and Transportation Commission.

Halliday’s list of problems the complex would cause included a decrease in the quality of life in the area, loss of curbside parking due to apartment residents parking on the street, increased crime, worsening of morning student drop-off conditions at the school, and a safety threat to children.

Residents also complained about the size of the proposed three-story development with a two-story garage on a 1.9-acre site, saying it dwarfs the adjacent school, a community landmark, and doesn’t fit with the community.

“What’s reported here and what’s really going on doesn’t really jibe,” area resident John McKenney said of presentations favorable to the development. “It fails miserably on safety issues, and I think it’s your duty to deny,” he told the council.

“This project is way over the top,” said Catalina Avenue resident Tom Maxfield, adding the balconies on Whittier Boulevard would be used for storage.

City Council candidate Nick Donovan said, “This project, on my watch, would never get built.”

Three 10-year-old girls, Amelia Thurman, Sabina Schaefer and Jill DeLeon, all fifth-graders at Ocean View Elementary School, stood together at the podium to voice their opposition to the project. Taking turns at the microphone, they said the project would reduce safety for children and make the area schools more crowded.

But Ben Kim, a spokesman for the developer, The Charles Co., defended the project, saying it’s high quality and the apartments would be luxury apartments. The project meets all the code requirements, and the developer is not seeking any variances, he said during a break at the meeting.

“I understand the concerns of the residents, but they also have to understand that it’s an allowed-by-right use.”

Owners of private property have a right to reasonable use of their properties, and based on existing legal requirements, the city cannot reject a rental housing project on that basis, according to city officials.

“Our hands are tied by the (Whittier Boulevard) Specific Plan,” said Vinatieri.

However, the city can raise issues regarding traffic, safety and building design.

The site formerly was a Mitsubishi auto dealership and has been vacant since 2008. It was described as “blighted” and an “eyesore.”

Apartments will generate less traffic than other uses of the property, such as retail, offices or medical offices, according to a traffic study.

“I think when this project gets done, (area residents) will understand that this is a good fit and value to the community,” said Kim.

Councilman Owen Newcomer said the developer has addressed the safety issues and “this project is exactly what we asked for in the Whittier Specific Plan. Three stories on Whittier Boulevard is what we want,” he said.

“It seems to me that this project meets what we asked for as a City Council,” he said. “It’s very unusual for a developer not to ask for a (zoning) variance.”

He recommended approving the project.

But Mayor Bob Henderson said the city can’t ignore the safety issues surrounding the proposed development, even though the apartment complex is not the cause of the traffic problems, by continuing to add to the problem.

He said staff should continue working with the developer in finding other ways to mitigate the traffic and massing issues the project presents.

The hearing was continued to Feb. 11.

Kim said Wednesday the company “is looking forward to working with the city to develop the project.”

The meeting was dedicated to Vinatieri’s father, Norbert Vinatieri, who died Jan. 7 at 92.