Los Angeles considers restricting tour buses near Marilyn Monroe's home

In a 13-0 vote, the Los Angeles City Council approved a motion to explore restrictions for tour buses driving around Marilyn Monroe's home in Brentwood.

The motion, which Councilwoman Traci Park introduced, orders the Department of Transportation to evaluate street segments to restrict tour bus operations at:

• 5th Helena Drive between Carmelina Avenue and 5th Helena Drive's cul-de-sac
• Carmelina Avenue between Sunset and San Vicente boulevards

Park spearheaded the effort to have Monroe's home designated as a historical cultural monument when the current owners tried to demolish it last year.

In July 2023, real estate heiress Brinah Milstein and her husband, TV producer Roy Bank, purchased the Spanish hacienda-style residence located at 12305 West 5th Helena Drive in Brentwood for $8.35 million. The couple, who owns the property next door, obtained a city permit to demolish the Monroe home, which was initially granted but later revoked.

The couple sued the city of L.A. in May to complete the tear-down.

Monroe was found dead of a drug overdose at the home in 1962. It is the first and only residence she owned independently, according to the New York Times .

After a lengthy legal battle between the city and the current owners, the City Council voted to designate Monroe's home as a historical monument.

"There is no other person or place in the city of Los Angeles as iconic as Marilyn Monroe and her Brentwood home," Park said in June.