HOLLYWOOD - Los Angeles officials plan to seize some 30 small businesses in Hollywood through eminent domain to make way for a $400 million residential-commercial project anchored by a hotel, it was reported Friday.

The condemnation proceedings, authorized by the Los Angeles Community Redevelopment Agency, set the stage for one of the most ambitious revitalization efforts in Hollywood, the Los Angeles Times reported.

But the action is being decried as heavy-handed and unfriendly by homeowners and merchants who said it was wrong to use public money and power to benefit a private developer, according to the newspaper.

The planned development at Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street would replace several buildings from the district's golden era.

The proposed Hollywood and Vine project is intended to include a luxury W 300-room Hotel, 525 condominium and apartment units, and 61,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space, according to The Times.