2017 Year in Review: Redondo Beach
Measure C halts CenterCal
waterfront development,
rewrites harbor-area zoning
The multi-year plan to revitalize Redondo Beach’s waterfront was torpedoed on March 7 when voters passed Measure C, a rewriting of harbor-area zoning that effectively outlawed CenterCal Properties’ hotly debated development plan.
CenterCal planned to build 19 buildings over 36 acres of waterfront, for a total of 312,289 square feet of new development.
Objections to the size of the project spurred 57.3 percent of voters to approve the harbor zoning rewrite, proposed by Rescue Our Waterfront leaders Martin Holmes, Wayne Craig, and Nils Nehrenheim.
Longtime anti-development activist and two-term City Councilman Bill Brand won the Mayoral election that same day, while fellow activist Todd Loewenstein won the District 2 council seat and Nehrenheim won the District 1 council seat in a runoff.
In response to the Measure C vote, CenterCal has sued the city the City in both Los Angeles Superior Court and federal court. The Coastal Commission has yet to weigh in on the legality of Measure C. The City is also being sued by Measure C author Jim Light over the approval of CenterCal’s Environmental Impact Report.
“That’s what happened when you push a project that the public doesn’t want, and the public pushes back,” said Mayor Bill Brand.
Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi (front) with Redondo Beach Council Members Todd Loewenstein and John Gran, County Supervisor Janice Hahn, Mayor Bill Brand, and Council Members Christian Horvath and Nils Nehrenheim. Officials announced a proposal to purchase the AES power plant site. Photo
City partners with County, State Reps
on an effort to purchase AES power plant
Mayor Bill Brand couldn’t wipe the smile off of his face on Nov. 19, when he and the Redondo Beach City Council joined LA County Supervisor Janice Hahn and State Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi in announcing a plan to purchase the AES power plant site.
“I feel very optimistic. It’s been a long, hard road to where we’re standing now, there’s a long road ahead, and it’s worth celebrating,” Brand said.
Valuations of the property have swung between $50 million and $250 million, depending on factors such as remediation. But the plan would most likely involve the City acting as an involved third party in a deal between AES and a developer.
“We’re certainly not going to do a fire sale,” said AES Vice President Eric Pendergraft.
The proposal is likely to include a special financing district, as well as funds generated from a land bond planned for the 2018 election.
While the City may get a letter of intent from AES in the next six months, real estate consultant Larry Kosmont said the project as a whole could take 10 years.
“We’re on the front end of this one. Structural, physical change doesn’t come quickly,” Kosmont said.
RBPD drone gives cops an assist
Redondo Beach Police gained region-wide fame when their drone program helped put a safe end to a chase that stretched from South Los Angeles and through the Beach Cities in March.
For a hot second, carjacking suspect Carlos Mercado had an opportunity to take the Ford F-250 of Pennywise guitarist Fletcher Dragge, who was stopped in traffic, before thinking better of the exchange.
“It looked like he was reaching for the driver side door handle and I thought for a moment he was coming for my truck. But if he was, he changed his mind when we made eye contact,” Dragge said. Dragge described the Scion driver as a small, Hispanic male in his early 20s, with a shaved head. Dragge is 6-foot-5, 300 pounds.
Police put an end to the chase after by pinning Mercado’s vehicle to a curb on Pacific Coast Highway, south of Palos Verdes Boulevard. ER
Tall tale of tree revenge
proves false, local troll
claims it was a prank
A story of revenge went viral in June after a supposed arborist reported that nearly 120 trees would spring up across Redondo Beach in honor of a tree allegedly removed by the City three years earlier.
But, like so many fascinating stories on the web, this quickly proved false, though not before then-Mayor Steve Aspel was named as the chief tree-killer.
Reddit user GoblinStoleMyHouse admitted in an interview that his story was “complete and total BS, with just enough detail and knowledge of California to be believable.” Goblins chose to not reveal his or her name but admitted to being a bored Torrance resident home on a break from Purdue University.
“It was a BS thing to do, so he learned something at my expense, but I’m having fun with it,” Aspel said, waiting for a potential seedling to pop up. “If a tree’s planted in my lot that’s nice, in a nice spot, I’d keep it,” he added.
A memorial bench and garden in memory of Ciara Smith were dedicated in September near Esplanade and Knob Hill Road, where the 13-year-old was killed after colliding with an LA Metro bus in May. Photos
Redondo Beach comes together
to mourn Ciara Smith’s tragic death
The Redondo Beach community was in shock for weeks following the death of 13-year-old Ciara Smith in May. Smith was killed when she collided with a bus near the corner of Pacific Coast Highway and Knob Hill Road. She had been riding her bicycle to her home in the late afternoon with a friend.
Ciara was pronounced dead at the scene/ The collision, police said, appeared to be random happenstance.
But within hours, a memorial bloomed at the intersection. Flowers, letters, candles, and pineapples – Ciara’s favorite – covered a nearby slab of concrete and co-opted a nearby sign.
The City, with the aid of LA County Supervisor Janice Hahn, acted quickly. By September, a memorial bench was placed in her honor at the north end of The Esplanade. A county-owned plot of land directly in front of the bench was renovated, unofficially named “Ciara’s Garden.”
“We’re under no illusion that this bench, or this garden, is some sort of closure for Ciara’s family…but we wanted to make a place where they can come,” Brand said.
“It’s funny how things work out…this was one of our favorite places,” said Barry Smith, Ciara’s father.
Ciara’s family has filed a lawsuit against the state, CalTrans, LA County, LAMetro and the bus driver for negligence.
A happy ending for one family
displaced by fire before the holidays
Flower shop owner Brooke Owens, her daughter Megan Golberendji, and Owens’ fiance were on the verge of homelessness after their home was severely damaged by fire on Nov. 30, one day after Thanksgiving. Of the two homes burned that night, hers was the most damaged. Her neighbor’s home was saved by firefighters and its sprinkler systems.
But, just as Owens would find ways to help her neighbors in need by donating flowers and feeding the homeless, Redondo was able to come together to support her family.
Within two weeks, Owens was able to find a new apartment, and received donations, including a vehicle, from local stores and neighbors.
“The community has been so wonderful,” Owens said. “We’re so grateful.”
Kathleen Davis, Phyllis Pennings and Mindy Freiss were among an estimated 1,800 marchers at a January protest against President Donald Trump. Photo
Women’s march draws
1,800 participants
Scores of protesters gathered to stand up for women against intolerance and injustice on January 20, the day of President Donald Trump’s inauguration. The protest was a sister march, aligned with demonstrations in major cities across the country, though it was designed to be “nonpartisan” according to organizer Jennifer Moore.
The event had its share of detractors; One man drove up alongside marchers on Herondo Street, shouting “Trump is awesome! Suck it up, snowflakes!.”.Protesters laughed as he drove the wrong way down a one-way street.
“I’m in awe of all the love,” Moore said. “It’s been so tense this past year, and to come down here and see over 2,000 people makes my heart feel full, really.”
Sport Fishing Pier to be replaced,
but Polly’s to remain by the water
Deterioration of the Redondo Sportfishing Pier led to the pier’s closure this year. August report to the City Council caused leaders to vote for replacement with a modernized pier, estimated to cost between $4 million to $6 million.
Beloved restaurant Polly’s on the Pier, however, will not be wholly displaced; in November, the Council authorized a deal that would move Polly’s to the International Boardwalk, where owners plan to roost until the new pier is built.
“I think [the City] recognized what a unique place Polly’s is,” said owner JoAnn Turk. “When the people of Redondo get a hold of something they love, they want to keep it.”