Hermosa Beach City Council sends support letter for Metro C Hawthorne route
by Laura Garber
The Hermosa Beach City Council voted 4 to 1 to write a letter to the Los Angeles County Metro Board opposing the Metro C Line light rail extension being built along the railroad right-of-way (ROW) that runs through North Redondo Beach and Lawndale. Instead, the Council’s letter will advocate the proposed line extension run along the Hawthorne Boulevard center divider in Torrance.
Councilmember Michael Detoy cast the dissenting vote, without comment, at the Tuesday, October 14, meeting.
The C Line (now called the K Line) extension would run 4.5 miles, from the Redondo Marine Street station to the Torrance Transit Center on Crenshaw Boulevard, between Del Amo and Torrance Boulevards.
The ROW (railroad-right-of-way) option, through North Redondo would cost an estimated $2.23 billion The Hawthorne Boulevard option is estimated to cost $2.96 billion.
The Hermosa Council letter expressed a reversal of the position taken by the City Council in June 2023, when it wrote a letter to the LA Metro Board supporting the ROW option.
That letter was withdrawn after Redondo Beach Councilmembers Nils Nehrenheim and Paige Kaluderovic expressed their dismay over the letter at a September 2023 Hermosa Council meeting.
Kaluderovic told the council, “I’m disappointed you supported the ROW option. Redondo hopes the railroad right-of-way will become a dedicated bike path, creating a greener, more connected region,” she said.
Hermosa Councilman Raymond Jackson, who as Mayor, had signed the June 2023 letter supporting the ROW option, said Tuesday night, “For some, it may make sense for the right-of-way (ROW) option. It just doesn’t make sense for those who are impacted and who would deal with the effects of this for many, many years to come. I think this is the time to stand side-by-side with our neighbors,” Jackson said.
Councilmember Michael Keegan reminded fellow councilmembers of the Redondo Beach Council’s letter of support for Hermosa during Hermosa’s 2015 fight against a proposal to drill for oil in Hermosa’s tidelands.
Keegan also noted that Hermosa may be entering discussions with Redondo to merge the two cities’ fire departments.
“I spoke to Redondo Mayor Jim Light at the South Bay Association Chamber mixer at the South Bay Botanical Garden about a week ago. He’s looking for our support on this and he’s hoping that we can grow closer together as they look at bidding for our fire services. Redondo also provides our attorney services for prosecutions,” Keegan said.
The Los Angeles County Metro Board supports the ROW option, which includes trench, elevated and at-grade level tracks, with platform stops in Lawndale and Redondo Beach.
Lawndale resident John Schreiber, who lives along the the railroad-right-of-way, told the Council, “Taking away our greenbelt (the right of way) and giving us a tiny walking path is like saying ‘Hey we have to amputate your legs, but good news, we bought you new pants.”
He noted the Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) identifies “multiple, significant, and unavoidable impacts” to the 1,100 homes along the ROW route.
“This includes a train just 10 feet from bedroom windows in Lawndale,” Schreiber added.
Hermosa resident Kristin Marino, spoke in favor of the ROW option. She reminded the council that early Hermosa Beach history was reliant on Pacific Electric Red Cars.
Hermosa resident Brandon Lin also said he favored the ROW option to off-set Beach City visitors’ dependency on cars.
“If we want to bring people to Hermosa Beach to support local businesses this is one great way. And it’s cheaper and faster than the Hawthorne line,” Lin said. ER