A Parks Master Plan proposes upgrades for Hermosa’s nine parks
by Kevin Cody
A “field of dreams” at Clark Stadium, a park where dogs run free, swim lessons, new pickleball courts, and restoration of the historic, 1936 lawnbowling clubhouse are among the top goals of the Hermosa Beach Parks Master Plan presented to a joint meeting of the Hermosa Parks and Recreation and Public Works commissions last month.
The commissioners were unanimous in their praise of the 48-page plan, supported by 1,123 pages of community survey results and financial and historical data.
But support for the plan was qualified by residents who addressed the commission at the sparsely attended meeting on Monday, October 29, the night the Dodgers could have, but didn’t, clinch the World Series.
“Clearly, a lot of work went into this. I really do appreciate the effort, the diligence, and the empirical data,” resident Nancy Schwappach said during public comments.
“However, I think anyone in this room would have been able to identify the major takeaways… Pickleball, always pickleball. The dog park. Movies and concerts on the beach…,” Schwappach said.
“All that money could have been better spent fixing things we know need to be fixed, but aren’t funded,” she said.
The plan cost the city $329,000, and took nearly two years to complete. The plan was budgeted at $650,000 Community Resources Director Lisa Nichols said.
Parks and Rec Commissioner Thor Legvold responded by putting the plan in the broader social context.
“It’s good to have a plan and a vision. Not doing anything leads to stagnation. Stagnation leads to a backwater that’s really hard to get out of. We’ve seen that on a national scale in certain countries, and on a smaller scale in certain cities. So I think having a vision to move forward with is important,” Legvold said.
While acknowledging many of the report’s conclusions are self evident, he said, “Having objective, external research validates our assumptions. And it provides a basis for decision making.”
Parks and Rec Commissioner Scott Hayes observed that the report’s data prioritizes community wants, and protects councilmembers from charges of project bias when it prioritizes the plan’s recommendations.
Hermosa has 110.39 acres of parkland, including the beach and the Greenbelt, according to the report.
The parkland includes three community parks (Valley Park, South Park and Clark Park), the Greenbelt, six neighborhood parks (Ardmore, Bi-Centennial, Edith Rodaway, Fort Lots-O-Fun, Noble Park and Sea View Park), and four parkettes (Greenwood, Kay Etow, Moondust, and Shaffer).
Most of the plan’s recommendations are for maintenance, landscaping and ADA accessibility improvements. None involve new facilities, or additional property.
The recommendations were based on three community meetings, a survey, website comments and interviews with council members and city commissioners.
Two of the most requested facilities — a pool and a dog park — were deemed unfeasible because of space and cost. Zachary Mueting, a landscape architect with RJM Design Group, which developed the plan, told commissioners dog parks require two acres, and pools even more space.
He suggested the city negotiate with Manhattan and Redondo for time in their pools for swim lessons, which the commissioners expressed support for.
But after several residents spoke in favor of a dog park, or smaller dog runs, the commissioners indicated sites could be found, most likely in Valley Park.
Resident Carla Buck took issue with Mueting’s assertion that dog parks require two acres.
Manhattan has dog runs at Live Oak Park and Polliwog Park that are a fifth of an acre, she told the commissioner.
Buck and a group of neighbors have set up a temporary dog park on a walk street once a week for the past four years. The group is willing to fund, and maintain a dog park, she said.
Hermosa has 3,000 dogs, twice the number of Hermosa school kids, she noted.
Among the most ambitious and most costly park plan recommendations were improvements to the bleachers and four baseball diamonds at Clark Field.
In advocating for the improvements, Hermosa Beach Little League boardmember Jim Fasola told the commissioners, “Little League is extremely popular in Hermosa Beach. We easily get our maximum of 450 players per year. About half of the families in Hermosa Beach play Little League. We get about 1,000 people in the park every Saturday during the season and almost that many on Sundays.
“A critical thing about Little League is it brings families together,” Fasola emphasized. “It’s not like a skateboard park, or pickleball or volleyball, which tend to be individual activities.”
“It’s this community spirit that makes us confident we will get the donations of at least $500,000 to do this project,” Fasola said.
“Think of it as a Venn diagram,” Boardmember Mark Mamber told the commissioners.
“One bubble is community sentiment. Another community use. Another is space. A fourth is cost. Clark Field improvements hit the bullseye in all four of those bubbles,” he said.
At Tuesday night’s council meeting, the council unanimously approved adoption of the Parks Master Plan, which is meant to guide the city for the next 30 years. ER
