The Beach Cities Health District held an open house ‘tour’ for residents over the weekend to showcase the size and scope of its master plan for the potential Healthy Living Campus, the district’s new vision for the existing Prospect Avenue site.
“We have flags set up so people can see the size and perimeter of the new campus,” said BCHD CEO Tom Bakaly. “We want to create a place for people to be well.”
Bakaly led residents around the perimeter of the planned new facilities and indicated the vision for the new project, which at four stories is indicated to be shorter than portions of existing buildings.
Tours focused on the planned Phase One of the project, which would include 160 units of Residential Care for the Elderly and a newly-built Center for Health and Fitness gym. That much, the district believes, can be easily financed with a funding partner.
The other two phases, including residential structures on the north side of the campus and the Community Wellness Pavilion centerpiece, are still in the air.
“Without financing, we can’t go to two and three, so we’ll have to figure that out. With success of One, which we are anticipating, that could lead to easier opportunities or community support for financing,” said BCHD Board Member Jane Diehl.
BCHD believes it will not need to seek voter approval to rezone the project, confident that the new construction complies with existing allowable uses. The district has also found some concurrence with Redondo Beach’s City Attorney Michael Webb, who said he found nothing ”imminently objectionable” with the district’s legal opinion.
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