Explosive issue
Dear ER:
Southern California Gas Company has recently appeared twice before the Manhattan Beach City Council and both times declined to address a serious problem that threatens the health and safety of all beach cities residents. Their nearby, deteriorating Playa del Rey natural gas storage facility contains 2.6 billion cubic feet of pressurized toxic natural gas stored in 54 wells that date back to 1934. Only nine of the 54 wells have subsurface safety valves. Should one or more of the wells have a failure and a serious leak occurs, the impact could be comparable to the toxic/carcinogenic methane gas leak at the company’s similar Aliso Canyon storage facility, which forced Porter Ranch residents from their homes. The Playa del Rey facility has been beset by gas leaks and mechanical failures, causing state regulators to conduct over three dozen inspections this year. Some of the wells at the facility “failed to demonstrate mechanical integrity” during a recent inspection, according to a state report by the California Department of Conservation (Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources). They are concerned about the deteriorating condition of wells that are older than the ones at Aliso Canyon. Underground gas stores can also move through cracks in the earth (especially during seismic activity), and they escape into the air, or collect under a structure and become an explosive hazard. Please contact the California Department of Conservation (www.conservation.ca.gov) and demand that the facility be urgently repaired or shut down. Also, please contact your state and federal elected representatives.
Wayne Powell
Manhattan Beach City Councilmember
Los Angeles County Beach Commissioner
Napolitano brands Brand
Dear ER:
Redondo Beach councilman Bill Brand’s assertion that I did not meet with him regarding the AES power plant is simply not true. I did meet with him and explained at the time that Supervisor Don Knabe wanted to stay neutral as he felt it was a local decision best left to the residents of Redondo Beach. I also explained that since I worked for Supervisor Knabe, I couldn’t take a position different from his at the time. And while it may seem politically expedient to say this now, as a candidate for the Los Angeles County Fourth District Supervisorial seat and lifelong resident of the South Bay who knows the issue well, I can now say for the record that I oppose a new power plant at the Redondo site.
As for the profile in courage Brand paints of my opponent’s opposition, let’s put this in perspective — she wrote a letter. There was no stance against industry or labor involved. If you want to talk about walking the walk, let’s talk about providing funding for the North Redondo Bike Path, a refurbished beach bike path, support of the many nonprofits in Redondo Beach, the new Lifeguard/Harbor Patrol station  and free shuttle buses each year for the Lobster Festival. All of these things and more I’ve worked to make happen for the residents of Redondo Beach. That’s just one of the reasons I’m endorsed by Mayor Steve Aspel, former Mayors Mike Gin and Greg Hill, Councilmembers Christian Horvath and Laura Emdee, Treasurer Steve Diels and many more.
And if we’re talking air quality, Brand might want to talk to the folks in Wilmington, where my opponent approved the drilling of more than 500 oil wells right next to homes without an environmental impact report — and took campaign contributions from the company doing the oil drilling. This was documented in the February 20, 2016 edition of the Los Angeles Times and her campaign contributions from Warren Oil and other oil companies can be found in the May 16, 2011 edition of LA Weekly and her own campaign filings.
Steve Napolitano
Candidate, 4th District L.A. County Supervisor
Manhattan Beach
Hadley Demo
Dear ER:
I’m a Democrat who’s voting for Hillary Clinton. And I’m voting for David Hadley for Assembly.   Because nothing else is more important than addressing special interest money in politics. And that’s going to take bipartisan support. Hadley has shown that bipartisan leadership, voting Yes on every Clean Money bill that the legislature could put into law. He voted for the California Disclose Act to expose dark money on political ads. He voted for AB 2523 to place limits on campaign contributions in local elections. And he provided the deciding vote for SB 1107, authored by the South Bay’s own Democratic Senator Ben Allen, to allow local governments and the state to pass citizen funding of election campaigns. I don’t agree with all of David Hadley’s votes, but he has my vote because he’s been a bipartisan champion for the most important issue of all – getting big money out of politics.
James Bennett Saxon
Redondo Beach
Muratsuchi’s stand
Dear ER:
As Mayor of the City of Hermosa Beach, I have endorsed Al Muratsuchi for State Assembly, fully support his campaign, and urge my neighbors in the South Bay to vote for him. Muratsuchi has taken a stand in support of the Hermosa Beach, and the entire South Bay by his vocal and clear opposition to Measure O, the 2015 ballot measure that would have approved oil drilling in Hermosa. Almost 80 percent of the Hermosa Beach voters agreed with Al and voted against Measure O. Manhattan Beach City Council unanimously passed a resolution in opposition to Measure O. Incumbent Assemblyman David Hadley, on the other hand, chose not to take a position on Measure O. As an elected official, people expect me to take a position on issues that impact our community. I similarly expect other elected officials to take a position, one way or the other, on issues that impact our quality of life, our public safety and our community. Â
Al Muratsuchi has the integrity and courage to take a stand to protect the South Bay’s quality of life, and I can count on him to take a stand on other issues that impact our community when he gets elected to the State Assembly on November 8. Â
Hany Fangary
Hermosa Beach
On to Coastal
Dear ER:
On October 18 City Council voted 3-1 to approve the CenterCal Waterfront. They ignored violations of CEQA, the California Coastal Act, and city zoning.  They approved the project knowing the proposed Seaside Lagoon puts children at risk and that Harbor Patrol believes the Mole B boat ramp is inherently unsafe. We weren’t surprised given CenterCal’s political investments through the Chamber of Commerce in the campaigns of Mayor Steve Aspel and councilmembers Laura Emdee and Christian Horvath. Their bias was apparent from the start, turning the council hearing into a farce. Civic leaders appeared in CenterCal promotional videos, gave presentations using CenterCal slides to promote the project, displayed CenterCal lawn signs in their yard, and accompanied the CenterCal CEO to a discussion at Hermosa Beach City Council. These leaders deprived residents of a fair review. We’re disappointed that newly appointed Councilmember Martha Barbee voted in favor of the CenterCal project. She missed the opportunity to promote smart, balanced development and instead ignored blatant flaws in favor of commercial interests. We were pleased Councilmember Steve Sammarco stood up for the community, pointed out obvious EIR flaws, questioned staff bias, and voted to reject the EIR. Despite the unfortunate approval we remain confident. We submitted an appeal of the Harbor Commission decision to approve the Mole B boat ramp. We will appeal City Council’s CenterCal decision to the Coastal Commission. And LA County certified 4,511 signatures to qualify the King Harbor CARE Act for the Redondo Beach ballot. The roller coaster continues as we fight to revitalize not supersize.
Martin Holmes
ROW (Rescue Our Waterfront.)
Redondo Beach
