Letters to the Editor 10-3-24
Fire department rescue
Dear ER:
In April 12, 2024, Citygate Fire & EMS delivered a “Deployment and Organizational Analysis” of the Redondo Beach Fire Department to the City Council. Taxpayers funded this top down, inside-out evaluation of our fire department in response to resident calls to preserve local control over RBFD. In a 125-page report commending RBFD’s exceptionally fast response times, Citygate pointed out the glaring blemishes in our City’s public safety infrastructure.
Citygate wrote: “2 of the 3 fire stations are more than 60 years old and show significant signs of wear and tear despite the best efforts of City maintenance staff. All three fire stations are undersized… [and] lack conformance with current Building Code, ADA and NFPA” and seismic standards. “Fire Stations 1 and 2 … were developed based on historically all-male fire crews and have received minor retrofitted changes for gender inclusion… They should be completely upgraded to current standards.”
Citygate recommended that the City prioritize the existing fire stations for substantial remodel or replacement. I applaud my colleagues on the Council and the Mayor for unanimously supporting the placement of Measure FP on the ballot.
I know that the additional cost, however slight, comes at the worst time for many of us. But we can only protect our high quality of life and public safety for the foreseeable future with essential infrastructure upgrades now. The costs of kicking these important cans down the road will likely only be greater in the future. I ask you to Vote YES on FP
Zein Obagi, Jr.
District 4
Redondo Beach City council
Educating future voters
Dear ER:
One of the best things about living in Manhattan Beach is how caring and supportive our community is, especially when it comes to our schools. Measure RLS offers a rare opportunity to secure $200 million for essential school repairs—without raising taxes. It achieves this by renewing existing tax rates from bond measures passed in the late ’90s and early 2000s. With many of our schools over 70 years old, these funds will help address critical repairs and upgrades throughout the district.
What makes this moment especially important is the availability of matching funds through Proposition 2, also on the November ballot. If we pass Measure RLS, we could unlock up to $57–58 million from the state—funds that would otherwise go to neighboring districts if we miss this opportunity.
If Measure RLS doesn’t pass, we won’t have another chance to place a facilities bond measure on the ballot for at least two years, delaying necessary improvements even further. Our community has a long history of supporting public education, and passing Measure RLS allows us to continue that tradition without increasing taxes.
Thank you for considering this vital issue.
Nathalie Rosen
Co-Chair, Measure MB
Healthy vote
Dear ER:
I support Measure BC, the Beach Cities Health District bond in the November ballot. For public entities such health districts, bonds are used for buildings. Bond funds cannot be used for operational expenses such as employee salaries or benefits. The last time the Beach Cities Health District went out for a bond for building was in 1956. Obviously, with their main building being 63 years old, the former hospital building is unsafe for several reasons including not being seismic safe. Measure BC is also vitally necessary to address the mental health crisis facing Beach City youth. This bond will fund the “allcove” building, a state-of-the-art facility for our youth to address mental health issues. I can’t think of a better investment.
allcove will be the preeminent youth mental health center for the youth in the beach cities and the rest of the South Bay. Our three beach cities, Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach, are fortunate to have their own health district. Please support our BCHD.
Mark Burton
Redondo Beach
Futurist
Dear ER:
My name is Nina Tarnay and I’m running for Manhattan Beach City Council. I’m a 25 year resident, mother of three, attorney, former small business owner, and Executive Administrator of the West Basin Water Association and Water Rights Panel. My family immigrated here from Vietnam, escaping in fishing boats after the Fall of Saigon. My husband, Mike, and I feel lucky on many levels to call Manhattan Beach home. This fuels my dedication to public service and my passion to contribute to our community. My experiences working with cities and municipal agencies on both sides of the counter give me perspective that will benefit our city on day one. My volunteer work in our schools and healthcare system, youth sports, and philanthropic organizations demonstrate my deep commitment to service.
My priorities are community safety, thriving local business, efficient management of city resources, and empowering collaboration. With the necessity of capital improvements and infrastructure modernization in Manhattan Beach, the next four years will deeply impact our city for the next 40. Our current Council has ushered us through trying times in the recent past and I have the vision and energy to move us forward into a vibrant future.
There are three seats up for election and I humbly ask for your vote on or before November 5.
Nina Tarnay
Manhattan Beach
Political malpractice
Dear ER:
Gaslighting is the only word to describe this silly tirade against President Trump; no matter how you feel about his persona, the “debate” was so corrupt it might end all future debates going forward (“All Ball,” September 19, 2024). To fact check only one candidate in itself was absurd; she lied repeatedly…one big one…Kamala Harris told America on debate night that Goldman Sachs and the Wharton School of Business said her economic plan is better than Trump’s.
Both Goldman and Wharton have now come out and said that she was lying. Not only did Wharton say she lied. They said, “We did not find a positive impact on the economy from her plan in any future year.” Harris is an empty shell — 100% fluff with 0% substance. The best example; her complete lack of candor on illegal immigration is political malpractice.
Dwight David
Redondo Beach
Cold high ground
Dear ER:
The burgeoning of Vanessa Poster’s “United Against Hate” signs is such a relief, in contrast to those yard signs supporting “Hate.”Oh wait. There are no “Hate” signs (“Sandbox,” ER September 26, 2024). Excuse my faux surprise, but the “United…” signs should come with their own Klieg lights and amplifiers to trumpet at all hours of the day and night the sign owner’s virtue. Poster inadvertently admits the irony of her blind spot: the signs have been posted in yards for nearly four years, but “hate” crimes and all those phobias continue to rise.
How is that possible? We have signs! We must need bigger signs? Maybe if the virtue signalers could tear themselves away from their latest vanity project/ad campaign and actually do the work — practice color blindness, getting kids off social media, foster resiliency, stop SEL, promote curriculum based learning, reduce psych therapies, read Abigail Shrier, stop confusing children with gender questions, and get rid of their ridiculous yard signs, hate might reduce. But, then folks like Vanessa Poster would have no drum to bang. There is a question from the Dowager character of “Downton Abbey” Maggie Smith, who just passed, I think is appropriate for Vanessa Poster and her cadres of feckless crusaders: “Do you need a coat? Because, it must be awfully chilly up there on that moral high ground?”
CWU
Manhattan Beach
What’s wrong with this downtown
Dear ER:
Have you ever visited Hollywood Riviera, downtown Manhattan Beach, Manhattan Beach Village , or The Point and Plaza El Segundo — areas built on chemical landfills — and wondered why they attract all the new restaurants and businesses, while downtown Hermosa Beach struggles with tired buildings and long-term vacancies like Becker’s and Rock Sushi?
The City blames high rents and greedy, absentee landlords. But rents in other cities are similar, if not higher and yet those cities are thriving. The real question is: why would someone choose to invest in a chemical landfill rather than in beautiful Hermosa Beach?
Perhaps it’s because Hermosa lacks vision. The city has spent money on economic development consultants, zoning consultants, parking consultants, housing consultants — you name it. Yet most of their recommendations sit on a shelf, ignored.
Hermosa was two years behind on state housing compliance, and the critical zoning update is delayed. This means that unlike neighboring cities, if you want to change a use permit in Hermosa, you have to go through the State Coastal Commission, adding months to the process.
The city’s parking requirements are among the most restrictive in the South Bay, making investment in the commercial zone nearly impossible. Height limits prevent building up, underground parking is expensive due to the sandy soil, and if you can’t meet the excessive parking demands, the city wants you to pay in lieu parking fees. While other cities are lifting parking requirements, Hermosa plans to keep them, keeping the city locked in a cycle of stagnation. Want to build housing above your store? You’ll face steep penalties under Land
Value Recapture (LVR) on top of rising construction costs, fees, and permits, or you’ll have to accept a 55-year deed restriction for building affordable housing.
To be fair, this isn’t entirely the city council’s fault. They’re part-time officials with busy lives working with an agenda set by the city manager’s office. I’ve seen many times council members push for new options only to be told by the city manager that there’s “no staff time” to work on it.
The bottom line is this: when a city doesn’t prioritize economic development, it falls behind. Hermosa has backed itself into a corner, and now it faces money problems. The quick fix? Raising sales taxes — a move that only stifles economic growth further and keeps the vicious cycle going.
Ed Hart
Hermosa Beach