Letters to the Editor 11-21-24

HV a victory for kids

Dear ER:

Hermosa Beach City School Bond Measure HV passed with well over 60 Percent of those voting in the November 5 election. Passage of Measure HV by the citizens of Hermosa will give much needed investment to Hermosa Valley and to our children’s future. We were proud to deliver on the Measure S bond passed by the voters in 2016 on time and on budget. We are confident we will do so again with Measure HV. Our thanks to all of everyone who canvased a precinct, took a lawn sign, made phone calls or blitzed a precinct. Most of all, our thanks to those of you who voted “Yes” on Measure HV. You voted for our children’s future and that of Hermosa Beach

Quentin Kluthe, President

Hermosa Beach City School District

Steve Izant, Campaign Coordinator

Timeless thanks

Dear ER:

On Veterans Day, November 11th, we celebrated the 30th Anniversary of the Hermosa Beach Veterans Memorial. Its theme is “Veterans are timeless,” as reflected by its sundial. Speaking for our committee and our group of South Bay veterans I want to say how pleased and honored we were by the turnout. There are so many people to thank for the success of the event including:  Master of Ceremonies Councilman Ray Jackson who did a fantastic job as usual, Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi, Color Guards from Redondo Union High Marine JROTC, US Naval Sea Cadets and Hermosa Beach Police Dept., Singer Laura Saviz of Ray Contiff ensemble, LCOL Brenda Threatt Chaplin and ECC advisor, Mayor Dean Francois who provided a gracious welcome, and attendance by several present and past Hermosa Beach Council and Commission members. We also want to thank Major Ashley Christman USMC, our keynote Speaker, who shared her gripping story and who explained the timeless bond between veterans and current military members. The City of Hermosa Beach staff provided unflagging support, and our thanks to the Hermosa Beach Museum for hosting our reception. We were also graced with a Flyby conducted by the Torrance Based Tiger Squadron, a group of highly skilled volunteer former military and commercial pilots, as well as the presence of Hermosa Police and Los Angeles County Firefighters. Retired California Air Guardsman Sgt. Daniel Plaster played Taps. From its inception in 1992, we have annually received generous donations from the Hermosa Beach Kiwanis Club, Rotary Club and Woman’s Club.

We are proud of the Hermosa Beach Veterans Memorial, which is highly visible to the tremendous numbers of vehicles that pass daily through our city on Pacific Coast Highway.  A dedicated group of volunteer Veterans clean and care for the memorial the first Saturday of each month.  

Steve Crecy, Chairperson

Mike Flaherty, Co-Chairperson

Hermosa Beach Veterans Memorial Committee

Out of control local control

Dear ER:

Hermosa Beach Planning Commissioner Pete Hoffman’s words during last weeks Planning  Commission hearing on the old Becker Surf building on Pier Avenue speak volumes: “It has taken a year and a half to get this process to this point, and that cost people money. Then we suddenly created disincentives…. This is the kind of thing that prompts rhetoric about Hermosa being business-unfriendly.”  The story behind this vacant property is a sobering reminder of the city’s growing reputation for bureaucratic barriers and unrealistic requirements that hurt both property owners and the broader community. Hearing the building owner and residents nearly in tears, recounting hardships imposed by the city’s demands, should alarm us all. What should be a straightforward change-of-use process has instead become a burdensome gauntlet that discourages investment and vitality in our city’s core. 

– $56,000 required for solar panels,  

– A costly elevator mandate for a one-level building,  

– An additional $35,000 for energy-efficient roofing.  

The property owner and tenants have been stuck in an exhausting process for 18 months, with no end in sight, as it now moves to the Coastal Commission. There is a good chance this property owner will lose these tenants, who have been waiting over two years just to get started. Unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident. The city’s unrealistic building requirements, exorbitant in-lieu parking fees, and the looming “land value recapture program” represent systemic disincentives for property owners and businesses. These policies risk rendering commercial properties in downtown Hermosa worthless and unusable. 

The core questions:

– Is the city intentionally undermining the downtown with these practices?  

– Or is it simply out of touch and unaware of the real-world consequences of its actions?  

Either way, the results are the same: a stagnant downtown, frustrated property owners, and a disillusioned community. If Hermosa Beach insists on standing under the banner of “local control” it must prove to the community it is capable of wielding that control responsibly and effectively.

I urge the City Council to streamline the change-of-use process to remove unnecessary delays and costs for property owners; and to convene a task force of property owners, business leaders, and residents to develop policies that balance sustainability with economic vitality. 

Without meaningful change, we risk cementing the reputation of being a city hostile to businesses and progress. 

Ed Hart

Hermosa Beach 

Measured message

Dear ER:

Slowly, and hopefully surely, Beach City Health District taxpayers are getting the BCHD Board and executives under control. Denying Measure BC was a good start. It sent a clear message that District Taxpayers have no interest in funding a new allcove building or servicing the 1.4 million population area of LA County SPA8 for 30 years with no long term funding grant. BCHD can fund allcove for residents and the students in the school districts, but the idea of expanding the allcove service area by 10-fold made no sense. Denying Measure BC also sent a clear message that district taxpayers don’t want their hospital building torn down, nor will they fund BCHD’s misguided demolition. BCHD has no business paying for the pre-development work of 100% private PMB LLC as it seeks to build a $15,000 per month assisted living facility. Especially when that assisting living facility is for 80% non-residents of 90254, 90266, 90277, and 90278, according to BCHDs own studies. But our work to fix BCHD is not done.

BCHDs draft budget documents show a structural future deficit, most likely caused by BCHDs careless acceptance of allcove’s 30-year unfunded operation. Sadly, the very first item on BCHDs chopping block is to “remove school service agreements ($600,000).”  Yet nowhere does the BCHD plan show cutting the size of the $2.4 million per year executive suite, nor cutting off payments and subsidies for services to non-residents. allcove has a 91% non-resident service area and is currently serving 50% non-residents. The district’s AdventurePlex and the Center for Health and Fitness receive $2 million annually in District Taxpayer subsidies and have roughly one-third non-residents being subsidized. Despite repeated requests to BCHD, it refuses to even track the costs of non-resident use. I suspect we’d all be stunned at how much of our BCHD funding exits the District. I have a suggestion that will likely fix most of our problems. Let’s rename the BCHD to the Hermosa, Manhattan and Redondo Beach Resident Health District as a daily reminder to the Board and $2.4 million in executives. Each and every dollar taken from our property taxes or generated from our land, buildings, and investments should be plowed back into the District and its residents. Every time anyone is forced to type HMRBRHD, it will reinforce the District’s obligation to its owners.

Mark Nelson

Redondo Beach

RB Measured

Dear ER:

Thank you Redondo Beach residents for your 63% approval of Measure RB on election day. Residents once again prevailed over the false information rhetoric from a few wanting to turn Redondo Beach into another high-density Santa Monica. During the election they falsely claimed unchecked overdevelopment will take place if you vote in favor of Measure RB. The reality is this would likely occur if RB didn’t pass the measure. The city would have become exposed to predatory developers pursuing Builder’s Remedy lawsuits, forcing new construction projects and thousands of new “expensive, market rate condos” throughout Redondo Beach, regardless of the land use zoning. Informed residents thankfully saw through the propaganda from the same few people who love to push high density housing that would increase traffic, and degrade safety, infrastructure, and public services. Finally, a big thank you to those City Council members, two in North Redondo, two in South Redondo, who supported Measure RB after all five City Council members voted to place it on the ballot. 

Everyone’s support made a difference and will help protect Redondo Beach from outside, special interests trying to overbuild our already densely populated city.

Wayne Craig

President Rescue Our Waterfront

Redondo Beach