New Hermosa signs signal another budget shortfall

by Laura Garber

Even a half-million-dollar donation isn’t enough to cover Hermosa Beach’s new signage program. The Public Works Commission approved conceptual designs July 15, but a six-figure funding gap means not every sign will get built. 

The design approval covered a digital monument sign and a family of gateway signs. Commissioners also discussed downtown wayfinding but reached no formal recommendation.

Former Mayor Chuck Sheldon and his wife, Missy, donated $500,000 in December for the digital sign and gateway signage. A separate $50,000 donation from the Chamber of Commerce, originally given in 2014, was redirected in April toward downtown wayfinding. Combined with $28,845 from the City’s general fund, the total budget is $578,845.

Of that, $50,000 is set aside for wayfinding alone. That leaves $528,845 for the digital sign and gateway signs. Design firm MIG Inc. estimates those two components will cost $641,550.

Staff said the gap is why gateway sign locations were ranked by priority instead of treated as one package.

The digital sign is planned for the community center lawn at Pier Avenue and PCH, replacing a static sign removed in 2019 for structural deterioration. It is estimated to cost $150,000 to fabricate and install, potentially exceeding $250,000 with design and permitting included.

Elka Warner, a resident who said she volunteers at the veterans memorial near the site, worried the sign would invite kids to play on it and distract drivers turning onto Pier Avenue.

“The beauty of Hermosa Beach is kind of our open space,” Warner said. She said she counted roughly 30 signs on a single drive down Pier Avenue.

Newly appointed Commissioner Nate Flory disagreed.

“I believe that if it’s back away from the street, it’s not going to distract drivers,” Flory said.

The rest of the Sheldon donation, an estimated $250,000 to $350,000, goes toward gateway signs at city entry points, including Manhattan Avenue and Neptune Avenue, Hermosa Avenue and 35th Street, and the Greenbelt at Valley Drive and Longfellow Avenue. Staff ranked each location by priority. Only the higher-priority signs are likely to get built without more funding.

Pat Dacy, who started 3V Signs & Graphics in Hermosa Beach in 2010, was more supportive.

“Consistency is big, and you guys are doing a good job with that,” Dacy said.

Downtown wayfinding is the least developed of the three components. No conceptual designs exist yet, and the program relies solely on the chamber’s $50,000.

Assistant Engineer Kristian Alarcon said that may not be enough, depending on how much signage the city ultimately wants.

All three components still need City Council approval before any signage goes up. ER