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The Hawthorne Boulevard-side entrance to the proposed South Bay Galleria redesign. Image courtesy South Bay Galleria
Three appeals have been filed against the Redondo Beach Planning Commission approval of the South Bay Galleria redevelopment plan, one week after the Commission’s approval on April 19. The down-scaled version is estimated to cost $900 million.
Both Redondo Beach resident Doug Boswell and the Golden State Environmental Justice Alliance filed paperwork to appeal the project before the Redondo Beach City Council.
They join the City of Lawndale, which announced Wednesday that it would file its own appeal, based on complaints Lawndale officials made during the Planning Commission hearing.
All three argue that elements of the Environmental Impact Report, created by Redondo Beach staff and consultants to evaluate potential issues with the project are incomplete. They argue that the EIR must be re-noticed and recirculated among Redondo residents.
According to paperwork filed with the City of Redondo Beach, the Golden State Environmental Justice Alliance is based out of Corona, Calif. Joseph Bourgeois is listed as the organization’s president. In 2016, GSEJA appealed approvals of The Reef, a $1.2 billion mixed-use development in South LA, and in 2017 appealed a Big Lots distribution center in Apple Valley.
Lawndale’s 42-page appeal includes three separate attachments. It argues that the Redondo Beach staff failed to directly contact Lawndale staff, and alleges that the EIR’s traffic model is flawed. Lawndale also argues that it would face the lion’s share of the increased traffic burden at the intersection of Artesia and Hawthorne boulevards.
Their appeal also contends that Redondo Beach has violated its own General Plan in approving a height variance for the project. The General Plan says that new construction shall not exceed 60 feet in height.
The Galleria redevelopment will include a 300 unit apartment building along Hawthorne Boulevard, 217,043 sq. ft. of retail space, and up to 175,000 square feet of commercial office space, replacing that same amount of total retail. That is an increase over the 50,000 sq. ft. of office space originally proposed by the developer.
Residents have expressed a desire for more office space. But both Boswell and Lawndale argue that the additional office space requires further study in a recirculated EIR.
They also argue that the project’s retail and residential components would adversely impact city resources. Throughout the process, Redondo residents have argued that additional residential units to the project would be detrimental to adjacent neighborhoods.
During the Planning Commission hearing, Redondo staff stated a belief that state law allowed agencies to discount aesthetic concerns, such as height limitations, when considering the overall impact of transit-oriented mixed-use developments.
The project is considered by City staff to be transit-oriented nature due to its proximity to the planned Redondo Beach Transit Station, as well as the planned LA Metro Green Line light rail extension.
A date for the Council to hear the Galleria project appeals has not yet been set.
Edit: This story has been edited to reflect the amount of commercial office space approved by the Redondo Beach Planning Commission, 175,000 sq. ft. Easy Reader regrets the error.
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