The Weekly Newspaper of El Segundo
Herald Publications - El Segundo, Hawthorne, Lawndale & Inglewood Community Newspapers Since 1911 - (310) 322-1830 - Vol. 108, No. 1 - January 3, 2019
Inside
This Issue
Calendar of Events.............2
Certified & Licensed
Professionals.....................11
Classifieds............................4
Crossword/Sudoku.............4
Entertainment......................6
Legals............................ 10,11
Letters...................................3
Pets......................................12
Real Estate.......................7-9
Here’s to a Happy Retirement…
During the holidays, the El Segundo Fire Department family took Firefighter/Paramedic Dina Carr out to lunch to celebrate her last day on the job after 25 years, to congratulate her on her retirement
and thank her for her service. Her colleagues said they will miss her around the station. Photo: ESFD.
Sports.................................5,6 El Segundo Year in Review, Part 2
Weekend
Forecast
By Brian Simon
Last week’s first part of the 2018 year-end
review focused mainly on matters within
the City of El Segundo itself, including
department and financial highlights. This
edition takes a look at other major news
items that made the headlines as well as the
top school-related stories.
The Lakes: TopGolf
Returns to the Fore
After years of negotiations and various
stops and starts, the El Segundo City Council
in 2017 finally said no to TopGolf’s wellpublicized
proposal to revamp the driving
range at The Lakes at El Segundo. That
sent staff back to the drawing board in 2018
with a request for proposal (RFP) released
this past April looking for new bids for site
operations, management, improvements and/
or development. Nine entities responded
and the new Council narrowed down the
candidates to two finalists: TopGolf (with
its El Segundo-based partner CenterCal
Properties) and the similar-in-concept Drive
Shack. After discussions with each of the
parties as well as out-of-town visits to both
facilities by Council members Scot Nicol
and Chris Pimentel, the Council opted to
negotiate exclusively with TopGolf– pointing
to the firm’s proven track record with many
successful locations (whereas Drive Shack is
new); stronger financial return to the City;
and agreement to offer El Segundo resident
rates and early access to the driving range
plus no-cost access to school groups. Also
new to the deal: The inclusion of Billy Casper
Golf to improve and manage the nine-hole
golf course.
In other golf-related news, the Council in
March approved fee increases for the greens
and driving range – the first since 2013 – so
those are commensurate with other facilities
in the surrounding area.
New Pool About to
Make Major Splash
After various construction delays, the new
El Segundo-Wiseburn Aquatics Center is
set to officially open on Jan. 5. The facility
includes an Olympic-sized 53.2-meter, 10-
lane competition pool as well as a smaller
pool, along with stadium seating, scoreboard,
lighting and a gymnasium. Events leading up
to the opening included “A Peek at the Pool”
in May and a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the
end of September. Also in the fall, the City
Council approved facility use agreements with
both the El Segundo and Wiseburn unified
school districts. Each will get three hours
of time at the new pool six days a week. El
Segundo Unified will also contribute $400,000
towards equipment purchase for community
and school programming at the Aquatics
Center and will kick in 24 percent of the
total project cost (not to exceed $1 million)
for the future renovation of The Plunge.
School Districts Welcome
Newcomers, Continue to Thrive
It was a busy year for local schools. Three
slots were up for grabs on the El Segundo
School Board, as members Bill Watkins
and Jim Garza chose not to run again in
November. Out of four candidates, local voters
elected remaining incumbent Emilee Layne
as well as newcomers Paulette Caudill and
Tracey Miller-Zarneke. El Segundo voters
also passed (just over 60 percent in favor)
the $92 million Measure E bond to improve
school facilities, equipment, programs and
enhance site safety. Additionally, the El
Segundo Education Foundation continued its
$1.5 million annual grant to support schools.
The City partnered with El Segundo High
School to reestablish Civics Day in which
students proposed solutions to local challenges.
The Center and Richmond schools were two
of 75 campuses nationwide to participate in
the Learning Ovations program to bolster
literacy achievement.
El Segundo Middle School was one of
22 in the state to earn the 2018 Schools
to Watch-Taking Center Stage designation
for demonstrating academic excellence,
responsiveness to the needs of young
adolescents and social equity. It was also one
of 10 schools in the country selected for the
Dove Self-Esteem Project: Girl Collective.
El Segundo High garnered a Golden Bell
Award for the Bio-Medical Science Pathway
and a sponsorship gift of $1,000 from the
United Association of California Apprenticeship
Coordinators. Four students were National
Merit semifinalists and three earned National
Merits Letters of Commendations
Superintendent Dr. Melissa Moore
was selected as Association of School
Administrators Superintendent of the Year
Region 14 and Honorary Commander for
See Year in Review, page 11
Friday
Sunny
64˚/50˚
Saturday
PM Showers
61˚/54˚
Sunday
AM Showers
59˚/50˚