EL SEGUNDO HERALD January 24, 2019 Page 3
Burkley Brandlin
Letters
Sees an Opportunity
DR Horton, the developer of the Imperial
School site, has asked the city to eliminate
its requirement to provide six units of lowincome
housing at their project on Imperial.
As we are all aware, California has a housing
crisis. The dearth of affordable housing
is felt severely in El Segundo. The median
cost of a single-family home in El Segundo
is over $1.2 million. One need only look
to the most recent City Council election to
understand the importance of this issue to El
Segundo residents. Whether the discussion
was residential units east of Sepulveda or
zoning changes in Smoky Hollow, the fundamental
issue is, consistently, the scarcity
of affordable housing.
As part of the contract that allowed DR
Horton to develop the Imperial School site, El
Segundo community members were promised
six new units of affordable housing. Certainly,
DR Horton factored this condition into the
costing and construction of their project.
They, undoubtedly, received tax credits for
those units. The reappearance of DR Horton
at this juncture, in an attempt to renege
on their responsibilities to this community,
smacks of self-interest.
Surely there are far more than six hardworking
and deserving low-income families in
El Segundo who should have the opportunity
to own a home in our wonderful community.
A self-interested developer should not be
permitted to take this chance away from
any of them.
– Stephanie Sauter •
Calendar of Events
Deadline for Calendar items is the prior
Thursday by noon. Calendar items are $1 per
word. Email listings to marketing@heraldpublications.
com. We accept Visa and MasterCard.
THURSDAY, JAN. 24
• El Segundo Certified Farmer’s Market, 3:00
PM. – 7:00 PM., located on Main Street,
Downtown El Segundo.
FRIDAY, JAN. 25
• Bingo, 1:00 PM. - 3:00 PM., 50 Plus, $3.00
minimum, Senior Club of El Segundo, 339
Sheldon St., Call Diane: 310-640-9577.
SATURDAY, JAN. 26
• Saturday Night Dance, 7:00 PM. – 9:45
PM., Cost: $3.00 Per Person, Adults of all
Ages Welcome, Senior Club of El Segundo,
339 Sheldon St., Call: 310-524-2705.
• Tree Musketeers: The Next Generation,
10:00 AM. – 12:00 PM., 500 W. Imperial
Avenue, come on out & help us weed trees
and saplings.
SUNDAY, JAN. 27
• Bridge & Pinochle Groups, 11:30 AM. –
3:45 PM, Senior Club of El Segundo, 339
Sheldon St., Call Pam at: 310-318-2856.
MONDAY, JAN. 28
• Canasta Group, 12:00 PM. – 3:00 PM., 50
Plus, Free, Senior Club of El Segundo, 339
Sheldon St., Call Pam at: 310-318-2856.
• Genealogy Club, 11:00 AM. – 12:00 PM.,
El Segundo Public Library, 111 W. Mariposa
Ave., Call: 310-524-2728.
• ESCPTA Executive Board Meeting, 7:00
PM. – 9:00 PM., ESUSD District Office
Board Room
TUESDAY, JAN. 29
• Pinochle, 11:30 AM. – 3:30 PM., Senior
Club of El Segundo, 339 Sheldon St., Call
Pam at: 310-318-2856.
WEDNESDAY, JAN. 30
• Bowling, 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM, 50 Plus,
Senior Club of El Segundo, Gable House
Bowl, 22501 Hawthorne Blvd., Torrance,
Cost: $8.25 for 3 games, Call Joyce at:
310-322-7621.
• Evening Book Discussion: Beartown,
6:30 PM. – 7:30 PM., El Segundo Public
Library, 111 W. Mariposa Ave., Call: 310-
524-2728.
THURSDAY, JAN. 31
• El Segundo Certified Farmer’s Market,
3:00 PM. – 7:00 PM., located on Main
Street, Downtown El Segundo.
FRIDAY, FEB. 1
• Bingo, 1:00 PM. - 3:00 PM., 50 Plus, $3.00
minimum, Senior Club of El Segundo, 339
Sheldon St., Call Diane: 310-640-9577.
• Ed! Guys Night Out, 6:00 PM. – 10:00
PM., Beach City Baseball Academy, 430
E. Grand Ave., More info at: esedf.org.
SATURDAY, FEB. 2
• Saturday Night Dance, 7:00 PM. – 9:45
PM., Cost: $3.00 Per Person, Adults
of all Ages Welcome, Senior Club of
El Segundo, 339 Sheldon St., Call: 310-
524-2705.
• Heritage Room Open to the Public, 1:00
PM., El Segundo Public Library, 111 W.
Mariposa Avenue, Call Sari: 310-364-0117.
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310-540-6000
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337 Main St. El Segundo. 310-322-7110
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Governor’s Housing Plan Offers a
Ray of Hope for Renters, Buyers
By Rob McCarthy
The South Bay has always been a place
where neighbors and families come and go.
It’s a product of the transient defense and
aerospace industry being bicoastal. When
assignments change and contracts are fulfilled,
employees pack up and head for the
desert or to the East Coast to join NASA
and Department of Defense projects. Ditto
for the airline employees who transfer to
other cities.
Recently, the exodus from the area has
swept up more than employees in transition,
however. We share borders with two of the
five fastest-growing states in the country:
Nevada and Arizona. California isn’t declining
in population because of natural growth
-- more births than deaths and departures.
However, Nevada and Arizona are very attractive
places to live, based on new figures
released by the federal government just days
before the four-week-old shutdown began.
Why are so many people leaving the state,
including the South Bay, for communities
springing up near Las Vegas and Prescott,
Ariz. then? Housing. Taxes. Regulation.
Traffic congestion. Neighbors and friends
on the way out mention all of the above
for contributing to the cost of living that we
accept as the tradeoff for the ocean breeze,
mostly sunny days and mild temperatures.
The transient workforce in the aerospace
and defense-heavy industries near Los Angeles
International Airport is to be expected.
What city and county leaders and real estate
professionals are seeing lately is a revolving
door where familiar faces say goodbye and
newcomers from as far away as New York
come through the swinging doors in search
of the California dream. Stagnant population
growth is bad for a state, and new government
data shows that’s not the case here.
The Census Bureau released its ranking in
December of the biggest gainers and losers in
population. Nevada and Idaho topped the list
between July 2017 and 2018 at 2.1 percent.
Utah was a close second and Arizona -- a
frequent relocation spot for Southern Californians
-- also grew. None of these comes
close to matching California’s year-over-year
totals for new arrivals or population.
California ranks first in the nation in population
with 39.6 million, a jump of 157,191
people. Texas (another home state attractive
to Californians) doubled the growth of California.
The Lone Star state added 379,000
residents in a single year, according to the
Census Bureau. A large part of that expansion
is due to people moving in from other states.
Or, as the government calls it, migration.
The area around Washington, D.C. has
benefitted from the migration of government
work too. D.C. topped 700,000 residents for
the first time last year. The steady increase
started after 2010, according to the Census
Bureau. Though residents who’ve resisted
the urge to pick up and leave the area dislike
hearing it, more people and housing are
healthy for the region’s economy and tax
base. It could be worse. Just look at what’s
happening in New York.
The Empire State lot 48,500 people in one
year -- the largest decline among all 50 states.
Alaska and Hawaii were the only western
states with year-over-population movement
in the negative. However, they were both
down approximately 2,000 people compared
to 45,000 for Illinois.
Coinciding with the release of the nation’s
population gainers and losers, California’s
new Governor Gavin Newsom declared that
he wants more housing built. He signed an
executive order on Jan. 15 that could ease
the housing shortage by opening up surplus
state land for homes and apartments.
A study is underway to identify properties
suitable for development under Newsom’s
“California for All” agenda. His proposed
state budget includes $1.75 billion to build
housing units that are affordable to working
Californians and families, according to a
statement from the governor’s office.
The executive order also recognizes the
state’s workforce and that the future depends
on people being able to buy. “The California
Dream is in peril if we don’t act to address
this housing crisis,” Newsom said. “The
cost of housing -- both for homeowners
and renters -- is the defining quality-of-life
concern for people across this state. Housing
costs threaten to erode our state’s long-term
prosperity.”
Home ownership slipped this decade to a
50-year low, which is why the governor is
asking cities and counties to redouble their
efforts to approve new housing -- including
homes -- to keep the dream alive.
See Calendar of Events, page 4 See Housing Plan, page 14