The Weekly Newspaper of El Segundo Herald Publications - El Segundo, Torrance, Manhattan Beach, Hawthorne, Lawndale, & Inglewood Community Newspapers Since 1911 - (310) 322-1830 - Vol. 106, No. 12 - March 23, 2017 Inside This Issue Certified & Licensed Professionals.....................18 Classifieds............................4 Community Briefs...............7 Crossword/Sudoku.............4 Entertainment......................6 Legals............................ 16,17 Pets......................................19 Police Reports.....................3 Real Estate..............10-13,20 Sports.................................5,8 Weekend Forecast Chevron Donates Carpentry Tools to National Veterans Foundation Chevron El Segundo Refinery recently donated carpentry tools and equipment to the National Veterans Foundation (NVF). NVF plans to use and distribute the items to other veteran organizations that can use them to train veterans on carpentry skills (job training for returning vets). Joining Chevron Veterans Network employees Kirk Budds, Ryan Glennan and Jordan Brace are NVF representatives Gerald Hillard and Michael Washington. Photo by Tom Calderwood. City Council Gets Smoky Hollow, Budget and Performance Updates By Brian Simon The long-awaited Smoky Hollow Specific Plan update is finally taking shape, with the El Segundo City Council receiving a progress report and schedule during its Tuesday night meeting. On the heels of staff discussions with a consultant in January, Planning Manager Gregg McClain summarized proposed changes for the mixed-use district that runs east from Standard Street to Sepulveda Boulevard and north/south from Grand Avenue to El Segundo Boulevard. Smoky Hollow has become a hub for creative media firms in recent years and the City continues to ramp up efforts to foster development there and rebrand the area as a unique destination for small businesses and entrepreneurs. On potential street reconfigurations, Mc- Clain outlined ideas to provide parking on the north side of El Segundo Boulevard while still maintaining two traffic lanes in both directions— IRS Has $1 Billion to Give Back to Taxpayers … With a Catch By Rob McCarthy While most taxpayers are scrambling to get their income taxes filed on time, along comes an announcement from the Internal Revenue Service. Would the owners of $1 billion in unclaimed refunds please pick up their money? It’s just waiting on that paperwork we asked for three years ago. As many as 97,000 Californians didn’t file income taxes in 2013, the IRS says. The average refund sitting in the federal government’s taxpayer lost-and-found section is about $700, and its offer to return that money is good until April 18. After the deadline passes, $93 million that Californians paid in federal income taxes goes into the Treasury piggy bank. To recap, taxpayers nationwide have almost $1 billion in refunds coming to them and the IRS is looking to return the money. But, there is a catch. To claim their refund, a taxpayer must file a late return. There’s no financial penalty for filing late when a refund is due, so taxpayers aren’t in trouble because they procrastinated. They will forfeit the quick payout, though, if they wait much longer. And, they might not see the money right away. Taxpayers who haven’t filed yet for 2014 or 2015 don’t receive a refund right away. The IRS says a refund will be applied first to any amounts still owed to See IRS, page 14 though with no bicycle lanes due to safety concerns. The move would create an estimated 101 spaces. Grand Avenue would also keep its two lanes going both ways, but add “sharrows” (outside lanes next to the curb) to be used by both cars and bikes—with parking along the curbs during off-hours. McClain noted the street will still be wide enough to safely accommodate bicycles. Franklin Avenue, currently one lane each way and fairly narrow, would become a pedestrian and bike-friendly “complete” street as well as the “new backbone of Smoky Hollow.” The vision is for Franklin to contain bulb-outs (curb extensions), places for people to sit and enjoy shade, various treatments on road surfaces, and lighting. The proposal for north/south streets, which run from 50 to 60 feet in width, is to allow one-way traffic with angled parking on whichever side provides the most spaces. McClain pointed out that this move could add another 90 or so spaces to the parkingdeprived Smoky Hollow. Mayor Suzanne Fuentes favored the idea of back-in angled parking, but McClain said the idea got shelved after expressed concerns about trucks going too far over sidewalks. Staff will also later consider ways to restrict overnight parking, Friday See City Council, page 18 Mostly Sunny 65˚/54˚ Saturday AM Showers 62˚/52˚ Sunday Sunny 64˚/53˚
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