The Weekly Newspaper of El Segundo
Herald Publications - El Segundo, Hawthorne, Lawndale & Inglewood Community Newspapers Since 1911 - (310) 322-1830 - Vol. 108, No. 16 - April 18, 2019
Inside
This Issue
Certified & Licensed
Professionals.....................11
Classifieds..........................14
Crossword/Sudoku...........14
Entertainment......................4
Food.......................................3
Legals....................... 11,12,13
Police Reports.....................4
Real Estate.....................7-10
School Spotlight..................6
Sports.............................. 6,11
Weekend
Forecast
Herald Coloring Contest Winners
9-12 Year Old Winner: Evan Chen - Age 10
5-8 Year Old Winner: Olivia Clemente - Age 7
The Herald’s Easter Egg Coloring contest was a huge success! We had over 25 colorful and unique submissions, which made us very “hoppy”. Two talented winners emerged from the pack: 10-year-old
Evan Chen captured top honors for the 9-12-year-olds; while Olivia Clemente, age 7, was the leader of the 5-8-year-old contestants. Keep up the egg-ceptional artwork, you two! These two winners
will receive a $20 gift card, but everyone “wins” at the Herald. Each participant will receive a special sweet gift as a thank you. Come by the office between 9-5:00 to reclaim your artwork and pick up
your treat. See the rest of the submissions on page 2 and 16.
Friday
Mostly
Sunny
69˚/57˚
Saturday
Partly
Cloudy
63˚/56˚
Sunday
Partly
Cloudy
63˚/55˚
Council Tackles Pool Time, Park
Makeovers and Affordable Housing
By Brian Simon
The topic of pool lane allocation at the
new aquatics facility was on the El Segundo
City Council agenda once again on Tuesday
night, but this time no citizens came up to the
podium to plead their particular case. This was
because the user groups in question worked
out an amenable arrangement with City of El
Segundo staff to divvy up the hours. Under the
agreement, Alpha Aquatics –because the club
has the most El Segundo residents -- got 60
percent of the time and first pick of selection
days. It chose Monday, Wednesday, Friday
and Saturday. Beach Cities Swim Swimming
received the other 40 percent and will use the
pool Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. A similar
ratio is in place for the water polo clubs, with
South Bay United at 60 percent and Trojan
Water Polo at 40 percent. The Council members
(with Chris Pimentel recusing himself
and Don Brann dissenting) went with the staff
recommendation on the allotment.
In other pool news, the Council heard from
the architectural firm that designed plans for
the Acacia Park renovation. The Parks and
Recreation Commission recommended an
option that does away with the pool there for
financial reasons (an additional $1 million cost
not part of the original budget). Also brought
up: the Acacia pool is only open during the
summer, averages just 20 swimmers a day
and is very shallow. That being said, Pimentel
argued that this pool serves families with
young kids who do not use The Plunge or
aquatics facility – and those residents assume
they won’t lose this precious amenity. His
colleagues agreed and voted for the pricier
pool option, with the exception of Mayor
Drew Boyles who said he couldn’t wrap his
head around the extra expenditure given the
City’s predicted structural deficit in the near
future and the amount of alternate swimming
options in town (including the larger Hilltop
Park). City Manager Greg Carpenter said he
and staff will have to find that extra million
and the Council might not be pleased with the
potential cuts to make it happen.
Other components of the revamped Acacia
Park (which could take up to a year to complete)
include a new playground, sand areas, merrygo
round, slides and “sensory” landscaping. The
architect also presented plans for Washington
Park that will have revamped play areas.
A representative from D.R. Horton was on
hand to discuss affordable housing options as
part of the new condo and townhome complex
built at the former Imperial Street School site.
In trying to accommodate state mandates on
such housing, the developer’s original plan
was to designate six of the 58 total units to
low, very low or extremely low income buyers
(two for each category). But concerns about
ultimate affordability -- especially considering
fixed homeowners’ association dues and
maintenance, among other costs -- led to the
conclusion that this will set these families
up for failure.
Then last fall, the developer requested to
eliminate the affordable housing requirement
altogether and replace it with an in-lieu
fee of $3.34 million paid to the City. That
suggestion didn’t sit well and so the applicant
came back this past February with a
new concept to increase construction to eight
affordable units but for moderate income
households. While the Planning Commission
recommended the amendment, the Council
was on the fence Tuesday and directed
staff to reconvene with D.R. Horton to get a
better understanding of the buyer selection
process to ensure fairness as well as other
elements of the deal that didn’t seem clear.
Mayor Pro Tem Carol Pirsztuk asked for a more
accurate measurement of how many affordable
units should be included in the development,
feeling there was no science in choosing the
eight. Councilmember Scot Nicol predicted
that for-rent affordable housing will be the
ultimate future answer to comply with state
regulations -- given that with appreciation and
owner turnover, what is considered affordable
today won’t be deemed as such in 20 years.
The ultimate price of the homes in question
will depend on income and size of qualifying
households, with a very rough range estimate
of $550,000 to $600,000 mentioned on Tuesday.
The Council also wishes that members
of the military receive priority in the selection
process. City Attorney Mark Hensley said that
is a legally acceptable request, but El Segundo
residents cannot get the same priority. However,
the City can choose to direct outreach
to locals so they are especially aware of the
opportunity. One such local spoke during
public communications and described herself
as low to moderate income with little to no
financial breathing room available. She viewed
the proposed plan as the only viable way she
(and others like her) can afford to buy a home
in town and invest in the community.
Meanwhile Councilmember Brann voted
against the resumption of talks with the
developer, stating that he prefers the in-lieu
fee option to use those monies towards more
affordable housing at Park Vista. Barring
time restrictions that could delay it two
more weeks, this item will come back to the
Council on May 21.
Also on Tuesday, Hensley summarized a litany
of potentially onerous issues from pending state
legislation (Senate Bill 13) that would change
regulations for accessory dwelling units (ADUs).
Possible outcomes include not requiring owner
occupancy (which Hensley thought would
invite outside investors to buy up properties),
allowing ADUs in garages, eliminating parking
requirements, and cutting the permit approval
process time in half, among other items. Another
See City Council, page 4