The Weekly Newspaper of El Segundo
Herald Publications - El Segundo, Hawthorne, Lawndale & Inglewood Community Newspapers Since 1911 - (310) 322-1830 - Vol. 108, No. 38 - September 19, 2019
Inside
This Issue
Certified & Licensed
Professionals.....................10
Classifieds............................4
Community Briefs...............3
Crossword/Sudoku.............4
Entertainment......................5
Legals.............................. 9,10
Obituaries.............................2
Real Estate.................. 7,8,12
School Spotlight..................6
Sports.............................. 6,11
Weekend
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Saturday
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Daytrippers Digging the Dodgers
For Labor Day, the El Segundo Daytrippers enjoyed their time at Dodger Stadium and posed in the Vin Scully Pressbox. Photo: El Segundo Recreation and Parks
City Council Adopts 2019/20
Budget, Scraps Acacia Park Pool
By Brian Simon
In adopting the 2019/20 fiscal budget on
Tuesday night, the El Segundo City Council
changed its mind about funding a big-ticket
capital improvement project (CIP). After much
discussion, the group voted to pull the plug on
a previously planned new pool and restroom
facility at Acacia Park – ultimately feeling the
monies would be better served going towards
the costly renovation of the much more widely
used Urho Saari Swim Stadium (The Plunge).
The move frees about $1 million for future
Plunge work.
Mayor Drew Boyles previously questioned
spending the funds on Acacia Park during
strategic planning sessions, noting the pool
there is underutilized with only summer operations.
He pointed to the Hilltop Park pool
as a “better facility” less than a mile away
with more space. The Recreation and Parks
Commission also recommended allocating
the funds elsewhere. However, the pool (with
the restroom required as part of the package)
made it to the final CIP list that came before
the Council on Tuesday.
Councilmember Don Brann, once in favor of
the Acacia pool, veered course and said he now
agreed with Boyles on the matter. Mayor Pro
Tem Carol Pirsztuk also stated her preference
to use the funds for The Plunge. Only Councilmember
Chris Pimentel continued to argue
in favor of keeping the Acacia pool funding.
He explained that the facility serves a very
different demographic (very young children)
than The Plunge and that it would be a “disservice”
to take away an amenity that segment
of the local population had come to expect.
He also suggested that the low usage numbers
were affected by deferred maintenance and
poor state of operations that skewed the data.
Councilmember Scot Nicol begged to differ,
stating that “the [Acacia] pool has been
underutilized for many, many years” and that
there is no parking there to boot. The City
earlier applied for a $1.3 million grant with
hopes of securing outside funding to cover
the pool costs (an answer is due by January).
Nicol was skeptical that El Segundo could
win the award over other cities competing
for the grant, considering that the Acacia ask
is for a fourth pool in a town that just built a
major aquatics center. “It seems a bit surplus,”
he said. Though Acacia won’t be home to a
new pool as a result of the Council decision,
the park itself will still undergo a renovation.
The CIP list includes funding for construction
of a new park there subsidized by the sewer
enterprise fund and Prop 68 grant dollars.
The approved CIP list also includes Teen
Center upgrades, City Hall window replacements,
fiber vault lid replacements, Rec Park
restroom rehabilitation, and a Library Park
project, among other items. City Manager Scott
Mitnick provided details on City Hall security
improvements ($125,000 budgeted) to address
what he described as “a very porous building.”
The plan is to have just one point of entry in
front of Planning and Building Safety with
a receptionist to welcome people. Security
cameras, better door security and wayfinder
signs will also be included.
The Council additionally agreed to reduce
general fund reserves from 19 percent to 17
percent and to put the extra $1.56 million
into the City’s pension trust. Lillio reported
that the trust will now have $4.2 million. He
added that fresh start refinances of police and
fire pension plans will save another $5.24
million in interest payments. Various actions
taken over the past couple of years will save
the City $11.7 million in total pension costs.
While pleased to see the reserves percentage
decrease, Brann maintained that it wasn’t
enough. He preferred to see the number at 15
percent and apply the extra dollars towards
infrastructure and reducing long-term pension
liability. Boyles also wanted to drop to 15
percent and allocate the money to the pension
trust fund. However, the other Council
members felt 17 percent was the right number
for now. Pirsztuk suggested revisiting the
matter in six months. Pimentel thought it best
to hold onto that extra two percent given the
unpredictability of the future economy. “I am
a bit concerned,” he admitted.
Brann argued that the City in reality has
reserves in the “mid-20s” when factoring in the
economic uncertainty fund and unfilled vacancies
that inevitably fall out of the budget. Lillio noted
that the new budget for the first time includes a
built-in 5 percent vacancy savings. Ultimately,
Brann and Pimentel voted no on the budget,
while the former dissented on the reserve
policy. All five members decided to keep the
economic uncertainty fund as is at $2 million.
In the meantime, Lillio warned that though
the new budget is balanced, projections indicate
the City will face structural deficits in the coming
years (potentially as much as $6 million
by 2023/24) with continued rising costs for
See City Council, page 11