Page 10 November 7, 2019 EL SEGUNDO HERALD
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City Council from front page
that the opponents aren’t just from outside
of the community.
Councilmember Scot Nicol said he completely
disagreed with Brann’s approach and
doesn’t view a referendum as beneficial to
the community. “Know where the money
behind it is coming from,” he warned. He
added that the campaign sets a precedent
as far as the role of the Council to make
decisions on behalf of El Segundo’s citizens.
“If we’re [the Council] not good enough to
make this decision, then why are we up here
to begin with?”
Mayor Pro Tem Carol Pirsztuk said she
supports TopGolf because “if you want to
save The Lakes,” this is the only way to do
so or else the golf course will disappear.
Otherwise, the City “may have to put soccer
fields” there, as those would be “cheaper.”
Councilmember Chris Pimentel, who
negotiated the final TopGolf deal with Nicol,
said the process took a year because
“we dug our heels” to lock into what the
community wants and address constraints
on open space, what can be built on the
site, children’s programs and the price of a
bucket of balls, among other items. “I can’t
pretend it’s perfect,” Pimentel said of the
deal. “I do think it’s very good. I think we
got it largely right.”
Mayor Drew Boyles used statistics to
support his point, reporting that at least 98
percent of City revenues come from businesses
and not residents and that there is no
money to pay for the $40 million in needed
capital improvement projects over the next
20 years. He added that the City faces a $4
million structural deficit within a few years
and that on average only 225 El Segundo
residents golf regularly at The Lakes. “The
numbers tell a bleak picture,” Boyles said,
additionally stating that the deal (projected
to garner close to $2 million annually for
the City) “is almost twice as good” as what
came to the Council a few years ago.
Tuesday’s meeting also featured a public
hearing on the El Segundo Cultural Development
Program, with a presentation from
Arts and Culture Advisory Committee member
Michael Kreski regarding the recently
revised percent-for-arts development fee.
Boyles recused himself from the discussion
and vote because he said he is building a
commercial property.
The remaining Council introduced the item
for approval in two weeks. The revamped
percent-for-arts proposal entails a 1 percent
fee on commercial/industrial construction and
renovation; no fees on residential development;
a $2 million project threshold, with no
fees imposed on projects smaller than that
amount; and no caps.
Comparing to other municipalities, Kreski
said that 36 cities in LA County have percentfor
arts development fees. The list includes
nearby communities such as Manhattan Beach
and Redondo Beach. Of the total, 29 cities
have 1 percent fees and seven cities have
fees up to 2 percent. Thus El Segundo’s fee
matches the overall standard. Meanwhile,
30 of the cities do have a 1 percent fee on
multi-unit residential development, which
Kreski said positions El Segundo as more
development-friendly than those communities.
Additionally, El Segundo’s threshold of
$2 million is “the most business-friendly,”
according to the presentation notes. Eleven
cities have a $500,000 threshold and another
11 are even lower. This garnered praise
from Nicol, who didn’t want to see smaller,
incubator developments that can’t afford to
absorb the fee be adversely impacted. “There
are corporations that can absorb this percentage,”
he said.
Also, only four cities have a cap –which
makes El Segundo consistent with 32 of
the cities. However, Pimentel hoped to see
a cap added to the mix when the Council
votes on the matter in two weeks. After the
meeting, he elaborated, “I do not want us to
discourage large projects.”
Explaining that El Segundo already promotes
itself through art and art events, the
presentation portrayed the new program as
taking this to a higher level by providing
separate funding to support permanent art (murals,
sculptures, artist-designed landscapes),
temporary art (short-term art installations),
performing arts (theater, dance and music
in parks, plazas and public places) public
programs (lectures, conferences, festivals,
workshops), and capital improvements (artist
involvement in city signs, plazas, parks,
beach access, streetscapes).
The program estimates annual revenues of
just under $700,000 that will go into a special
account managed by the City exclusively for
public art. Pimentel asked for more details
on where the money will go, fearing the
dollars may ultimately end up subsidizing
other needed items.
The subject of where best to allocate dollars
prompted the El Segundo Chamber of
Commerce’s Government Affairs Committee
to take an official position opposing the
percent-for-arts development fee. Chamber
CEO/President Marsha Hansen read a letter
to the Council explaining the committee’s
reasoning. Among the stated points, “the
committee felt that the revised proposal is
not aligned with the notion of El Segundo
being a “business-friendly city” and “the
fee establishes a revenue stream that is not
proportional to the need –there are more
pressing needs within the city.” The letter
went on to say that businesses already
provide the two highest tax revenue sources
(transient occupancy and business license)
and “robustly support the community through
events and special projects via sponsorships
and donations.” Hansen emphasized, “Support
should be aligned with what best meets their
philanthropic goals,” she said.
The Chamber instead recommended encouraging
arts and culture through grassroots
efforts and fundraising with specific projects
pitched to businesses and other community
support groups. Examples cited of success
from this approach included local murals, the
Fair on Richmond Street, LA Street Festival
and Paint it Pink project.
During the public hearing, a few residents
came out against the fee. “We don’t force
people to do things they don’t want to do,”
Kathy Benudiz said. Others were strongly in
support and the idea also received a thumbs
up from El Segundo Museum of Art (ESMoA)
founder and developer Brian Sweeney, who
thought grass roots and fundraising may work
for small projects but are “not sustainable for
a strong cultural arts movement.”
Planning Commissioner Jay Hoeschler
also supported the fee, stating that “some
of the biggest advocates of this program
are developers” who feel it “adds value” to
their project and that culture arts and amenities
attract business. Capital Improvement
Program Advisory Committee Chair Mike
Rotolo, also a contractor who works with
all types of developers, said, “I don’t think
1 percent is a giant burden on developers”
and added that they can choose to “put
an element” to enhance their building that
satisfies the fee and it doesn’t have to be a
piece of art.
The second reading and adoption of the
percent-for-arts fee will be on Tuesday,
Nov. 19. •
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