Hawthorne Press Tribune
Herald Publications - Inglewood, Hawthorne, Lawndale, El Segundo, Torrance & Manhattan Beach Community Newspapers Since 1911 - Circulation 30,000 - Readership 60,000 (310) 322-1830 - October 12, 2017
Give a Kitten a Fur-Ever Home
This week’s edition features an array of adorable kittens waiting to be adopted (see “Pets” on page 4). The cutie on our front page is none other than Leo, just chilling out after some playtime.
Hawthorne City Council Approves
Crenshaw Mixed-Use Project
By Derrick Deane
complex in an industrial area did not make sense.
After months of debate, the Hawthorne City
The proposal noted that the development would
Council voted 3-2 on Tuesday to approve a
expose residents to “continued disturbances,”
high-density mixed-use apartment project along
due to “impacts from noise, light, truck traffic
Crenshaw Boulevard near the Metro Green Line
and exhaust at all hours of the days and night.”
and SpaceX. Councilmembers Angie Reyes
The proposal stated that future residents
English, Olivia Valentine and Haidar Awad voted
could be disturbed by Amazon’s nearby 24-hour
in favor of the project with Mayor Alex Vargas
shipping facility that includes approximately
and Councilman Nilo Michelin voting against.
55 loading bays and a truck staging yard.
“Times have changed and it’s time that
The Hawthorne Municipal Airport is located
Hawthorne get on board,” Reyes English said.
approximately 1,000 feet to the northwest—and
“I’m proud to know that we are moving forward
the City of Hawthorne has received complaints
and this is going to be a great opportunity and
from residents of Holly Park and Ramona who
project for Hawthorne.”
are much further away than the proposed project.
The area that will be developed is situated
Additionally, the adjacent Union Pacific Railroad
just south of the SpaceX parking structure
trains will sound its horns multiple times each
on Crenshaw Boulevard and would include a
time it crosses Crenshaw Boulevard.
3,700-square foot ground-level restaurant as
“We have an industrial zone and we have a
well as open park areas for both the public
residential zone. If we put a factory right in
and private areas for residents. The project
the middle of a residential zone, it wouldn’t
was originally planned to have 276 units, but
make any sense. Same thing if we put an
was suddenly reduced to 230 units during the
apartment right in the middle of an industrial
September 26 meeting after continued questions
zone,” Michelin said. “For me, change isn’t
about density in the area.
more apartments. It’s more aerospace [jobs],
The proximity of the project to both SpaceX,
more SpaceX, more work.”
Amazon and other local businesses as well as
Representatives from SpaceX and the Los
a short walk to the Metro Green Line were
Angeles County Economic Development
long touted as the benefits of the development.
Corporation group asked for the Council to
Hawthorne will receive an estimated $400,000
reopen public comment on the project. Amazon
in annual property tax revenue.
and Santa Fe Railroad had also submitted
“We’re not taking away land from a business
requests to reopen public comment.
area,” Valentine said. “That land that will now
“I want to assure that our city does not
be developed for the Green Line Specific Plan
participate or take place in the L.A. County
was doing nothing--it was just sitting there for
Economic Development. [We] do not provide
years. Nobody was developing it. It may have
any support as far as membership goes from
had the potential to be developed, but we have
our city to this non-profit organization that
a lot of places in Hawthorne to be developed
obviously has other interests,” Reyes English
but nobody is developing them.”
said. The City does participate to hear the
Residents who were opposed to the project as
organization’s annual projections for local and
well as Michelin stated that building a residential
state development.
Despite the project’s narrow approval,
Valentine stated that she wanted to make sure
that going forward, the Council clearly defined
what exactly the Transit-Oriented Development
(TOD) zone was going to include. An initial
radius of a half-mile from a major transit hub
was mentioned. “I want to make sure that we
are setting limits on what we are considering
Transit-Oriented Development,” Valentine said.
Mayor Vargas echoed his support for the
proposal by stating, “This is a one-of-a-kind
project. This is not going to lead to a proliferation.
I’m going to join you guys in making sure
that it truly is what it is because we do have a
population overload in the city and a parking
problem and a density problem and the truth is
the people who built those two monstrosities on
Rosecrans delivered those as luxury apartments.”
Vargas added, “I think we need to be very
knowledgeable as to what the impact of the
so-called TOD is and what the map looks like
so that if it goes beyond half a mile away from
the transit centers, we need to make sure we
incorporate those areas as well because there
may some areas that we overlook.
The Mayor also noted that the Council needed
to make sure there were “strict rules” set forth
going forward on TOD projects so that approval
of the Green Line project doesn’t open the
flood gates to more residential and mixed-use
developers proposing projects in the city. “The
vote took place for the Crenshaw Project and
my commitment to the community is to make
sure that it is a success,” Vargas said after the
Council’s vote. “I offer a helping hand to the
developer in making sure that the fruits of that
project are going to be met. I took an opposite
opinion on the matter, but now let’s make sure
that it’s a success and truly delivers.” •
Certified & Licensed
Professionals.......................5
Classifieds............................3
Community Briefs...............2
Film.........................................7
Hawthorne Happenings....3
Legals............................... 5-7
Looking Up...........................7
Pets........................................4
Police.....................................3
Seniors..................................2
Sports....................................8
Weekend
Forecast
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Sunny
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Sunny
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The Weekly Newspaper of Hawthorne