Lawndale Tribune AND lAwNDAle News The Weekly Newspaper of Lawndale Herald Publications - Inglewood, Hawthorne, Lawndale, El Segundo, Torrance & Manhattan Beach Community Newspapers Since 1911 - Circulation 30,000 - Readership 60,000 (310) 322-1830 - July 28, 2016 SoCalGas Announces Opening of New Natural Gas Fueling Station Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas), along with local officials, business representatives and employees marked the opening of a new public compressed natural gas (CNG) station in Los Angeles on July 13. The new CNG station extends the network of CNG stations across a key regional goods movement corridor and will provide owners and operators of natural gas-fueled trucks and other vehicles with a new, convenient place to fuel. Photo provided by SoCalGas Councilman Keeps History, Family Legacy Alive By Haleemon Anderson buildings and their newer functions and the In Lawndale, it is common to find fourth sometimes vacant spaces left through neglect generation natives hailing from families that or uncertain redevelopment plans. His interest came to the city at its founding. Finding no in the past seems to meld faultlessly with his good reason to leave, these families stayed position on city council. put, raising generation after generation in He is diligent about using available space this small but solid community known as the wisely. As such, he currently oversees a critical “Heart of the South Bay.“ project: the proposed Metro Rail expansion Councilman James H. Osborne comes into the south bay. from one of those founding families. Now in his ninth year, Osborne has been elected to the council three times. But before he was ever elected to office, he dedicated himself to collecting and preserving as much of the history of Lawndale as he could commit to memory and storage space. He owns copies of most of the newspapers that have covered Lawndale over the past 50 years. Recently he made arrangements to begin archiving those and other treasures at his alma mater, California State University Dominguez Hills. He has authored two books on the city’s colorful past. His lineage figures heavily in those writings, as his great-grandfather bought, in 1908, one of the original tracts that would come to define Lawndale. The price of that plot—one acre of prime real estate at $400. Osborne says his grandparents, both business-minded individuals, moved the city forward with their entrepreneurial spirit. His grandmother founded the original library in 1913; it stood at the location of the current civic center. Her next endeavor? Running the first post office. His grandfather opened Lawndale’s first gas station and repair shop. His great-uncle was on the board of directors of Lawndale’s first bank. By the time the city incorporated in 1959, the Osborne family was among those who had paved the way, positioning the city as a small but mighty giant among its neighboring cities. Osborne is a walking encyclopedia on the town’s local landscape, pointing out older Osborne says the Metro expansion is on everyone’s mind. The massive proposal cuts into Lawndale with a station at the intersection of Manhattan Beach Boulevard and Inglewood Avenue. It continues down Prairie, slashes across Redondo Beach and ultimately ends in Torrance. The project is getting heat from the local community; at a recent meeting, the South Bay Cities Council of Governments (SBCCOG) rejected the plan presented by Los Angeles officials. “Los Angeles city and county officials want to fast track the expansion, and an increased sales tax to pay for it,” said Osborne, who chairs the SBCCOG. The sales tax measure is headed for the November ballot. But Los Angeles will need to get buy-in from the locals on the specific path for the train. Osborne says Lawndale and the other governing bodies are concerned about noise mitigation and other environmental impacts. “The location of the station, as well as the pathway of the train, would be a concern in a city of just barely two square miles,” said Osborne, noting that the proposed location is home to some of the largest tax-generating businesses in Lawndale. In addition, Metro development is not cost free, even with the tax revenue. Osborne believes the Los Angeles body needs to give Lawndale and the other south bay cities more than verbal assurances. “Our greatest objections center on the enormous costs to implement the Metro expansion,” Osborne said. “Linked to that is the fact that Los Angeles stands to reap a sizably larger portion, percentage wise, of the taxes generated from the proposed increase.” Another targeted parcel, the intersection at Manhattan Beach Boulevard and Hawthorne, will be under redevelopment soon. A Spires restaurant sits nearby the corner property, which the city acquired some time ago when redevelopment funds were being phased out. The council is hoping for a new restaurant and a couple of other amenities, said Osborne, possibly a Starbucks or an ice cream shop. “We’ve recently narrowed down a developer and have plans to move forward,” Osborne Inside This Issue Certified & Licensed Professionals.......................4 Classifieds............................3 Film Review..........................6 Finance..................................2 Food.......................................5 Hawthorne Happenings....3 Legals..............................7-11 Pets......................................12 Police Reports.....................2 Sports....................................4 Weekend Forecast Friday Sunny 77˚/67˚ Saturday Sunny 76˚/66˚ Sunday Partly Cloudy 76˚/66˚ By the time the city incorporated in 1959, the Osborne family was among those who had paved the way, positioning the city as a small but mighty giant among its neighboring cities. See Councilman page 6 Councilman James H. Osborne
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