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Councilman Uranga Agendizes May 17 Item That Would Direct City Mgm't To Identify Potential Funding To Acquire Oil Operators Property for Future Public Purpose And Bring Findings To Council In Session Closed To Public and Press...While Wrigley-Area Residents Remain Vigilant On Potential Issues


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(May 12, 2016, 11:20 a.m.) -- Seventh district Councilman Roberto Uranga has agendized an item for the May 17 City Council meeting that would direct the City Manager [city staff] to identify potential funding sources to acquire the Oil Operators property between Baker St. and Wardlow Rd. adjacent to the L.A. River for a future public purpose...and bring findings to the City Council in a session closed to the public and the press.

In his agendizing memo, Councilman Uranga writes:

There has been considerable interest from the community pertaining to future development of vacant property between Baker Street and Wardlow Road, adjacent to the Los Angeles River (Site). The Site is an approximately 15.6-acre former oil operations property, owned by Oil Operators, Inc. (Oil Operators), a consortium of Long Beach area gas and oil companies providing support services for local oil operations.

Oil Operators transitioned off the site in the 1990s, but is currently addressing remediation obligations at the Site. The Site was formerly used to treat oilfield-produced water from various oil extractions efforts in the Long Beach area. As such, there is high probability of continued remediation that is necessary.

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Over the past several years and as recently as a year ago, various development concepts have been proposed for the Site. To date, however, the Department of Development Service's Planning Bureau has not received a formal application for redevelopment of the Site. Nonetheless, community residents have expressed concern related to future development scenarios, particularly in regards to medium or high-density residential development. The Site has two zoning districts. A majority of the Site is zoned as Commercial Storage (CS), while a small portion of the Site at Wardlow Road and the Los Angeles River is zoned as Single Family Residential (R-1-N). These zoning designations would preclude any new development except Commercial Storage or Single Family Residential development without additional actions by the Planning Commission and the City Council.

Community residents have additionally expressed a desire to consider the Site for future public purpose. Therefore, the Seventh District Office is requesting that the City identify potential funding sources for an estimated $17 to $22 million for the acquisition of the Site for public purpose and return information pertaining to price and terms to the City Council in Closed Session.

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In November 2015, amid polarized public testimony mainly opposed, the City Council voted to allow over 131 two and three story residences on 10.5 acres of the former Will J. Reid Scout Park at a density greater than common single family residential zoning, and also approved a zoning ordinance that invited similar developments (specific density unmentioned subject to Planning Commission and Council approval) on other large vacant parcels Using the Public Records Act, 7th district residents learned of discussions between the developer and city staff about a possible similar development for the Oil Operators site... and a number of 7th district residents pushed back against it.

In addition, for the past several years, the Los Angeles Water Quality Control Board (LAWQCB) has been overseeing remediation of the aftermath of what it believes was a pipeline leak years earlier along Golden Ave. to the east of the Oil Operators site between Baker St. and west Wardlow Rd. On February 1, 2016, LAWQCB representatives delivered a presentation at a monthly meeting of the Wrigley Association with Point slides visible at this link, indicating that in assessing estimated cancer risks (for exposures over a lifetime period) from soil and soil vapors, LAWQCB has found "no exceedances of residential screening levels for the top 10 feet of soil in either the residential areas or the parks"...including data from the City-constructed Baker St. mini-park and the Wrigley Heights Dog Park near the southeast corner of the site (on property apparently owned by the City of Long Beach based on online APNs.) The agency also noted that a soil vapor extraction system, implemented in April 2015, had by Oct. 30, 2015 removed sixteen pounds of benzene (classified by multiple agencies as carcinogenic to humans) from the overall pipeline-leak impacted area.

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At the Feb. 2016 Wrigley Association meeting, long-time Wrigley neighborhood advocate Candace Mead noted that she regularly brought her beloved dog "Beau" to the dog park...and he developed a type of cancer that took his life in which she said benzene exposure has been associated.

LARWQCB indicates in its Power Point presentation that Tesoro Refining and Marketing Company LLC (Tesoro) bought the pipelines in June 2013 and has assumed responsibility for investigation and cleanup activities (from actions by the prior pipeline owners/operators.)

LARWQCB has separately indicated that it doesn't have control over, and isn't involved with, local land use decisionmaking; the agency's role is in mitigation and environmental clean-ups. Land use acquisitions and decisionmaking rest with the Long Beach City Council.

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Councilman Uranga's agendized item proposes discussion of potential funding sources to possibly acquire the Oil Operators property for public use in a session closed to the public and the press. Under CA's Brown (open meetings) Act, a City Council can meet outside of public and press view on real property negotiations, after first allowing public comment, but only to discuss (1) the negotiator's authority regarding the price, and (2) the negotiator's authority regarding the terms of payment.

In December 2011, CA Attorney General Kamala Harris' office issued an opinion indicating that in its view, these exceptions to open meetings are narrowly drawn. "[W]e conclude that the real-estate-negotiations exception to the open meeting requirements of the Brown Act permits the closed-session discussion of: (1) the amount of consideration that the local agency is willing to pay or accept in exchange for the real property rights to be acquired or transferred in the particular transaction; (2) the form, manner, and timing of how that consideration will be paid; and (3) items that are essential to arriving at the authorized price and payment terms, such that their public disclosure would be tantamount to revealing the information that the exception permits to be kept confidential."

Formal Council action to acquire the property would ultimately require a publicly cast Council vote with public comment.

Developing...with further to follow on LBREPORT.com.


On May 16 at 11:00 a.m., LBREPORT.com added text indicating that the City of LB mini park and dog park appear to be on property owned by the City of LB (based on APN parcel numbers) near the southeast corner of the Oil Op site.



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