Public Works Director Memo To Mayor/Council Dismisses Issues Raised By Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust, Says City Staff Doesn't Believe Coastal Dev'ment Permit Needed For Four Acre Parcel Created/Included in SE LB Land Exchange
(Oct. 24, 2009) -- LBReport.com has learned that an internal City Hall memo by Public Works Director Mike Conway to LB Mayor Bob Foster and City Councilmembers dismisses issues raised in an Oct. 2 letter by the Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust...and says city staff doesn't believe a Coastal Development Permit from the CA Coastal Comm'n is needed to acquire a four acre parcel on the north side of 2nd St. (east of the In'n'Out burger location on the east side of PCH) created as part of a SE LB land exchange (for city's Public Service Yard) approved by a Council majority in August 2009.
Image part of city staff report, Aug. 2009
In an October 2, 2009 letter to Mayor Foster and Councilmembers, (previously published by LBReport.com), LCWLT President Ann Denison offered to work with City Hall to protect and preserve SE LB wetlands if the City applies for a Coastal Development Permit, is willing to comply with reasonable permit conditions and recognize LCWLT's expressed concerns.
LBReport.com has obtained a copy of Public Works Director Conway's Oct. 23 response to the LCWLT letter in memo form and provides it here. To view it, click here.
Mr. Conway represented city management in negotiations to acquire the SE LB open space/presumed wetlands from its owner LCW, Partners, LLC (whose principal is Tom Dean). The resulting proposed transactions were approved by City Council majorities in two versions, first in Feb. 2009, later in slightly different form in August 2009.
After the Feb 2009 Council vote, emails reflecting communications involving Mr. Conway, the landowner and other city officials, obtained via a Public Records Act request from area homeowner/wetlands advocate Tom Marchese, became public and were first published by TheDistrictWeekly.com. The City Attorney's office directed that the Council revisit its Feb. 2009 voted action (first in closed session, then in a publicly re-voted action in open session) because certain material facts weren't conveyed to Councilmembers on the first vote. On the public revote, a Council majority approved the transaction in August 2009 (5-4: Yes: S. Lowenthal, DeLong, O'Donnell, Andrews, Lerch; No: Garcia, Schipske, Reyes Uranga, Gabelich) with the additon of a newly carved-out four acre parcel on the north side of 2nd St.
Speculation has swirled over addition of that four acre parcel (created for the city transaction)...with some speculating that it could provide a strip of land with which to add a "right turn" lane from westbound 2nd St. onto northbound PCH to ease traffic at that often congested intersection.
Public Works Dir. Conway's memo says the City "intends to acquire the property in accordance with" the objective of CA Public Resources Code section 30001.5 (a), one of whose purposes and objectives is to "Protect, maintain, and where feasible, enhance and restore the overall quality of the coastal zone environment and its natural and artificial resources."
(Mr. Conway's Aug. 4 agendizing memo on the land exchange transaction described the four acre parcel as "zoned Residential, providing for residential land use with a maximum density of 15.3 units per acre.")
Chronic congestion at PCH/2nd has bedviled at least two proposed area developments: the PCH/2nd project (current Seaport Marina Hotel site) and a retail project at Studebaker/Loynes (east of PCH/north of 2nd St.)...on property owned by a Dean LLC.
As separately reported by LBReport.com, on Oct. 20 city management advanced and the City Council approved (8-1, Schipske dissenting) authorizing eminent domain to shave off a portion of southbound PCH to create an extra lane easing traffic turning onto westbound 2nd St...an action that had remained uncompleted for years although it was part of a 1998 EIR for a development authorized south of PCH/2nd St.
Further to follow. Stay with LBReport.com...and you won't miss a thing.
