I am troubled that I could not find a reference to the lane reduction project nor the outdoor dining project
Clearly the ceqa consulting budget will far and away exceed the 60k budget to date. Isnt the consulting and engineering required to do the traffic, noise, safety and near roadway pollution measurements and analysis capitalized?
This project budget should include at a minimum if any portion is to be capitalized
(1) staff and management manpower costs through through to completion.
(2) Projected CEQA consultant costs for all 3 projects including specific consultant deliverables through to completion
(3) Projected Speciality consulting costs through to completion, including the costs to measure and assess the cumulative significant impacts of past discretionary projects on the current environment, the incremental impact of these 3 projects on vulnerable neighborhoods as well as an evaluation of these impacts for consistency with 2016 plan Hermosa.
(3a) cost to measure and assess the impact of vehicle and truck traffic on affected roadways, the impact of changes in traffic patterns or intersection queueing on quality of life of directly or indirectly impacted neighborhoods
Note: Direct and Indirect impacts have a specific meaning in the CEQA statute
(3b) costs to measure and assess the impact and of traffic noise on the most likely impacted road segments and the cost to fully assess, using the best science available, the impact of health, safety and quality of life as well as the consistency with 2016 Plan Hermosa.
(3c) Costs to measure and assess impact of Near Roadway Pollution including particulate matter (e.g. <2.5 micron diesel particulate matter, gasoline exhaust soot and carcinogenic gasses like toluene for those heavy traffic road segments that closest to densely packed neighborhoods, and assess the impact on health, safety and quality of life.
(3d) costs to measure & assess the impacts vibration for those neighborhoods particularly susceptible to any changes in truck patterns and vulnerable to truck vibration because homes are close to defacto truck routes. also budget to assess trucvk vibration impact on health and nearby structures like chimney and compare observed vibration with the 2016 Plan Hermosa vibration guidelines
(4) Revenue gains and losses (e.g encroachment fees, parking meters
5 A contingency budget covering likely mitigations and ongoing mitigation monitoring in terms of staff or consultant hours
The council should also ask how many years before the incremental increase in revenue from businesses associated to these projects pays the city back in full.
This is another unconscionable failure by City Manager Suja Lowenthal to be posting for your CIP “Study Session” meeting, on the morning of the meeting, the main staff item. Fire this woman and immediately start a search for a REAL CITY MANAGER. She’s incompetent, everyone seems to know that. Don’t You?
I just reviewed the attachment #1 that was just posted this morning. This is nothing more than a glossy propaganda piece which says next to nothing.
Where Is the “cut to the chase” clear, easy-to-understand list of what is actually planned to be accomplished in the next 12 months, and the actual money you expect to spend from the master smoke and mirrors $23 Million funds that sit in the bank year after year.
It seems like this report dwells on what’s been done, never clearly indicating that most of those projects have been going on for five or more years.
You will recall that the 8th Street ‘safe walk to school project’ took over 5 years to get done, not because of the contractor, but because of constant screw-ups by the council and the city management operation, constantly with monkey wrenches being thrown into the mix, like solar cells for the Community Center and on and on.
The park restrooms have been going on ad nauseam. The Clark building thing, Good God that’s got to be 10 years or more now, STILL NOT DONE.
And here is the improperly approved so called ADA Greenbelt project. HALF MILLION DOLLARS AND LISTED HAS TO BE 20 MONTHS on the front burner. TALK ABOUT A MONKEY WRENCH SUDDENLY BEING THROWN INTO THE MIX. That project needs to be back-burnered until there is a proper fully noticed PUBLIC HEARING not a sham March 31, 2022 “Study Session”. Even the proponents, few as there seems to be, should understand that was an absolutely SHAM APPROVAL process. What say did the 20,000 residents, the men, women, and children have in that?
Where is the detailed list of streets to be paved in the next 12 months? What’s the PLAN.
This PROPAGANDA report, as it did last year, talks about the $23 million in CIP projects. That’s the DREAM list which in no manner will be accomplished in the next 12 months or the next 25 years.
This propaganda piece is just that, Pure propaganda! Tell the people what precisely will be accomplished in the next 12 months. Will it be much other than more consultants, more studies, more hyperbole, and more smoke and mirrors status reports?
Bottom line this city should be merged with either Redondo Beach or Manhattan Beach as its too-tiny Public Works Department will never be able to catch up. All this city does is pay Millions and Millions for an ultra-inefficient TOP-HEAVY bureaucracy.
Why in the world do you have a Public Works Commission, when they don’t even have a say in the work-up to the annual CIP projects and what actually will be accomplished. Sending this stuff to them as a receive-and-file, item after you have received spun a few hours to essentially receive-and-accept it, is ass-backwards. So what else is new in HB? This will likely be just another sham “Study Session”.
And you all should be asking specific questions as to exactly when Prospect Avenue north of Aviation Blvd will have a long overdue grind and pave, and again why is a sham approval of HALF MILLION DOLLARS to be expended for a hardscape path on the Greenbelt ahead of all else.
It’s time for all elected and top pertinent officials to be at this meeting in person in the Council Chambers. That means Council, City Manager, and pertinent staff members; And time also for you all to be putting your cell phones away and leaving notice with your family to contact the police number if there is a family emergency. Your operation of meetings while reading emails, texts, and more, that the public is not privy to, is outrageous to the max.
This CIP meeting is listed as a “Study Session”! That means no formal ACTIONS council per the way this city has always operated, and notwithstanding what all these token “City Attorneys” may say that have been sitting in meetings these days in place of the aging no-bid-contract City Attorney for life Michael Jenkins.
And how can the councilmembers or the public be expected to know what is going on if the staff report for the meeting won’t even be available until the day of the meeting per what the agenda presently says. It’s a STUDY session. This stuff should be available a week in advance.
Total sham operation since City Manager Suja Lowenthal came to town and demanded to have a costly bloated City Manager operation under her control so she should operate as a Queen Bee, and now via Zoom meetings.
Again, these meetings are becoming a complete sham in my view.
With regard to the CIP study, you had best be including as a high-priority, a grind-and-pave work-item for Prospect Avenue, from Aviation Blvd North to 21st Street. I noted again, just two days ago, that there are missing chunks of asphalt pavement (THAT NEED IMMEDIATE TEMPORARY PATCHING) especially between Aviation Blvd and View School and the street is totally alligator-cracked. The defects in the pavement represent big time lawsuits just waiting to be filed.
This heavily traveled section of Prospect has not had a grind-and-pave in over 45 years; and in that time I can only recall one weak-as-water slurry seal having been accomplished. As you may not know, Hermosa Beach used to use the lowest grade of slurry sealing, which was little more than black paint for cosmetics. Virtually useless.
I also assume, because your action to spend taxpayer’s limited money (no matter the source) to pave five blocks of the ‘Greenbelt’ into hardscape packed granite, was improperly approved during the 3/31/22 “Study Session” per long-standing meeting-tradition of not taking formal actions in Study Sessions.
Thus that action should not be funded until after the item is properly noticed for a real public hearing in a regular meeting, including with orange fluorescent placards being placed every 500 feet along the ‘Greenbelt’ having been accomplished. I.e. Neglected streets that have pavement in total disrepair should be accomplished first, and further such major changes to the ‘Greenbelt’ would best at the minimum be put to an “advisory” vote of the people by the City Council in November.
I am troubled that I could not find a reference to the lane reduction project nor the outdoor dining project
Clearly the ceqa consulting budget will far and away exceed the 60k budget to date. Isnt the consulting and engineering required to do the traffic, noise, safety and near roadway pollution measurements and analysis capitalized?
This project budget should include at a minimum if any portion is to be capitalized
(1) staff and management manpower costs through through to completion.
(2) Projected CEQA consultant costs for all 3 projects including specific consultant deliverables through to completion
(3) Projected Speciality consulting costs through to completion, including the costs to measure and assess the cumulative significant impacts of past discretionary projects on the current environment, the incremental impact of these 3 projects on vulnerable neighborhoods as well as an evaluation of these impacts for consistency with 2016 plan Hermosa.
(3a) cost to measure and assess the impact of vehicle and truck traffic on affected roadways, the impact of changes in traffic patterns or intersection queueing on quality of life of directly or indirectly impacted neighborhoods
Note: Direct and Indirect impacts have a specific meaning in the CEQA statute
(3b) costs to measure and assess the impact and of traffic noise on the most likely impacted road segments and the cost to fully assess, using the best science available, the impact of health, safety and quality of life as well as the consistency with 2016 Plan Hermosa.
(3c) Costs to measure and assess impact of Near Roadway Pollution including particulate matter (e.g. <2.5 micron diesel particulate matter, gasoline exhaust soot and carcinogenic gasses like toluene for those heavy traffic road segments that closest to densely packed neighborhoods, and assess the impact on health, safety and quality of life.
(3d) costs to measure & assess the impacts vibration for those neighborhoods particularly susceptible to any changes in truck patterns and vulnerable to truck vibration because homes are close to defacto truck routes. also budget to assess trucvk vibration impact on health and nearby structures like chimney and compare observed vibration with the 2016 Plan Hermosa vibration guidelines
(4) Revenue gains and losses (e.g encroachment fees, parking meters
5 A contingency budget covering likely mitigations and ongoing mitigation monitoring in terms of staff or consultant hours
The council should also ask how many years before the incremental increase in revenue from businesses associated to these projects pays the city back in full.
Is not someportion of this capitalized?
Council,
This is another unconscionable failure by City Manager Suja Lowenthal to be posting for your CIP “Study Session” meeting, on the morning of the meeting, the main staff item. Fire this woman and immediately start a search for a REAL CITY MANAGER. She’s incompetent, everyone seems to know that. Don’t You?
I just reviewed the attachment #1 that was just posted this morning. This is nothing more than a glossy propaganda piece which says next to nothing.
Where Is the “cut to the chase” clear, easy-to-understand list of what is actually planned to be accomplished in the next 12 months, and the actual money you expect to spend from the master smoke and mirrors $23 Million funds that sit in the bank year after year.
It seems like this report dwells on what’s been done, never clearly indicating that most of those projects have been going on for five or more years.
You will recall that the 8th Street ‘safe walk to school project’ took over 5 years to get done, not because of the contractor, but because of constant screw-ups by the council and the city management operation, constantly with monkey wrenches being thrown into the mix, like solar cells for the Community Center and on and on.
The park restrooms have been going on ad nauseam. The Clark building thing, Good God that’s got to be 10 years or more now, STILL NOT DONE.
And here is the improperly approved so called ADA Greenbelt project. HALF MILLION DOLLARS AND LISTED HAS TO BE 20 MONTHS on the front burner. TALK ABOUT A MONKEY WRENCH SUDDENLY BEING THROWN INTO THE MIX. That project needs to be back-burnered until there is a proper fully noticed PUBLIC HEARING not a sham March 31, 2022 “Study Session”. Even the proponents, few as there seems to be, should understand that was an absolutely SHAM APPROVAL process. What say did the 20,000 residents, the men, women, and children have in that?
Where is the detailed list of streets to be paved in the next 12 months? What’s the PLAN.
This PROPAGANDA report, as it did last year, talks about the $23 million in CIP projects. That’s the DREAM list which in no manner will be accomplished in the next 12 months or the next 25 years.
This propaganda piece is just that, Pure propaganda! Tell the people what precisely will be accomplished in the next 12 months. Will it be much other than more consultants, more studies, more hyperbole, and more smoke and mirrors status reports?
Bottom line this city should be merged with either Redondo Beach or Manhattan Beach as its too-tiny Public Works Department will never be able to catch up. All this city does is pay Millions and Millions for an ultra-inefficient TOP-HEAVY bureaucracy.
Why in the world do you have a Public Works Commission, when they don’t even have a say in the work-up to the annual CIP projects and what actually will be accomplished. Sending this stuff to them as a receive-and-file, item after you have received spun a few hours to essentially receive-and-accept it, is ass-backwards. So what else is new in HB? This will likely be just another sham “Study Session”.
And you all should be asking specific questions as to exactly when Prospect Avenue north of Aviation Blvd will have a long overdue grind and pave, and again why is a sham approval of HALF MILLION DOLLARS to be expended for a hardscape path on the Greenbelt ahead of all else.
Howard L 2nd Supplemental
It’s time for all elected and top pertinent officials to be at this meeting in person in the Council Chambers. That means Council, City Manager, and pertinent staff members; And time also for you all to be putting your cell phones away and leaving notice with your family to contact the police number if there is a family emergency. Your operation of meetings while reading emails, texts, and more, that the public is not privy to, is outrageous to the max.
This CIP meeting is listed as a “Study Session”! That means no formal ACTIONS council per the way this city has always operated, and notwithstanding what all these token “City Attorneys” may say that have been sitting in meetings these days in place of the aging no-bid-contract City Attorney for life Michael Jenkins.
And how can the councilmembers or the public be expected to know what is going on if the staff report for the meeting won’t even be available until the day of the meeting per what the agenda presently says. It’s a STUDY session. This stuff should be available a week in advance.
Total sham operation since City Manager Suja Lowenthal came to town and demanded to have a costly bloated City Manager operation under her control so she should operate as a Queen Bee, and now via Zoom meetings.
Again, these meetings are becoming a complete sham in my view.
With regard to the CIP study, you had best be including as a high-priority, a grind-and-pave work-item for Prospect Avenue, from Aviation Blvd North to 21st Street. I noted again, just two days ago, that there are missing chunks of asphalt pavement (THAT NEED IMMEDIATE TEMPORARY PATCHING) especially between Aviation Blvd and View School and the street is totally alligator-cracked. The defects in the pavement represent big time lawsuits just waiting to be filed.
This heavily traveled section of Prospect has not had a grind-and-pave in over 45 years; and in that time I can only recall one weak-as-water slurry seal having been accomplished. As you may not know, Hermosa Beach used to use the lowest grade of slurry sealing, which was little more than black paint for cosmetics. Virtually useless.
I also assume, because your action to spend taxpayer’s limited money (no matter the source) to pave five blocks of the ‘Greenbelt’ into hardscape packed granite, was improperly approved during the 3/31/22 “Study Session” per long-standing meeting-tradition of not taking formal actions in Study Sessions.
Thus that action should not be funded until after the item is properly noticed for a real public hearing in a regular meeting, including with orange fluorescent placards being placed every 500 feet along the ‘Greenbelt’ having been accomplished. I.e. Neglected streets that have pavement in total disrepair should be accomplished first, and further such major changes to the ‘Greenbelt’ would best at the minimum be put to an “advisory” vote of the people by the City Council in November.