CITY OF HERMOSA BEACH

CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING (STUDY SESSION) MINUTES

Monday, October 14, 2024

Closed Session at 5:00 PM—Study Session at 7:00 PM

Council Chambers

1315 Valley Drive

Hermosa Beach, CA 90254

Members Present:

• Mayor Dean Francois, 
• Mayor Pro Tem Rob Saemann, 
• Councilmember Mike Detoy, 
• Councilmember Ray Jackson, 
• and Councilmember Justin Massey 

Staff Present:

• City Manager Suja Lowenthal, 
• Deputy City Attorney Monica Castillo, 
• Deputy City Manager Angela Crespi, 
• City Clerk Myra Maravilla, 
• Community Development Director Carrie Tai, 
• Public Works Director Joe SanClemente, 
• Deputy City Clerk Reanna Guzman, 
• Senior Engineer Brandon Araujo, 
• and Assistant Engineer Briana Aube 

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PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that the Mayor of the City of Hermosa Beach has called a Special Meeting of the City Council to take place at 5:00 p.m. on Monday, October 14, 2024, to consider and take action on only those matters set forth on the agenda below.

1.

CLOSED SESSION—CALL TO ORDER 5:00 PM

Mayor Francois called the Closed Session to order at 5:01 p.m.

2.

ROLL CALL

City Clerk Myra Maravilla announced a quorum.

3.

CLOSED SESSION PUBLIC COMMENT

No public comment was provided for the Closed Session.

4.

RECESS TO CLOSED SESSION

4.a

Closed Session Minutes

4.b

Public Employee Performance Evaluation

5.

STUDY SESSION—CALL TO ORDER 7:00 PM

Mayor Francois called the Open Session to order at 7:14 p.m.

6.

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Eric Horne.

7.

ROLL CALL

City Clerk Myra Maravilla announced a quorum. 

Deputy City Attorney Monica Castillo provided a Closed Session Report. No reportable action was taken.

8.

ANNOUNCEMENTS—UPCOMING CITY EVENTS

Mayor Francois announced that on October 30th he will host the next monthly Mayor Town Hall forum.

9.

STUDY SESSION PUBLIC COMMENT

Jeff Ackermann

Valley/Ardmore is already a heavily used as a e-bike route for north/south travel through Hermosa Beach, which is nice since it pulls some e-bike traffic off the strand which we all know is problematic. I'm not sure it's a great idea, but I'd like to propose for consideration making Valley and Ardmore each one-way with one dedicated lane for autos and one for bicycles. This would make it a great thoroughfare for bikes and easy for cars to navigate around the bikes. As a side benefit, the section of Ardmore south of Pier really isn't really wide enough to accommodate 2 way traffic, but is wide enough to accommodate a single lane + a bike lane. Also, I think it would reduce congestion and improve safety at the Valley/Ardmore/Pier and Valley/Ardmore/Gould intersections.

Mayor Francois opened public comment. The following public comment was provided.

In Person Public Comment:

• Liam Walsh

10.

OPENING REMARKS

City Manager Suja Lowenthal provided opening remarks.

11.

STUDY SESSION TOPIC

11.a

LIVING STREETS STUDY SESSION - 24-PW-037

Public Works Director Joe SanClemente provided a presentation.

12.

COUNCIL QUESTIONS

Mayor Francois asked various questions about the Bike Master Plan.

Director SanClemente provided information.

City Manager Lowenthal provided information.

Mayor Pro Tem Saemann asked various questions on the number of bicylists, e-bikes, and drivers in the city.

Councilmember Detoy asked about the definition of wide sidewalks.

Councilmember Massey made various comments. 

Councilmember Jackson asked questions about a crosswalk on Ardmore and 25th Street. 

Mayor Francois asked additional questions about the Bike Master Plan. 

13.

STUDY SESSION PUBLIC COMMENT

In Person Public Comment:

• Ed Hart
• Ken Robertson 
• David Grethen
• Matt McCool
• Eric Horne
• Laura Pena

14.

COUNCIL DISCUSSION

Councilmember Massey provided various comments and suggested to make Ardmore Ave a one-way street.

Mayor Francois asked questions about 14th Street. 

Mayor Pro Tem Saemann provided comments.

Councilmember Detoy provided comments.

Councilmember Jackson provided comments.

Councilmember Jackson discussed creating access points to connect the east and west.

Councilmember Massey discussed various streets for future bike paths (5th, 10th, 14th or 16th and 21st, 23rd) and suggested a Class 4 bike path on the westside of Hermosa Avenue to the Manhattan Beach corridor.

No support was provided for the Class 4 bike plan on the westside of Hermosa Avenue. 

Mayor Pro Tem Saemann expressed support in having a discussion to identify access points to connect the east and west.

Director SanClemente provided information, shared that the city does not have a funding allocated to study PCH and the Aviation corridor, and provided information about the Metro study.

Councilmember Massey suggested having Edison underground its poles on Ardmore Ave and incorporate this as a potential CIP project during the next CIP Study Session. 

Councilmember Detoy provided various comments

15.

ADJOURNMENT

The meeting was adjourned at 9:54 p.m.