Torrance City Council Regular Meeting - March 26, 2024

The Torrance City Council met on March 26, 2024, beginning at 5:01 p.m. in closed session and then reconvening for regular business. The agenda had listed regular business beginning at 6:30 p.m.; the meeting continued until about 1:51 a.m. on March 27. No official minutes were included in the source materials. All seven councilmembers were present: Griffiths, Kaji, Kalani, Lewis, Mattucci, Sheikh, and Mayor Chen. The agenda was posted on March 19, 2024. City Attorney Patrick Sullivan reported one closed-session action: the Council adopted findings by a reported 7-2-0 vote to terminate an employee. Closed session also covered litigation, personnel, labor negotiations, and real property negotiation items.

Consent Calendar

• Approved by one motion, excluding items pulled for discussion, were item 8A (City Council minutes of February 27, 2024), item 8B (Final Parcel Map No. 83607 and related easement actions), and item 8E (revised Human Resources Technician class specification).
• Items 8C and 8D were pulled and approved separately, as described below.

Public Comments & Testimony

• During Oral Communications #1, speakers announced community events, including the Torrance Theatre Company's 'Hay Fever' and Torrance Art Museum exhibitions. One speaker proposed a 15-20% discount for veterans and active-duty service members.
• Multiple speakers urged the City Council to adopt a Gaza ceasefire resolution. Speakers included Chris Venn; Sheila B from Black Lives Matter Los Angeles; Mo Awadala, President of the Muslims Democratic Club of Southern California; licensed clinical social workers Sakina Mirza and Mubina Mirza; a high school teacher; and other Torrance residents. They expressed support for a permanent humanitarian ceasefire, described the situation as genocide or a humanitarian crisis, and criticized the Council for not advancing Councilmember Sheikh's request. Some cited statistics including 2 million displaced, 13,000 children killed, and 32,000 Palestinians killed.
• On item 9A, one resident called the $578,092.60 audio-visual upgrade excessive, while another speaker thanked the city for improving remote meeting audio.
• On item 9B, one resident objected to the amplified sound permit process compared with other park users.
• On item 9C, James Henry asked whether the city's 13 BID parcels would be subject to the same not-to-exceed 3% annual assessment increase; staff answered yes. Adam Schwartz and Isabel Schwartz, associated with the Downtown Torrance Association and BID steering committee, spoke in favor. Another resident opposed further downtown revitalization efforts.
• On item 9F, property owner Jason Oldenburn said he brought the encroachment to the city's attention and was thankful for the settlement.
• On item 9G, Historic Preservation Commissioner Adam Schwartz and other residents opposed reducing commission meetings or combining commissions. Julie Dogiri from the Commission on Aging and a long-time certified commissioner asked that commissioners have input before changes are made.
• On item 10A, Adam Schwartz supported limited signs along the 405 but said the 100-foot residential setback was too close. Sarah Lynan, president of the South Bay LGBTQ Center, asked that sign companies not restrict community groups from advertising. One resident supported billboards and revenue; one resident opposed distraction and legal exposure.
• On item 12A, pickleball supporters spoke in favor, while a resident who said she lives near a park reported noise over 70 decibels inside her home and asked for larger setbacks and grandfathering.
• During Oral Communications #2, additional speakers supported a ceasefire resolution, including a mother/taxpayer with Jewish Voice for Peace, a Palestinian Christian business owner who cited $2.03 million in Torrance tax money going to Israel, and a Jewish resident who referenced Torrance's WWII opposition to Japanese incarceration. Another resident was angry that the ceasefire concurrence failed. One speaker honored the North Torrance Girls Softball League, and another complained about the treatment of a prior speaker and First Amendment concerns.

Discussion Items

• 8C Housing Element Annual Progress Report: Councilmember Griffiths reviewed the city's Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) of 4,939 units over an eight-year cycle, including 1,621 very low-income, 846 low-income, 853 moderate-income, and 1,600 above-moderate units. He said the city was almost four years into the cycle with zero very low-, low-, or moderate-income units permitted, exposing the city to possible state penalties and by-right housing approvals if it denied projects while not meeting progress targets. Community Development Director Michelle Ramirez clarified that the state requires capacity and legal justifications for denials, not construction itself. The Council unanimously accepted and filed the report and authorized its submission to state agencies.
• 8D Fire Prevention Supervisor: The Council unanimously approved the proposed class specification for Fire Prevention Supervisor. Fire Chief David Dumay and city staff explained that the position creates a non-sworn supervisory step in the community risk reduction/fire prevention career path.
• 9A Audio Visual and Control System Upgrades: The Council unanimously awarded a contract not-to-exceed $578,092.60 to Triton Technology Solutions, Inc., funded by the Public, Educational, and Governmental Access (PEG) Fund, and approved the related appropriations. The project upgrades council chamber cameras, production switcher, video router, and monitoring; the prior system was from 2009.
• 9B Amplified Sound Permit: The Council unanimously approved a one-time exemption to Torrance Municipal Code Section 46.5.3b and an amplified sound permit for the Islamic Center of South Bay-Lomita's Ramadan prayer services on April 10, 2024, at Charles H. Wilson Park, 2200 Crenshaw Boulevard, from 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. Staff reported no prior sound complaints.
• 9C Downtown Torrance Business Improvement District (BID): The Council unanimously concurred with the management district plan, directed the city to pay assessments on city-owned properties, and authorized the City Manager to submit affirmative petitions. The city's 13 parcels total $30,830.71, or 12.67% of total assessments. If more than 50% of assessments support the BID, the Council would consider a resolution of intention, hold a public hearing, and consider formation. Councilmembers voiced support and concerns about costs, governance, downtown tenant mix, and capital investment.
• 9D Rutan & Tucker Legal Services: The Council unanimously approved a seventh amendment to the fee agreement with Rutan & Tucker, LLP, adding $1,758,371.70 for a new not-to-exceed amount of $7,973,371.70 for litigation related to the 2020 Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board Order and Hi-Shear contamination. The City Attorney noted $2.59 million had been recovered from insurers and that the city would seek recovery from responsible parties.
• 9E Live Webcam: The Council unanimously approved installation of a live webcam at Los Arbolitos Park, also known as Rocket Ship Park. The camera system costs $14,463.62 plus about $71 per month. Staff said it would be a live view only, with no recording, and could be used for city branding and tourism promotion.
• 9F Easement and Settlement Agreement: The Council unanimously adopted Resolutions 2024-10 and 2024-11, granting an easement over 698 square feet of city-owned vacant property and approving a settlement and release agreement with the owners of 4805 Paseo de las Tortugas to cure an encroachment dispute. The city will receive $30,000 and retain oversight of proposed modifications.
• 9G Commission Appointments, Terms, and Meeting Changes: The Council unanimously adopted Ordinance 3932, which changes commission appointments and vacancy-filling from the Mayor to the City Council, along with the related CEQA exemption and ordinance summary. The City Clerk had recommended against allowing a formerly termed-out commissioner to fill vacancies. Councilmembers discussed combining commissions and reducing meeting frequencies. A motion to cut most commissions from 12 meetings per year to six, excluding Civil Service and Planning, failed without a second. A substitute motion to make no changes to commission meeting schedules or combinations at this time, and to allow staff liaisons to cancel meetings when needed, carried with Councilmember Mattucci and Mayor Chen voting no.
• 9H Electronic Message Board: The Council rejected the proposed installation at the southwest corner of Hawthorne Boulevard and Pacific Coast Highway. Staff reported a conceptual estimate of $387,732.51 and significant design, sightline, and right-of-way concerns. The Council directed staff to explore alternative locations, including the Hawthorne median between Skypark and 238th Street, and bring back a future item.
• 10A Electronic/Digital Billboards: This public hearing was continued to a date uncertain. Staff presented proposed amendments to allow electronic message center signs and digital billboards with conditional use permits, a one-acre minimum parcel size, a 100-foot residential setback, one-mile spacing, an 80-foot height limit, a 1,000-square-foot display cap, 8-second minimum image duration, and development agreements. The Planning Commission had not reached consensus in February 2024. Councilmembers raised concerns about setbacks, brightness, visual blight, revenue, and whether to separate freeway billboards from on-site electronic message signs. Councilmember Griffiths voted no on the continuance. Councilmember Kalani requested comparable visual examples and revenue information for a future meeting.
• 12A Pickleball Courts Ordinance: On second and final reading, the Council adopted Ordinance 3931, amending the Torrance Municipal Code to regulate the approval process and placement of pickleball courts in the P-U Public Use Zone. The vote was 5-2, with Councilmember Griffiths and Mayor Chen voting no.

Key Outcomes

• Closed session: Council adopted findings by a reported 7-2-0 vote to terminate an employee.
• Councilmember Sheikh's request for concurrence to bring back a Gaza ceasefire resolution failed after only two councilmembers raised hands.
• Council directed staff to prepare and send a letter opposing Assembly Bill 2560, relating to Coastal Commission land-use authority, with the vote recorded as 7-0.
• Consent calendar and administrative items 9A through 9F were approved unanimously unless otherwise noted.
• Ordinance 3932 was adopted unanimously; a subsequent motion to keep current commission meeting schedules and combinations passed with Mattucci and Mayor Chen voting no.
• Item 10A, electronic/digital billboards, was continued to a date uncertain.
• Ordinance 3931, pickleball courts, was adopted on second reading by a 5-2 vote.
• Councilmember Griffiths received concurrence for staff to solicit outside proposals for residential and commercial trash hauling services, with protections for current city employees to be considered.
• The Council adjourned to Tuesday, April 9, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. for closed session, with regular business at 6:30 p.m.