Surfrider Foundation :: South Bay Chapter : News & Announcements

After the state Supreme Court's decision, the developer of the West L.A. project says it will try to resolve the environmental impact issues with the city.

The California Supreme Court on Wednesday denied a request by Playa Vista to review an appellate court ruling that halted work on the development's final phase. The 2nd District Court of Appeal had found that the project's environmental impact report was flawed.

Playa Vista said in a statement that it had expected the result because the state's high court accepts only a tiny percentage of cases for review. The company said it would work with Los Angeles officials to address the three issues that the appellate court decided needed further analysis.

In September, the appellate court found that the city's approval of the big, mixed-use development's Phase 2 was based on an environmental review that was "deficient in its analysis of land-use impacts, mitigation of historical archaeological resources and wastewater impacts."

The project's $1.1-billion second and final phase, the Village, calls for 2,600 housing units and 250,000 square feet of office and retail space on 111 acres.

The retail space would include a supermarket and other businesses in the hope of reducing traffic outside the development.

Playa Vista's first phase involved 3,246 housing units and more than 3.2 million square feet of office and retail space. The company is allowed to continue with first-phase construction.

Sabrina Venskus, lead counsel to the environmental groups that challenged Phase 2, said her clients would favor a much scaled-down final phase, with no housing and about 110,000 square feet of retail space. Her clients have recommended that the rest of the property set aside for Phase 2 be converted into a treatment wetland to clean storm runoff before it could reach the Ballona Wetlands and Santa Monica Bay.

Joe Geever of the Surfrider Foundation, one of the organizations that sued the city soon after it approved the second phase in 2004, said the high court's denial would force the city to think about alternatives for the controversial project just south of Marina del Rey. But he acknowledged that "people living in Playa Vista were promised those amenities, and I think they should get them."

Steve Soboroff, Playa Vista president, said the company expected to present further analysis of the three issues to the city "in a couple of months."

"I'm confident it's going to be remedied so we will get done with our ultimate vision," he said.

Frank Mateljan, a spokesman for the city attorney's office, said: "Now it's up to the city and the developer to remedy those [issues]. The EIR conditions are fixable."

Joe Geever
Surfrider Foundation
California Policy Coordinator
8117 W Manchester Ave. #297
Playa del Rey, CA 90293
(310) 410-2890

Terry "Pogo" O'DonnellArtist and El Camino College teacher Terry O'Donnell, best known for his bronze sculpture of surf legend George Freeth on the Redondo Beach pier, died Wednesday. He was 67.

O'Donnell was known to be a man of few words, but the words he did speak were usually humorous.

"He had a subtle irony," said friend David Patterson, 65, an art teacher at El Camino. "For example, if you said 'Hello, Mr. O'Donnell, it's nice to see you,' he would have said, 'Well, it's nice to be seen."'

As an art instructor, O'Donnell posed challenges to his students and wanted them to find their own solutions to problems.

"It was one of those magazine contests where you draw Tippy the Turtle and win a scholarship or something like that," said Graham, who is also an artist. "I wanted to impress (my dad) by showing him that I could draw Tippy."

When he saw her struggle with the drawing, he told his daughter to turn the picture upside down and just concentrate on the lines.

"He said, 'Don't think of it as a turtle, just look at the lines,' and that's what I did and that was it," she said. "I learned the importance of lines. He taught with few words, but he was very capable and amazing."

Susanna Meiers, director of the art gallery at the college where O'Donnell taught for 36 years, remembers the sculptor as unpredictable and an individualist.

One day he would have long hair, another day his head would be shaved, she said. He was always changing his facial hair, she added.

"We still have a pair of his boots here. They were Ugg boots that he painted toenails on the outside," Meiers said. "He would wear them out to a fancy restaurant. He didn't care. He was very much himself, and he had a great sense of humor."

The South Bay artist is mostly known for his bust of Freeth, the man who brought surfing to the South Bay more than 100 years ago.

"They gave me three photographs to work with," O'Donnell told the Daily Breeze last year, the 30th anniversary of the sculpture. "But there were no profiles. I didn't know what his nose looked like."

But a student in a class O'Donnell was teaching happened to be part Hawaiian and part Irish, the same heritage as Freeth. Using the student as a model, he was able to create a likeness of the man that family members said was perfect.

A dedicated surfer himself, O'Donnell rode waves into his 60s and stopped only when his heart troubles began to restrict his activities.

Surf buddy Tyler Hatzikian of Tyler's Surfboards, who had his factory around the corner from O'Donnell's El Segundo studio, said it was great to hear his friend tell stories of surfing all over the coast in the 1950s.

The two men also shared another hobby: soapbox racing. Hatzikian, 36, who called O'Donnell by his nickname - "Pogo" - said they started a group called The Illegal Soapbox Derby Association. The duo would build the cars and sneak into parking structures in predawn hours to race.

"I remember Pogo was in front of me in a boxcar he built out of two aluminum trash cans. All I heard was the screech of him making a turn and then a big bang," Hatzikian said. "He ran into a post. That sound and seeing him with that look on his face with his axle broken off, it was hilarious."

The surfer, artist and boxcar racer is survived by his wife, Cathy; two daughters, Timi Rider and Graham; and four grandchildren.

A memorial service was held January 14, 2008, at the Fine Arts Gallery at El Camino College.

A beach gathering and paddle out will be held in El Porto on Saturday, January 19, 2008, at 1:00 PM, at the 40th Street Lifeguard Tower, Manhattan Beach, CA 90266 Map >>

Reception Following at 3:00 pm, at the Stick & Stein (310-414-9283), 707 N. Sepulveda Blvd., El Segundo, CA 90254 Map >>

2007 South Bay Chapter Annual Fundraiser a Roaring (with laughter) Success!

It was definitely an evening of good friends, good food, good fun, and for the lucky, good fortune, at Surfrider Foundation - South Bay Chapter's annual fundraiser night of comedy Friday night. A special Thank You! goes out to all our friends and supporters who made October 12th truly a night to remember - you guys ROCK! Thank you, thank you, thank you from the Executive Committee and all our members! (Net proceeds will help support the South Bay Chapter, where we believe in having fun, but take protecting our ocean as no laughing matter!)

State appeals court orders a halt to construction, ruling that the environmental impact report on the mixed-use project was flawed.

A state appeals court Thursday ordered a halt to construction on the estimated $1.1-billion final phase of the Playa Vista development, ruling that the project's environmental impact report was flawed.

A three-judge panel of the 2nd District Court of Appeal found that the city of Los Angeles' approval of the final phase of the controversial mixed-use project near the ocean was based on an environmental review that was "deficient in its analysis of land-use impacts, mitigation of historical archaeological resources and wastewater impacts."

Joe Geever of the Surfrider Foundation, one of the organizations that sued the city shortly after it approved the project phase in 2004, said, "We're ecstatic. We think it sends a strong message to the city that they have to take the law more seriously and to fully inform citizens of the impact of these massive projects on the environment before they go on approving them."

A Playa Vista spokesman said project managers would evaluate whether to appeal to the California Supreme Court, but vowed that the development would be completed.

"The bottom line is Playa Vista is well along in its evolution," spokesman Steve Sugerman said. "There are 5,000 residents who live there, and hundreds of people who work in offices there."

He said the second and final phase of the project, known as the village, "will be built and the vision will be achieved."

The village envisions 2,600 additional housing units and 250,000 square feet of office and retail space on 111 acres.

Playa Vista's first phase involved 3,246 housing units and more than 3.2 million square feet of office and retail space.

The appeals court ruling does not affect continuing work on first-phase construction.

Sugerman said significant amounts of grading work and some infrastructure work have been competed on the final phase, but that little other final-phase work is underway.

Opponents of the project, whose total cost variously has been estimated at $4 billion to $7 billion, filed suit in November 2004, shortly after the Los Angeles City Council approved the final phase. The opponents, which included the city of Santa Monica, the Ballona Wetlands Land Trust and representatives of the Tongva/Gabrieleno Native Americans, challenged the decision on environmental grounds.

Last year, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge William F. Highberger ruled that the city and Playa Vista had followed the law and the project's environmental impact report was adequate.

A trio of appellate court judges on Thursday delivered a blow to Playa Vista, ordering developers to halt work on the community's second phase until three disputed land-use issues are reviewed.

The 114-page decision from the Second District Court of Appeal sends the case back to a lower court for further direction.

The judges ruled that the project's environmental impact report was deficient in its analysis of the land's development potential, the project's wastewater effects and the disturbance of American Indian artifacts.

In the meantime, construction of The Village - a mixed-use plan that would bring more homes, retailers, parks and offices - will be on hold as another legal battle plays out.

"This is a huge victory that Playa Vista is going to have an enormous problem trying to get around," said Rex Frankel, president of the Ballona Ecosystem Education Project, one of the groups involved in the lawsuit. "To rework an EIR with major problems like this is going to take awhile."

But Playa Vista spokesman Steve Sugerman said no one can say what the lower court will direct the city and Playa Vista to do. "We're going to have to seek the guidance of the Superior Court," he said.

"The bottom line is, The Village will get built," he said, adding: "The decision has no impact on the Phase I residential and Phase I commercial plan."

Today, the first phase of the long-litigated project between Westchester and Marina del Rey includes roughly 2,700 homes, neighborhood-serving retailers, a library and senior housing complex, among other amenities. A commercial campus and the Los Angeles Clippers' new training facility are rising at Playa Vista's eastern edge.

The legal battle over The Village started shortly after the Los Angeles City Council approved the project in 2004.

Opponents including the city of Santa Monica, the Surfrider Foundation, representatives of the Tongva/Gabrieleno Indians and groups dedicated to preserving the nearby Ballona Wetlands said in two separate lawsuits that the project's environmental impact report was flawed. Specifically, they argued the city didn't properly address an increase in traffic, high methane gas concentrations, the disturbance of Indian burial grounds and wastewater treatment issues.

In January 2006, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge William F. Highberger ruled that the city and Playa Vista provided the public and decision-makers with adequate information in the EIR.

But the appellate court, which consolidated the cases and reviewed more than two dozen issues raised by opponents, singled out three "deficiencies" with the document.

The judges questioned the city's analysis of the project's effects on Hyperion Wastewater Treatment Plant, the land-use documents used to approve the density of commercial and residential development for The Village, as well as the treatment of human remains and artifacts dating back 3,500 years.

The judges agreed with opponents' contentions that the EIR failed to discuss whether more resources could have been preserved on site by moving the path of a drainage channel called the Riparian Corridor.

"The EIR alluded to the consideration of impacts on archaeological resources that had taken place previously behind the scenes," the judges wrote, "but did not describe the measures considered and rejected or the reasons for rejecting those measures."

The decision went on to state that the city can achieve full compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act "only by vacating the project approvals and revising the EIR to remedy these deficiencies."

"The court has given the City Council another chance to get it right," Tom Francis of the Ballona Wetlands Land Trust said in a statement.

He urged the city to use the land slated for development to build a natural treatment wetland and park.

Joe Geever, Surfrider Foundation's California policy coordinator, said: "Our major concern was that the city was approving more pressure on outdated sewage treatment capacity and unabated urban runoff without fully understanding the additional adverse impacts on coastal ocean water quality and human health risks."

But Playa Vista's Sugerman pointed out that two main arguments opponents have used to oppose Playa Vista - clogged roads and concerns about underground concentrations of methane - weren't supported by the appellate court judges.

"Contentions over the years on traffic and methane were struck down by this ruling," he said.

Developer Playa Capital is considering whether to request a rehearing before the appellate court or petition the state Supreme Court to take up the case.

In a statement, Playa Vista President Steve Soboroff said the community "continues to thrive, and this ruling will not in any way alter our plans. Despite the professional project opponents, we remain confident that the Playa Vista vision will ultimately be realized."

It's unknown how long the decision could hold up construction of The Village, which is planned along a strip of Jefferson Boulevard that has already been graded by bulldozers.

Resident Steve Donell, who serves as chairman of the neighborhood group Friends of Playa Vista, said he was relieved the decision didn't question methane and traffic issues.

But he also said he had a "level of disappointment" that the ruling could affect second-phase construction.

"It's a shame a vital retail component of our community is going to be delayed," he said. "It keeps us on the streets when we should be in our own community riding bikes to the store."

Joe Geever
Surfrider Foundation
California Policy Coordinator
8117 W Manchester Ave. #297
Playa del Rey, CA 90293
(310) 410-2890

In a landmark action, NRG Energy submitted a petition to the California Energy Commission to convert to a cleaner, more efficient closed-cycle cooling system, eliminating its current use of Santa Monica Bay seawater as a coolant, a move that earned praise from environmental groups.

NRG Energy, which owns the El Segundo power plant, won approval from the California Energy Commission in 2005 to rebuild half the plant utilizing once-through cooling despite pressure from local environmental groups to stop the use of this outdated technology. While the project was approved by the California Energy Commission in February 2005, new technology advances prompted NRG to request a permit amendment to switch to a dry, or air cooling system that eliminates the need for ocean cooling.

NRG's decision to use a more environmentally progressive cooling technology reveals both its commitment to environmental responsibility and leadership among the power industry. "As part of NRG's comprehensive Repowering NRG program, we are not only looking at expanding our existing fleet to meet future electricity demand nationwide, but we are investing in new technologies, such as dry cooling systems, to ensure tomorrow's electric generating facilities minimize any environmental impacts," said Steve Hoffmann, President of NRG West. "Our proposed redevelopment project at the El Segundo plant presented an opportunity to make a change for the better."

The El Segundo redevelopment project is designed to help meet Southern California's fast-growing demand for energy. The proposed project calls for an additional 530 new megawatts - enough to power over 400,000 homes - at NRG's existing site in El Segundo.

"Hopefully this decision will signify the downfall of once-through cooling in California," said Mark Gold, President of southern California-based Heal the Bay. "Once-through cooling indiscriminately kills vast numbers of fish eggs, larvae and other marine life by drawing in seawater to cool power generators. We congratulate NRG for taking extraordinary leadership on this issue."

This announcement adds to the recent momentum discouraging the continued use of once-through cooling technologies at coastal power plants. Last year, both the State Lands Commission and Ocean Protection Council adopted resolutions dissuading the perpetuated use of this technology in California. These actions were followed by a ruling from the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in January of this year in favor of a coalition of environmental groups, including plaintiffs Santa Monica Baykeeper, Hudson Riverkeeper and Surfrider Foundation concluding that the Environmental Protection Agency shall require power plants to protect aquatic habitats and employ the best technology available.

This ruling, as well as support from state agencies, could lead to other companies deciding to pursue the use of a closed-cycle cooling system. "Our victory in a New York courtroom is bringing life back into the Santa Monica Bay," said Tracy Egoscue, Executive Director of Santa Monica Baykeeper.

Joe Geever, California Coordinator for Surfrider Foundation also applauded the decision of NRG to abandon once-through cooling on their new power plant project, "NRG is proving that you can protect the environment and still make a competitive profit. We think they have set a standard for the entire industry."