HARBOR COMMISSION STRATEGIC PLAN RECOMMENDATIONS April 14, 2025 1 To: City Council
From: Harbor Commission
Date: April 14, 2025
Subject: Harbor/Pier related strategic planning priority projects At the April 14, 2025 meeting of the Harbor Commission the Harbor Commission deliberated recommendations for the upcoming update to the city’s Strategic Plan. After much discussion and input from the public, the Harbor Commission unanimously approved the recommendations that follow. We request your consideration of our recommendations, which are not ranked in any order of importance.
1. Recommended Objective: Continue to seek development partnerships to construct a new education facility at the old Joe’s Crab Shack site. Negotiate a lease/license agreement with a non-profit organization to redevelop the site.
Rationale: The city recently completed an analysis of the old Joe’s Crab Shack site, which provided conceptual drawings by Gensler Architects. The study revealed the size and scale of development that could be accommodated based on municipal code regulations. With an understanding of what can be physically constructed on the site, staff should seek a private/public partnership with a non-profit educational organization to redevelop the site into what was envisioned in the Amenities Plan.
2. Recommended Objective: Seaside Lagoon. Drive entitlement approval within the next six months and seek additional funding opportunities to achieve additional construction phases beyond Phase 1.
Rationale: The City Council and the Amenities Plan have prioritized Seaside Lagoon as a First Phase of implementation of the Amenities Plan. This objective has two parts. - The first part of this objective is for staff to complete the City entitlements process over the next six months.
- The second objective is for staff to work in parallel with the design process to identify, apply for and receive additional grants from the state or potentially other sources.
3. Recommended Objective: Boat Ramp. Drive entitlement approval within the next six months and secure grant funding from the State Department of Boating and Waterways.
Rationale: The Council and the Amenities Plan define the boat ramp as a Phase 1 priority for implementation. WED staff has socialized grant funding with the appropriate state staff which would cover costs associated with permitting and construction. The City entered into a contract agreement with a consultant to perform the necessary studies (parking, traffic, demand) required to conceptually design the boat launch and navigate the entitlement process. The consultant is nearly complete with the necessary studies and will move forward with the entitlement process. Completion of the studies will allow staff to officially apply for grant funding to begin the permitting and construction phases.
4. Recommended Objective: Complete the breakwater repair project in the next six months.
HARBOR COMMISSION STRATEGIC PLAN RECOMMENDATIONS April 14, 2025 2 Rationale: Army Corps of Engineers studies show the breakwall remains effective but has experienced degradation due to wave and surge action over the years. A permit has been approved for the US Army Corps of Engineers to reinforce the existing breakwall. The project is expected to take six months to complete.
5. Recommended Objective: Continue to seek development partnerships for opportunity sites within the waterfront inclusive of the old Fun Factory tenant space, old Maison Ritz tenant space, old Gold’s Gym tenant space, as well as the undeveloped Pad 2 site.
Rationale: Most of the old sites remain vacant. This goal of negotiating a development partnership will ensure a plan is in place to redevelop or fill the spaces as soon as soon as possible.
6. Recommended Objective: Build on the success of implementing a SAVE Grant Program and seek additional funding to continue the removal of surrendered or abandoned vessels in all three basins of the harbor.
Rationale: For the first time, WED staff was awarded a grant from the State Department of Boating and Waterways to remove abandoned vessels from our harbor. In 2024, waterfront staff removed 11 vessels and received reimbursement for approximately $35,000, which represents 90% of the costs associated with the removal process. The efforts in 2024 could be described as a pilot program. With its success, city staff and DBWA will seek to expand the program for upwards of $100,000 in grant money.
7. Recommended Objective: Utilize the newly created economic development workgroup to identify existing impediments that exist in the City that may impede business reinvestment.
Rationale: The previous strategic plan goal successfully created an economic development workgroup. The Harbor Commission recommends the group first work to identify any issues that could prevent businesses or developers from choosing Redondo Beach as the location for their next project. While the workgroup would identify issues citywide, the Harbor Commission recognizes it would also benefit the currently vacant opportunity sites in the harbor.
8. Recommended Objective: Explore an ongoing permit from the Coastal Commission to perform routine maintenance dredging.
Rationale: The City just completed a very large dredging project that cost over $4 million to achieve. Harbor Commission recognizes that a large part of the high cost was due to the infrequency of dredging the harbor. Harbor Commission recognizes pursuing necessary approvals from the Coastal Commission which would allow for routine and ongoing smaller dredging projects to periodically address the issue.
9. Recommended Objective: Explore options to increase the Harbor Patrol responsibilities to accommodate an increase to the frequency of inspections to vessels, marinas, and fuel docks within the harbor.
Rationale: The existing vessels that rent slips within the Harbor require periodic inspections to ensure everything is in proper working order, do not pose a threat to the environment, and HARBOR COMMISSION STRATEGIC PLAN RECOMMENDATIONS April 14, 2025 3 contain the necessary safety equipment to safely navigate the harbor. The Harbor Commission recognizes that increasing the frequency of inspections and the criteria for what is inspected could add significant costs to the harbor patrol staffing budget. Harbor Commission recommends exploring options to perform the inspections with anticipated costs for future consideration.
10. Recommended Objective: Divide the existing Basin I leasehold into five or six smaller direct leases with the City.
Rationale: The existing Basin 1 leasehold represents the largest master leasehold within the waterfront and consists of a variety of uses comprised of restaurants, apartments, offices, gym, marina, boat yard, and yacht club. The Harbor Commission recommends breaking the leasehold into smaller leases unique to each use in an effort to pair expert property managers with the respective use. In doing so, redevelopment of each use can occur a more efficient manner.
11. Recommended Objective: Explore necessary weatherproofing improvements to the roof along International Boardwalk.
Rationale: The Harbor Commission and staff have heard feedback from the tenants of International Boardwalk regarding water leaks coming from the roof during inclement weather.
Harbor Commission recommends staff explore options to either replace the roof seal or perform an ongoing maintenance program that solves the issue over time.
12. Recommended Objective: Improve overall wayfinding, interior pathways, interior bike lanes, and bike amenities to better connect International Boardwalk to the marina surface parking lot.
Rationale: The Public Amenities Plan identifies improved signage/wayfinding and interior connections via pedestrians or bicycle to connect the spread-out nodes within the harbor.
Harbor Commission recommends starting around Mole D. As Mole D continues to improve with projects for Seaside Lagoon, the new boat launch, a new pedestrian promenade, and more, staff should continue to explore avenues to implement more wayfinding signage and more bike amenities as projects come on line.
13. Recommended Objective: Implement one dinghy dock within Basin III within the next six months.
Rationale: The Public Amenities Plan identifies dinghy docks as a mechanism to attract visiting vessels to the King Harbor marina to frequent the many businesses offered nearby.
Sincerely,
On behalf of the Harbor Commission,
Greg Kapovich
Waterfront & Economic Development Director
HARBOR COMMISSION STRATEGIC PLAN RECOMMENDATIONS April 14, 2025 4