10A
Date: January 13, 2026
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Aram Chaparyan, City Manager
By: Jin Chun, Public Engagement Manager | [email protected] Subject: City Manager – Accept and File Conceptual Report for International Program “Torrance Passport” and Discuss and Provide Direction on International Programming. Expenditure: None.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation of the City Manager that City Council:
1. Accept and file the conceptual report for the international program “Torrance Passport”; and
2. Discuss and provide direction on proposed international programming.
FUNDING
None required.
DISCUSSION
On September 23, 2025, City Council gave concurrence to bring back an item with recommendations for an event at the Torrance Cultural Arts Center that celebrates Torrance’s rich cultural diversity while showcasing the City’s local dining scene.
Through this review, staff identified several significant limitations to hosting a single, large-scale event at the Torrance Cultural Arts Center including:
• Venue Availability: The Torrance Cultural Arts Center is largely unavailable on desirable weekend dates due to existing reservations and commitments in fiscal year 2025-2026. • Restaurant Participation Challenges: Local restaurants expressed limited interest in off- site participation, primarily due to staffing shortages, increased setup costs, and difficulty maintaining food quality in temporary outdoor or booth environments. • Public Engagement Considerations: A weeknight event, one of the few remaining scheduling possibilities would present challenges in attracting broad public participation, reducing the potential success and visibility of the event.
Given these constraints, staff developed an alternative concept that better aligns with the Council’s goals while minimizing participation barriers. The proposed “Torrance Passport” program would offer a citywide, month-long culinary and cultural experience, encouraging residents and visitors to explore diverse local eateries and cultural offerings at their own pace. 1 City Council
January 13, 2026
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6 This concept maintains the original intent of celebrating Torrance’s cultural diversity and supporting local businesses, while providing a more sustainable, inclusive, and impactful model, one that distributes participation throughout the community rather than concentrating it into a single event or weekend.
The proposed Torrance Passport would run from March 29, 2026 to April 26, 2026 offering a month-long culinary and cultural experience across the City. A printable passport will be available online, with hard copies also offered at the California Welcome Center at Del Amo Fashion Center.
Participants are invited to visit 10 or more local events or restaurants, documenting each visit by noting the date and location in their passport. To enhance engagement, participants will be encouraged to take a selfie at each location and share it on social media using #TorrancePassport, allowing staff to collect and promote user-generated content throughout the campaign.
Discover Torrance, the City’s tourism bureau will partner with the City and host a raffle drawing at the California Welcome Center at Del Amo Fashion Center following the campaign using locally donated prizes. Each completed passport serves as one entry into the drawing, and participants may submit multiple completed passports for additional entries. Participants must bring their completed passport to the Welcome Center for verification.
The program would launch alongside the City’s Cherry Blossom Festival on March 29, 2026 providing immediate cultural kickoff with food vendors and performances at Columbia Park.
Over the following four weeks, participants can attend a variety of events, including:
• Torrance Civic Chorale – April 10, 2026
• Bunka Sai Festival – April 17-18, 2026
• Orchestra Collective of Mozart, Mendelssohn, and Montgomery – April 26, 2026 In addition, Torrance has 474 registered food establishments, including approximately 200 restaurants featuring international cuisine, giving residents and visitors a wide range of dining options to explore.
The Torrance Passport program provides meaningful economic benefits by driving foot traffic to restaurants, City programs and facilities, and businesses across the community. It promotes civic pride and tourism by positioning Torrance as the South Bay’s premier destination for global dining and cultural experiences. The program’s design remains highly cost-effective, leveraging existing City events, partnerships, and resources to maximize impact. 2