South Bay Echo for Feb 4
AES site goes to auction, public hearing for Sea Lab site, Bruce Family backlash, fishermen catch shark, sea lion rescued and RBYC closes
Welcome to the 48th edition of South Bay Echo, your source of local hometown news with a real estate angle.
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AES site set for public auction
The saga around the AES site just doesn’t ever seem to disappoint. In the latest dramatic wrinkle, due to being in default on mortgage payments, the 54-acre site will be auctioned to the highest bidder on Feb. 22. The auction will take place 11 a.m. by the fountain at 400 Civic Center Plaza in Pomona.
The announcement earlier this week, reported by the Easy Reader, came 90 days after a foreclosure notice was sent to Leo Pustilnikov and company for being $36 million behind in payments.
At the time, Leo told reporters it was a minor disagreement that would be resolved. This time around, he sounds a little less sure. AES says it’s pretty straightforward. These guys won’t pay their bill.
Personally, I think these fat cats are about ready to give up. They likely realize their attempts to strong-arm Redondo using the courts and a so-called “builders remedy” are not going to work. Better walk away now instead of dumping another $36 million. Leo is still saying there’s a chance this gets resolved but I’m doubtful.
I imagine they are waiting as long as they can to see if there is any hope. Chances are there is not and a giant park — call it Bill Brand Park — where the power plant now stands could still be in the cards.
Public hearing set for Sea Lab plan
In another waterfront item, plans to redevelop the Sea Lab property at 1021 N. Harbor Drive will have a public hearing at 6 p.m. Feb. 7 at the Redondo Beach City Council meeting. This project is also spearheaded by Leo Pustilnikov and company.
Plans call for a 35-unit residential condominium complex along with 8,574 square feet of retail and commercial uses. Residential uses are not currently permitted based on zoning at the site. The project was initially ruled incomplete by the Community Development Director and this is an appeal of that determination.
Let’s take a wild guess at how this is going to turn out. I’m gonna grab some popcorn.
Bruce family faces backlash
I was rather disgusted this week by reactions in the media to the Bruce family decision to accept a $20 million payout rather than somehow occupy an LA County Lifeguard building.
I don’t know why this was such a surprise to folks. It seemed quite obvious this situation would end with a cash payout and not actually taking possession of the land their family owned 100 years ago, although that was an option.
What were they supposed to do? Turn it into a museum of justice or a community center? Apparently that’s what some people had in mind.
I have mixed feelings about this case in general. On the one hand, it’s a beautiful thing. Making amends for past injustice shows a society that’s evolved. And it’s not unique. In Germany, survivors of the Holocaust are still paid reparations. On the other hand, this sort of thing is a giant slippery slope. We all know if the US started paying reparations for injustices, this great country of ours would be bankrupt in about two seconds.
What I completely do not understand, however, are those who want to shame the Bruce family such as broadcaster Tavis Smiley and Kavon Ward, the community activist who lit a fire under this story. In my view, these folks are using the Bruce family as a civil rights pawn to continue a fight they never asked for.
The family just wants to improve their lives while others just want to keep fighting even after they won. I hope the family thoroughly enjoys that $20 million bucks.
Fishermen reel in shark in Hermosa Beach
This was pretty wild. ABC7 featured a story earlier this week showing a group of fishermen reeling in a large shark in Hermosa Beach. Now that’s not something you see every day. I’ve seen a few sharks caught off the piers but nothing this big. Wowzers. Watch your toes.
Sea lion pup rescued by KHYC
Here’s the feel good story of the week. After an emaciated sea lion waddled into the kitchen at King Harbor Yacht Club, he quickly tugged at the heart strings of members who helped get him rescued.
The scrawny fella found its way to the kitchen by a warm stove around 9 p.m. Thursday Jan 26, according to the Daily Breeze. As he curled up for warmth, members didn’t quite know what to do. Sea lions can be dangerous. They have a strong bite and are often covered with harmful bacteria. So they called 9-1-1.
Police responded and eventually the pup was transported to the Marine Mammal Care Center in San Pedro where it will rehab for six to seven months before being released back into the ocean.
Redondo Beach Yacht Club calls it quits
After more than 60 years, the Redondo Beach Yacht Club will be closing its doors later this month for the final time. The club has existed since 1961.
What a shame it truly will be to see this club — the working man’s yacht club, as we like to call it — come to an end. The club just never seemed to recover after Covid. In the two years following there were no more happy hours, no more dinners and generally poor attendance.
A lack of organizational structure, declining membership and unpaid bills put the club in a financial bind. On top of this, the new owner of the marina leasehold, Allen Ginsburg, substantially increased rent on the club, which it could not make up.
No amount of pleading or reasoning would convince Mr. Ginsburg to give the club a break. I mean, it’s not like the guy doesn’t have any other income. Other clubs, such as Port Royal pay zero or a negligible rent because someone over there has a heart. Not so much in King Harbor Marina.
All for now… thanks for reading.
Bruce's Beach. And the comic relief goes on. I was and am against reparations on standing, statue of limitations and remedies. I consider my bill marked paid as my great great grandfather died in the Union forces the family was left w no generational wealth. Of course it's hilarious and predictable that the green poultice would create a fight over the spoils. I'm still waiting for the Tongva to show you up and file a claim. Yet the comic relief of Kavon Ward (didn't know about Tavis Smiley) being in high dudgeon over the Bruce family's sale of the property back to Mother County was their business. An asset is an asset and how they want to hold it whether real estate, cash, stocks and bonds is their business. I suspect it may have had something to do with capital gains as they held the property for less than a year. But Ward's thinking they should have done something for her having led at least some of the troops into battle is hilarious. The Bruces are to take marching orders from her? Ward is working up her Al Sharpton racketeering and extortion act. I suspect the Bruces and MLK are rolling in their graves over these stunts.
Agree with your comments about the Bruce family...........thanks