In this article last week, it was mentioned that at the upcoming Dec. 3rd RB City Council meeting, the council will be considering the General Plan update. One part of the council's review is setting the Floor Area Ratio (FAR) on all public zones. To clarify, the FAR in public zones is not just about BCHD. It's about determining details of the entire General Plan, which includes setting a new state-mandated requirement to set the FAR for all public zones in the city.
The article writer said that CEO Tom Bakaly had previously stated he wants as great a FAR as possible in order to put up the standalone allcove youth mental health center. The strategy had been to appeal to the very real need for helping youth with mental health issues by suggesting without an increased FAR, that help won't occur. The problem with that logic is the proposed area for the youth center was to be on Flagler and Beryl, an area zoned commercial, not public. So that point is irrelevant to this conversation. It's also irrelevant now given that Measure BC was voted down, so the funds aren't there to build that facility. The reality is they want the bloated FAR allowance to build a massive private residential care facility.
Beyond rejecting BCHD's special request, the council should recognize the importance of adhering to a consistent and reasonable FAR on all public zones. The one exception should be leaving as is the only currently existing FAR of 1.25 for City Hall and the Police Dept. Annex. In all other public zones, adhering to the suggested FAR of .5 or at most .75 is critical and directly affects the look and feel of our city forever. Our city is built out. Redondo residents should impress this fact on the City Council on Dec. 3.
Lara Duke
Redondo Beach
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