To: MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
From: TED SEMAAN, PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR
TITLE
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DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION TO PROVIDE DIRECTION REGARDING DEVELOPMENT OF SKATING FACILITIES AT PAD 10 (FORMER OCTAGON BUILDING SITE) AND PERRY PARK
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In response to direction from City Council after a recent report on the evaluation of five locations within existing City parks for potential development of skating facilities, staff was directed to develop a concept and seek input from the Harbor Commission regarding a sixth location. That location is the site of the former “octagon building” at the pier, also known as Pad 10. With this agenda item, staff is reporting back on comments received from the Harbor Commission meeting, and other updates regarding a skating facility at the Pad 10 location.
A conceptual plan for a skate facility at Pad 10 was developed by Spohn Ranch, Inc., who had developed the earlier analysis of the five parks. The combined report (see Attachment 1) was presented to the Harbor Commission on September 14, 2020. (Throughout that presentation, the location is referred to as Parcel 10, which is now corrected to Pad 10.) Spohn Ranch presented a skate facility concept emphasizing permanently installed and mostly concrete skating elements that could also be used for other purposes. The concept scored very favorably as compared to the other five sites analyzed and was estimated to cost $110,000 as a design-build project. The Harbor Commission voted 6 to 1 in favor of locating a facility at the Pad 10 location, but did have some concerns about operational and safety matters and maintaining the flexibility of the site for other uses.
The Harbor Commission recommended some changes to the concept to make better use of the existing concrete wall adjacent to the octagonal area, to keep the space flexible for other uses, replacing the dining tables now occupying the site, and to protect pedestrian traffic in the area. The Harbor Commission also recommended both an operations plan and a safety plan be developed for the facility to discuss issues related to ingress and egress of skaters through primarily pedestrian adjacent spaces, operating hours and enforcement, emergency access and similar items. Meeting minutes from the September 14, 2020 Harbor Commission meeting are included as Attachment 2.
Staff is seeking direction from the City Council direct staff to complete a design/build solicitation the next steps to install skate facilities at Perry Park and Pad 10, commensurate with the concepts and estimated costs presented in the work by Spohn Ranch. Staff is also seeking any additional input from the City Council regarding design, features, safety and operations plans and issues, audiences for public outreach or other guiding information for staff to include in the scope of work for these services.
BACKGROUND
On October 10, 2017, the City Council gave staff direction to investigate the feasibility of installing a skatepark in Dominguez Park. Funding for the project was included in the FY 2018-19 capital budget in the amount of $50,000. On July 10, 2018, the City Council approved a contract with Geo-Advantec, Inc. in the amount of $19,800 for geotechnical investigation to determine the suitability of the site for development. On December 4, 2018 the City Council heard a presentation on the results of the investigation and the feasibility and costs of developing a skatepark at Dominguez Park. The investigation determined that, while technically feasible, the cost to develop a skatepark at Dominguez Park was prohibitive due to extraordinary foundation requirements of building on top of the underlying landfill. The Council motion included direction that alternative sites be explored for both cost and feasibility of construction.
On January 15, 2019, the City Council heard a presentation from the applicant for redevelopment of the Galleria Mall in response to an appeal of the Planning Commission’s previous decision to approve the project. The applicant informed Council that the site plan had been refined to include a skate park element (in approximately 8,000 square feet.) The Council approved that modification.
During the budget hearings in June 2019, the City Council was presented with Budget Response Report No. 23 (BRR#23, attached), which included descriptions of skateboarding amenities and planning level estimates for several locations suggested by Mr. David Bernier, who has advocated for a skateboarding facility in the City as early as 2016. The motion to adopt the FY2019-20 budget included funding for further pursuit of concepts presented in BRR#23 in an amount of $100,000 from Subdivision Park Trust (Quimby) funds. On August 20, 2019, the City Council awarded a contract to Spohn Ranch, Inc. in the amount of $7,500 to prepare a feasibility study to further develop and evaluate the concepts presented in BRR#23.
On August 4, 2020, the City Council heard a presentation from Spohn Ranch, Inc. regarding a feasibility study of five site within existing City parks. Spohn Ranch studied sites at Franklin Park, Anderson Park, Perry Park, Czuleger Park and Lilienthal Park. The five sites studied were analyzed and ranked with respect to six criteria. The criteria are visibility, accessibility, suitability of the “design canvas”, barriers to being shovel-ready, supporting amenities and infrastructure, and environmental impacts. Several concepts were studied including a skate dot (500 to 2,500 sf), a skate spot (2,500 to 5,000 sf), a neighborhood skate park (5,000 to 15,000 sf) and a regional skatepark (exceeding 15,000 sf). In addition to the ranking, a cost estimate and timeline for construction were developed for each site. At that meeting City Council directed staff to develop a conceptual plan and analysis of a site at the pier known as Pad 10, with a cost similar to that of the conceptual plan for Czuleger Park, present it to the Harbor Commission for comments and return with recommendations about moving forward with development of projects at Perry Park and the Pad 10 site if determined to be favorable.
On August 18, 2020, the City Council awarded a $7,500 contract to develop a concept and analysis of a sixth location, and to begin public outreach for this location and the Perry Park location.
On September 14, 2020, the Harbor Commission heard a presentation of a conceptual design of a skating facility at the Pad 10 site, took public comments, provided their own comments and concerns and eventually voted (6-1) in favor of supporting a skate facility at the Pad 10 location. A copy of the minutes of that meeting is attached.
In response to the comments of the Harbor Commission, engineering staff consulted the Fire Department to solicit comments regarding safety and emergency response issues. The Fire Department’s Operations Chief expressed concerns regarding a possible increase in injuries from skateboarding and skater’s interaction with pedestrians and cyclists at and nearby the Pad 10 site and the difficulty of Fire Department vehicular access to the site. There was no objection to the site being used a skate facility by the Fire Department. The City also received a comment on the proposed location after the Harbor Commission meeting via the “Access Redondo” system (Attachment 3).
Some funding for development of the skateparks in Redondo Beach has been carried forward. Of the $150,000 of funds appropriated to date, approximately $115,000 is unspent. At the August 4, 2020 meeting, the City Council directed staff to develop an alternative to the Czuleger Park site, located at Pad 10 with a budget similar to that proposed for Czuleger Park, so that both the Perry Park facility and the Pad 10 facility could be advanced for public outreach and design/construction. The Czuleger Park estimate was shown as $45,000 to $70,000 and the Perry Park estimate was shown as just under $30,000, both for design/build services. As presented the concept for Pad 10 was estimated at $110,000 for design/build services. However, David Bernier, a long-time proponent of skate facilities in the City, provided testimony at the Harbor Commission meeting that the LA Kings organizations was willing to add $25,000 to the project at Pad 10. This brings the available budget to about $140,000 to cover estimated design/build services for skate facilities at Perry Park ($30,000) and Pad 10 ($110,000). Staff believes that, despite having no funding remaining in the project budget for work at other parks (Franklin and Anderson), moving forward with these two sites is within the intent of the Council’s approved motion from August 4, 2020.
In order to move forward, therefore, staff is recommending the City Council direct staff to complete a design/build solicitation for public outreach, design and construction of skate facilities at Perry Park and Pad 10, commensurate with the concepts and estimated costs presented in the work by Spohn Ranch. Staff further recommends that the City Council provide any additional input regarding design, features, safety and operations plans and issues, audiences for public outreach or other guiding information for staff to include in the scope of work for these services.
COORDINATION
This development of this report and the study of feasibility of the Pad 10 site was coordinated with the Waterfront and Economic Development Department, the Fire Department and the Harbor Commission.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact for the City to develop and complete a solicitation for design/build services for skate facilities. Once a design build contract is awarded, projects would be charged to the skatepark project, Job No. 30740. The cost of said contract will not be known until the solicitation is complete
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Funding |
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|
Expenditures |
|
|
Subdiv. Parks Trust Fund |
$150,000 |
|
Geotech at Dominguez Pk |
$ 19,800 |
|
LA Kings Foundation |
$ 25,000* |
|
Spohn Ranch Feas. Study |
$ 15,000 |
|
|
|
|
Available to Projects |
$140,200 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
$175,000 |
|
Total |
$175,000 |
* Pledged but not secured at this time.
APPROVED BY:
Joe Hoefgen, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
1. Updated Skate Facility Feasibility Report
2. Meeting minutes from the September 14, 2020 Harbor Commission
3. Public comment via “Access Redondo”