Writing Shotgun

DELONG, DANA (AND THEIR CONSTITUENTS) UNREPRESENTED AT BREAKWATER FORUM

Dave WielengaSat. December 01
 

Six of Long Beach’s nine City Council members got out of bed early this morning to attend the Breakwater Forum, a public update and discussion of the city’s $100,000 investigation into a possible breakwater configuration. The recurring theme was a growing realization of how massive a task Long Beach is undertaking. The word “unprecedented” was used a lot.

Perhaps just as notable, however, were two no-shows–Councilmember Gary DeLong and Congressman Dana Rohrabacher, who represent the coastal neighborhoods that would be most affected by any alteration of the 2 1/2 mile wall of boulders that calms the waterfront.

Fourth District Councilmember Patrick O’Donnell organized the Breakwater Forum, bringing together experts, officials and several dozen constituents at the Aquarium of the Pacific at 8:30 on a Saturday morning. O’Donnell and Eighth District Councilmember Rae Gabelich were the original proponents of the reconnaissance study — approved in July by a 7-1 council vote, DeLong dissenting – to determine the cost-effectiveness of modifying the breakwater, which so smothers wave action and tidal circulation that Long Beach’s ocean water quality is the worst in California.

California Coastal Coalition executive director Steve Aceti provided an overview of the reconnaissance process, while Tom Modica, who is handling the issue for the Long Beach city manager’s office, gave a detailed progress report. Both speakers emphasized the difficult hurdles Long Beach must clear in the coming months, thanks to its unprecedented — there’s that word, again — decision to pay for the study itself.

“Usually, this is done by the Army Corps of Engineers with a congressional earmark,” said Aceti, “but Long Beach decided to take the bull by the horns.”

According to Modica, Long Beach didn’t really have any other choice.

“The city submitted a request to Congressman Rohrabacher,” said Modica, “but he was not supportive of federal funding for that purpose.”

Gabelich vouched for Modica’s account.

“I sat there with Modica and Rohrabacher,” she said, “and the congressman was very clear that we would have to find other funding.”

But footing the $100,000 bill is not the most problematic part of Long Beach’s back-door approach. Because such studies have always been funded by the federal government, that is the only kind of payment the Army Corps of Engineers can accept. Long Beach’s money may literally be no good with them.

Instead, Long Beach is hoping to hire an outside consultant to mimic an Army Corps study and submit it to the Corps for approval. Modica said he is receiving help from the Corps staff in that effort, but nobody seems to know if, at the end of the process, it will have been a waste of time.

“Any time you are advocating for what is right, I don’t think you are wasting your time,” said O’Donnell, who suggested that greater public involvement could sway the outcome. “There is the policy level, and then there is also a political level. We need a greater groundswell of support.”

 The other council members who attended the Breakwater Forum were Suja Lowenthal, Bonnie Lowenthal, Tonia Reyes Uranga and Val Lerch.

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COMMENTS

  1. 1

    While I personally favor the removal of the breakwater, I find the water-quality argument a bit of a red herring and certainly not well documented. Plenty of beaches without breakwaters are persistently less clean than the city’s. Heal the Bay’s 2006-07 report naming Long Beach the worst in the state even noted that it was an unusual event. Typically, ocean-water quality here is decent. Our worst beaches are in Alamitos Bay and Colorado Lagoon, not on the ocean.

    If we’re being honest and not trying to prop up some questionable “green” front, the main arguments in favor of the dismantling are aesthetic and recreational - and of, course, it probably would raise property values. Those are perfectly good reasons to favor taking it down. .

    The sticking point for me would be potential harm to the port. It would be hard to justify the change if it ruined the engine of the local economy. I’m hoping the feasibility studies provide some clarity on that issue.

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    Posted By grendl2000 on December 2nd, 2007 at 10:49 pm

     

  2. 2

    There certainly is no shortage of filthy ocean water along California’s coast and Long Beach’s reigning reputation for the filthiest was indeed sudden and as yet not totally explained. But we won’t really know until this year whether it was a one-time aberration or the new status-quo.

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    Posted By Dave Wielenga on December 3rd, 2007 at 8:26 am

     

  3. 3

    Thank you District Weekly for keeping an eye on Dana Rohrabacher. Of all the areas he represents, I believe Long Beach is on the bottom of his list. He is our Congressman, so I would like him to explain how mitigation credits were given to the ports of LA & LB in exchange for funding for the Bolsa Chica Wetlands restoration (in Rohrabacher’s home city of HB) while worthy environmental needs exist in LB (Los Cerritos and the LA River for example).

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    Posted By LBfamily on December 3rd, 2007 at 3:36 pm

     

  4. 4

    It’s too bad this wasn’t posted until 7:55 Saturday night. This would have been extremely heckle-worthy at the Belmont Parade.

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    Posted By Middlebrow on December 3rd, 2007 at 7:15 pm

     

  5. 5

    Our mitigation credits have gone anywhere but Long Beach for decades, ask Don May or the old timers and lawyers. Way up North, as South as Mexico, why?? This has been so a handful of the old guard/bancap guys, we have long heard, could try again to develope big pieces of the Wetlands. Most say DeRong was basically ‘hired’ to carry this brief, as he has tried ? In 2 patently ineffectual, tax dollar wasting years, ..the Wetlands Home Depot, Lennars pullout, the abandoned pumpkin patch Mall over highly toxic City Dump #1, the defeat of his SEADIP star chamber,( which we have big future plans to pound on), and far more, have hopefully taught them a lesson or two?

    . We, the majority, pay for the party in City Hall, and we must be ever vigilant when ‘one termers’ like DeSchlong, seek to , or strive largely to, at our expense, pay back their comittee to elect This little click of the Old Guard, are rarely subtle. Their sometimes,insatiable appearing greed , is often their worst enemy. How much dough does the Viagra crowd need? Do they have any shame at re- designing our beloved town to where we now have the worst air in America? Oh ya, most of them have homes in the desert, Hawaii, Catalina…etc.
    Many of us have millions, homes, cars, and the rest, but prefer to be good stewards of this land? Good neighbors?Humble? Enlightened?Fair?Respectful?

    One of them actually cornered then Vice Mayor Colonna, during his Matoral run, stating” If you don’t support this Home Depot, (for example)….you’ll never be Mayor in this town.” His loss falsely appears to have emboldened them?

    Another,’brit’, then paraded around DeRong as he ran for Counsel,claiming, at the Yacht Club, that he would return ‘Logic’…to the area if elected.. Highly illogical if you ask us? We have to boot this guy. He belongs back in PV, where he came up, and should have stayed.

    As for all of these endless Ethics scandals, Long Beach Councilmembers, Planning Comissioners, and more, desparately need to adopt the ‘disclose any and all ‘Ex Parte’ communications rule that we Coastal Advocates, lawyers,etc. rely upon for fairness and objectivety. All Coastal Comissioners must publically state, before hearing any matter, who they have talked to, when, why and what was said, or, recuse themselves, by not voting, to avoid an appearance of impropriety. Just trying to talk to one brings an admonition that anything relating to a pending matter will be publically disclosed. Nice !!

    Around here, the influence peddlers generally , and quietly, retire campaign debt after an election. Sadly, they often talk politicians into eventual career destruction, defeat and disgrace of sorts. And the band played on.

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    Posted By Disgusted as usual on July 21st, 2008 at 10:07 pm

     

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