Newsletter No. 73
- jeanadelsman4
- 19 minutes ago
- 6 min read
Chen and Kaji hit for lack of transparency.
Kaji's PV mindset.
El Retiro pushback.
Treasurer salary cut proposed.
The Parks and Recs Commission has hit the pause button on Mayor George Chen and District 1’s Jon Kaji’s push to bypass community input on renaming Columbia Park.
At its Nov. 12 meeting, the commissioners agreed that Chen and Kaji were trying to rush the process and asked staff to research the issue, which includes reaching out to residents for their thoughts.
Community interest in the issue is high. The Commission’s regular meeting spot in the West Annex was switched to the much larger City Council chambers because staff foresaw the larger-than-usual turnout.
If you have not been following the controversy, here is the background:
A while back, residents got emails seeking input on city parks, primarily Columbia. The possibility of renaming Columbia Park was never suggested. Then Chen called for an ad hoc committee to discuss the parks. The meeting was not well-publicized and was held midday on a weekday, which further decreased the likelihood of a large turnout.
Since both Chen and Kaji’s re-election support among their Asian-American base is slipping for many reasons, they thought they had the perfect way to win back voters’ support: Champion the renaming of Columbia Park for Torrance native Ted T. Tanouye, who died in World War II and received the Congressional Medal of Honor posthumously. Chen, Kaji and District 5’s Aurelio Mattucci pushed to fast-track the renaming. But they lacked a fourth vote.
As it turns out, based on the feedback I was getting even before the meeting, residents are seeing this for what it is: an attempt for Kaji and Chen to gain re-election votes.
Unfortunately, none of the three is good at doing homework, or they would have foreseen the problems they had created by their lack of transparency.
Residents were shocked to see the Oct. 7 Council agenda item for the Ad Hoc Naming of Public Facilities Committee’s recommendation to rename Columbia Park for Tanouye.
Let me start by saying that, personally, I have the greatest respect for Tanouye and believe he deserves all the recognitions he has gotten. I also would be in favor of renaming the park to recognize the contributions of the Japanese-American community and to point out how they were undeservedly victimized during WWII.
However, the plan currently on the table is not the best choice.
District 4’s Sharon Kalani at the Oct. 7 meeting pointed out that the mayor was bypassing the process for renaming city properties. Chen should have directed the Parks and Rec Commission to review the recommendation before it came to the Council. Mattucci protested that no further input was needed because this was such an obviously good idea.
District 2’s Bridgett Lewis, District 3’s Asam Sheikh and District 6’s Jeremy Gerson agreed with Kalani, which is why the commission had the opportunity to get public input.
And the public did protest.
Former Mayor Pat Furey told me he reminded the commission that, in setting up Seaside Heroes Park, “we had several commission meetings and council meetings that addressed the naming of the park. And it worked – all parties walked away happy. And no one felt it was rammed down their throats like this debacle.”
Marianne Hamada, who also addressed the commission, told me: “As president of the North Torrance Neighborhood Assn., our membership is disappointed that once again Councilmember Kaji chose to bypass his constituents for their input. We would have worked with him to better understand what his constituents want for the park.”
At the commission meeting, Gail Morgan, first vice president of the Ted T. Tanouye Foundation, used her one minute of speaking time to list the reasons for not naming the park for the hero.
Before the meeting she told me in greater detail about the foundation. It was formed about 25 years ago by Torrance High graduates who sought recognition for Tanouye. Gary Kuwahara, a former Torrance Unified School Board member, was among their principals.
The foundation worked to have a park near Torrance High named for him and to ensure his name topped both the City’s Names on the Wall monument and the California Guard Armory’s signage.
Tanouye’s siblings were so impressed with the foundation’s accomplishments they told the group they could officially speak for the family. But his brother, who went by the nickname Easy, said Ted had, by that point, received three honors and “that’s enough.” That’s one reason the foundation is encouraging any name change honor others.
Who are the candidates?
One suggestion: Name the park for the Japanese-American family who owned the land before they were sent to an internment camp.
Another thought: Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi would like recognition for all the area Japanese-Americans who were unfairly imprisoned. A wall of their names is planned for the park. Renaming it to recognize them would be a bittersweet tribute.
If you would like to better understand the situation, check out David Kartsonis’ succinct post: https://youtube.com/shorts/Jk_siqD7JC8?si=DIbd3pUB4cGmu0Kr
Kaji’s PV mindset:
When the Council was reviewing fire code updates mandated by the state, Kaji asked about portions of Torrance bordering on the Peninsula, where he actually lives.
He suddenly appeared to realize that some might wonder about his inordinate interest in a Peninsula problem. So, he offered: “The only reason I raised it because I have gotten inquiries from constituents in District 5.”
People in the audience later told me they stifled their laughter.
Treasurer update:
Tim Goodrich still hasn’t announced whether he will seek re-election, but he has proposed a salary cut to take effect after the June election.
The Nov. 18 Council consent calendar includes his request that the treasurer’s salary be reduced from $5,424 per month to the Mayor and City Council’s salary at $2,860 per month.
How to make a difference:
The June election is the moment for taking back Torrance by ensuring wins for the Good Government 4 – Sharon Kalani, Betty Lieu, David Kartsonis and Asam Sheikh. All residents can vote for Kalani for mayor, but only district residents will get to cast ballots for the other three.
Everyone, however, can donate money. The 2024 election with its heavy-handed PACs showed that money is needed now for the four candidates to get their messages out. If you are able, here are donation links for their websites:
El Retiro proposal gets pushback:
The Library Commission received largely negative input to the Open Plus proposal for El Retiro Library in the Hollywood Riviera. Essentially, the plan would have times when the library was open but unstaffed.
Riviera Homeowners President Libby Spatz, who is also a librarian, met with El Retiro’s manager to learn her point of view. In an email, Spatz told the commissioners:
“I firstly want to support the proposal of more standardized hours of operation for the library, which I currently find, as a member of the Riviera community, difficult to follow, with half-days of access staggered throughout the week.
“That said, the value that professional librarians provide to the public by knowing their collections and facilitating efficient access to authentic information should be considered the primary and necessary gateway to leveraging the benefits and services provided by libraries. Librarians deliver more services than checking out books! We offer guidance to curious minds, validation of fact-based resources, and referrals to materials that help advance awareness and understanding. Ideally, the library should be staffed as fully as possible, with the Open Plus program used to extend, not replace, staff services.”
The commissioners took note of all the comments at their Nov. 12 meeting but could not act because they lacked a quorum. The issue is on the Dec. 8 commission agenda. Anyone who would like to weigh in, should go to the Southeast Library, 23115 Arlington Ave., at 6 p.m.
How late was it?:
The Oct. 21 meeting ended at 10:29 p.m., and the Nov. 4 session was over before 7:25 p.m. These reasonable ending times have resulted from closed-session items being scheduled for an extra meeting almost every month.
Mark your calendars:
The City Academy of the Arts will have an open house with free performances, demonstrations and student and instructors’ arts and crafts for sale.
• 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Nov. 22 at the Torrance Cultural Arts Center, 3330 Civic Center Dr.
Destination: Art celebrates its 11th anniversary with free displays of art and refreshments.
• 3 to 5 p.m. Nov. 22 at 1815 W. 213th St., Suite 135, Torrance.
Before I go:
The City’s deadline for correspondence to be included in the Council’s pre-meeting public supplemental is 5:30 p.m. the Monday before the meeting. The Council will receive anything that comes in later before the meeting, but it won’t be posted until Wednesday. It will be at the top of the agenda.
You can also leave voicemails to be included as Oral Communications in the supplemental. Call 310-618-2404 to leave up to a two-minute recording that will be transcribed. Voicemails have the same deadlines as the emails.
Want to tell the City Council your opinion on an agenda item or address any concerns? The City has changed how to have your comments appear in an agenda item’s Staff Report. You should use the OneMeeting Public Portal at https://torranceca.primegov.com/public/portal?fromiframe=true.
Jean Adelsman
Feel free to share this email -- or tell friends about www.TakeBackTorrance.com. And if you email a response to jeanadelsman@yahoo.com, please indicate whether you are expressing a thought for my eyes only or whether I may share your comments with the whole audience.
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