TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Talyn Mirzakhanian, Acting City Manager
FROM:
Erick Lee, Public Works Director
Katherine Doherty, City Engineer
Jeff Fijalka, Principal Civil Engineer
SUBJECT:Title
Lot 3 Parking Structure Local Emergency Update (Public Works Director Lee).
DETERMINE THAT THERE IS A NEED TO CONTINUE THE EMERGENCY ACTION
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Recommended Action
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council determine, by four-fifths vote, that there is a need to continue the emergency action.
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FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
The estimated cost for demolition and replacement of the Lot 3 Parking Structure (Lot 3) with an at-grade parking lot is projected to be approximately $3,000,000. Pursuant to Manhattan Beach Municipal Section 3.08.060.A.6.c, the emergency demolition and replacement phase will be done through an emergency contract and may be partially funded with funds available in the Parking Fund. The emergency contract, associated costs, and any necessary budget appropriations will be brought to City Council at a future date for ratification. In addition to the appropriation from the Parking Fund, it is anticipated that another funding source will need to be identified.
BACKGROUND:
Lot 3 is a City-owned facility at the southwest corner of Morningside Drive and 12th Street in Downtown Manhattan Beach. The 3-story structure was constructed in 1971 and contains 146 parking spaces critical to visitors and businesses in the Downtown area. In June 2024, City staff elected to close the structure indefinitely, following a series of onsite inspections and structural assessments indicating that advanced deterioration had significantly compromised the integrity of the structure. At the September 3, 2024, Regular City Council Meeting, City Council adopted Resolution No. 24-0105 declaring a local emergency at the Lot 3 Parking Structure and authorizing the City Manager to secure, demolish, and replace the structure.
In addition to adopting Resolution No. 24-0105, City Council directed staff to explore means to expedite the work, which may include, but is not limited to, extending construction work hours. Furthermore, City Council directed staff to discontinue temporary shuttle services and to identify and/or create additional parking spaces within walking distance of the Downtown area. City Council also directed staff to suspend parking restrictions in the Hill Section. Additional discussions included considering alternate locations for the Farmer’s Market, providing a shuttle service for special events, and evaluating the potential for valet parking.
Per Resolution No. 12-6422, which was adopted by City Council on December 4, 2012, in the event of an emergency, the City Manager is authorized to take action during an emergency pursuant to California Public Contract Code Section 22050. Section 22050 provides that the City Manager may order the repair of public facilities without advertising for bids when the repair is in the public interest and necessitates the immediate expenditure of public money to safeguard life, health, or property.
California Public Contract Code Section 22050 requires that if the City Manager orders an emergency action, the governing body shall initially review the emergency action at its next regularly scheduled meeting and at least at every regularly scheduled meeting thereafter until the action is terminated, to determine, by a four-fifths vote, that there is a need to continue the action. This staff report serves as the update required by Section 22050.
DISCUSSION:
Following the September 3, 2024, City Council meeting, City staff coordinated the completion of the temporary shoring within the Lot 3 structure and met with Southern California Edison to discuss the abandonment of electrical services at the location. Staff also solicited a proposal for a topographical survey, as well as a survey to investigate the presence of lead and asbestos within the facility. Additionally, staff held an onsite pre-proposal meeting with a group of demolition contractors to review the scope of the demolition and answer questions related to the execution of the work. To date, proposals for the demolition have been requested from seven contractors. All proposals will be due on Wednesday, September 18, 2024, after which time staff will review the submissions and expedite the execution of a contract with the selected contractor.
Pursuant to City Council direction on September 3, 2024, staff has begun exploring options to increase the public parking supply in Downtown. Additional parking may be possible by modifying street parking on Valley Drive, Manhattan Avenue, Highland Avenue and Manhattan Beach Boulevard. Staff is exploring the possibility of valet or attendant parking in public parking lots, such as the Upper Pier lots and Lot 8. Staff is also reaching out to businesses with private parking lots to consider offering private paid parking or valet parking operations after business hours. Shuttles serving remote parking lots outside Downtown will be required for Downtown special events during the Lot 3 closure. Staff is developing a shuttle operation plan for City-sponsored special events. Ridesharing incentives and off-site parking for City employees are also being explored as a way to reduce parking demand and free up additional public parking spaces.
Additionally on Thursday, September 5, 2024, the 2-hour parking restriction signs were removed from the Hill Section. Mailers were sent to Hill Section permit holders and the business community to notify them of the change.
PUBLIC OUTREACH:
Formal public notice is not required for this item; however, the item was included in the agenda for this meeting, which was posted in accordance with the law. Additionally, staff has conducted significant outreach by speaking with businesses about parking impacts and coordinating communication and outreach with the Downtown Business and Professionals Association.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW:
The City has previously reviewed the proposed project for compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and has determined that the demolition of Lot 3 falls under the statutory exemption for Emergency Projects (State CEQA Guidelines Section 15269) because the demolition is necessary to address a clear and imminent danger and requires immediate action to prevent or mitigate loss of, or damage to, life, health, property, or essential public services. Because the existing structure overhangs the public right of way on three sides, collapse poses a threat to life, health, property and essential public services.
Additionally, the City has determined that the interim surface parking aspect of the project qualifies for the following categorical exemptions:
- Class 1 categorical exemption pursuant to Section 15301 (Existing Facilities) of the State CEQA Guidelines because the project would modify the ground floor of an existing parking facility to provide fewer parking spaces than the existing facility, thus resulting in no expansion of the existing use.
- Class 2 categorical exemption pursuant to Section 15302 (Replacement or Reconstruction) of the State CEQA Guidelines because the existing parking structure would be replaced with a flat parking lot with substantially the same purpose as the existing structure and substantially the same capacity as the ground floor of the existing structure.
- Class 4 categorical exemption pursuant to Section 15304 (Minor Alterations to Land) of the State CEQA Guidelines because grading necessary to accommodate a surface parking lot would occur at a lot that has less than 10 percent slope, is not in a waterway, wetland, or scenic area, and is not in officially mapped areas of geological hazard.
No further environmental review is necessary.
LEGAL REVIEW:
The City Attorney has reviewed this report and determined that no additional legal analysis is necessary.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Resolution No. 24-0105
2. Location Map