Knob Hill Lease to be Awarded Tuesday

The Redondo Beach Board of Education will choose which developer will be awarded the lease of the school district's property at the corner of Knob Hill and Pacific Coast Highway during a special meeting next Tuesday.

During its most recent Tuesday meeting, the board opened sealed bids for the property. Fountain Square Development West—whose plans call for an assisted-living facility on the site—submitted an initial bid of $505,000 annually. Via Almar Properties proposed a boutique hotel and condos with recreational facilities open to the public; the company's initial bid of $450,000 annually was the minimum allowed.

Once the bids were announced, a short bidding war between the two developers ensued, with Fountain Square bidding the highest amount at $614,250 annually.

The property at 320 Knob Hill Ave. has been the subject of debate for the past couple years since the city of Redondo Beach declined to renew its lease on the property. Many residents in the neighborhood want the property to remain zoned for a school, just in case another campus in South Redondo Beach is needed.

"We've been saying the same thing for a really long time now," said neighbor Kelly Martin, whose property is adjacent to the Knob Hill site. "(The property is) one of the last surplus properties still zoned as a school, and we feel strongly that it (should) be preserved as a school site."

Martin and school board member Todd Loewenstein both brought up Measure DD, which became part of the city charter several years ago. The measure requires that any major zoning changes be subject to a vote of Redondo Beach residents.

Due to a conflict with a Redondo Beach City Council meeting scheduled for Tuesday at 6 p.m., the special Board of Education will be held at 5 p.m. Tuesday.

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