Redondo Beach residents press council over Metro right-of-way surveys, LRT proximity and geology

Residents urged the Redondo Beach City Council on Monday to press Metro for clearer information after survey notices and drone activity along the rail right-of-way raised safety and property concerns.

Holly Osborne told the council that residents in Redondo Beach and Lawndale received Metro flyers saying survey work would confirm property boundaries and that Metro staff would remain on Metro-owned property. Osborne said residents observed drone flights around Christmas and, because of perceived errors in Metro’s earlier documents, some homeowners hired their own surveyors to confirm property stakes. She said Metro’s plans appear to call for filling an embankment and building a high retaining wall immediately behind some backyards, and that diagrams she has shared with staff show a centerline for the nearest proposed LRT track only about 13 feet from adjacent houses. “If your neighbor wants to build a wall, it should be on their property, not yours,” Osborne said, and she urged the city to require soils engineering due to prior sinkhole activity near existing pipeline alignments.

Nikki Nigretti Mitchell (District 3) confirmed she and other residents received a Metro notice that survey work would begin Feb. 5 from about 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and that surveying would proceed from the Redondo Beach Marine Station south through Lawndale and Torrance to the Torrance Transit Center. Mitchell said Metro’s notice described surveyors remaining on Metro property and using survey equipment, photos and drones, but residents were asking the city to track geology and other environmental measurements the surveys should produce. She also asked the city to remove graffiti from the right-of-way that she said has lingered since before recent wildfires.

Both speakers asked the council to press Metro on boundary accuracy, the location of retaining structures, pipeline safety and subsurface stability before any right-of-way work that could affect private property. Osborne and Mitchell also referenced diagrams and photos they provided to the city; both asked for clear follow-up on survey results and any geotechnical findings.

City staff did not make a formal response during public comment beyond acknowledging receipt of the materials; councilmembers agreed to monitor the issue and place further discussion at an upcoming meeting.

Next steps: Residents said they will await Metro’s survey results and any geotechnical reports, and asked council staff to coordinate with Metro and to share information with affected property owners.