Here is the real estate agents’ online listing of the Redondo Beach AES Power Plant property. It appears innocent enough, except it states that the zoning is “Generating Plant”.  Any zoning change to that property is subject to approval by vote of the Redondo Beach residents.  So, an unwitting prospective purchaser would think that the local unsophisticated Redondo Beach resident rubes would be happy to vote for a zoning change in favor of a giant residential/mixed-use development (hundreds of condos) in place of a big ugly power plant.

In reality, the zoning of the AES Redondo Beach Power Plant is actually “Park”, with a conditional use permit as “Public Utility, Power Generation”. If a public utility does not get city approval to use the property as a power generation facility (already a dead deal – the regional power authority/grid has stated they will not buy the power), then the zoning is as a park.

So the choice faced by Redondo Beach residents presented with a zoning change by the developer will be the choice to vote between either keeping it zoned as a park or to vote for zoning allowing it to be developed as traffic-generating high-density residential and commercial (mixed-use) – hundreds of condos etc.

In other words, another ReCondo Beach ballot measure battle may be ahead of us if some developer is foolish enough to believe the zoning details of this property listing.

Any developers who bid on the AES Redondo Beach power plant property should make themselves aware that Redondo Beach residents have no appetite for residential development on this property – or any other development that will generate traffic, congestion, or block ocean views.  Redondo Beach residents have defeated multiple attempts to rezone this property, with widening voter margins, including Heart of the City in 2002, Measure B in 2015, and more.  Recently, AES spent more than $1.2 million to promote Measure B rezoning to the voters, and it still failed.  Beware: Redondo Beach is ready to take you on!