The Seal Beach City Council members ratified the appointments to the new Citizen-Council Parking Advisory Ad Hoc Committee at the council’s Monday, Aug. 14 meeting.
The committee members include a Los Angeles parking official who lives in town, and a member of the planning commission.
It took two votes to appoint five citizens to the committee. The first vote approved four citizen representatives to the city’s parking committee. However, District Two Council Member /Mayor Tom Moore requested an alternative to District Three Councilwoman Lisa Landau’s original selection of Brian Kyle to the committee. Landau did not object.
The Sun texted Kyle to request a comment.
“I’m in Ireland and will have a lot to say when I return,” Kyle wrote. He wrote that he hoped they had their radar up.
“Thank God Mayor Moore caught this and insisted on a committee.” Kyle said in a phone interview from Ireland.
Kyle indicated he was opposed to paid parking on Main Street. He said the city manager wants to put revenue from parking into the General Fund.
Appointments
Twelve individuals applied for five seats on the committee. Members did not have to live in the same district as the council member who appointed them.
This was the first item on the agenda after presentations and public comment.
After City Clerk Gloria Harper presented the staff report, Moore read from a prepared statement.
“I would like to thank my council colleagues for their appointments to the ad hoc committee,” Moore said.
“However, one of the appointments, Mr. Kyle, is the owner of a business that uses the First Street parking lot. The committee’s recommendations on Main Street parking could have an impact on the city’s beach lots, including the First Street lot, and the city’s also in active litigation with the First Street business. Under these circumstances, I do not feel that it is appropriate to approve this appointment to the ad hoc committee,” Moore said.
“I would like to entertain a motion to ratify the four residents appointed to the committee by council members Kalmick, Steele, Mayor Pro Tem Sustarsic, and myself,” Moore said.
“And if Council Member Landau is prepared to appoint an alternate candidate to the committee, we can entertain that appointment now,” Moore said.
“Otherwise, the council can consider her appointment at a future meeting,” Moore said.
“Mr. Kyle will also be permitted to attend committee meetings in order to share his views about parking,” Moore said.
Multiple staff reports on the parking committee confirm that the committee’s meetings will be open to the public.
Moore was not the first person to object to Kyle’s appointment that evening. During the public comment part of the meeting, a woman who did not identify herself by name said she was opposed to Kyle’s appointment. The woman said this was a blatant conflict of interest and went against Landau’s assertions during the District Three election that Landau would not involve herself in anything related to the Beach House restaurant.
Earlier, during the council comment part of the meeting, Landau said she chose Kyle for the parking committee because he has been a resident for more than 70 years and a Main Street business owner for more than 50 years. Landau appeared to be reading a prepared statement. “We were looking for people who have experience with Main Street and its needs,” Landau said.
“He was one of the original architects of the Main Street Specific Plan, and has been on two parking committees in the past,” Landau said.
Landau also said it was unclear to her what the Beach House lawsuit had to do with parking on Main Street.
When it was time for the council to discuss the committee appointments, District Five Councilman Nathan Steele made a motion to appoint four of the parking committee members, who he identified by name.
District One Council Member Joe Kalmick seconded the motion.
The first vote was unanimous.
Moore asked Landau if she had an alternate candidate.
Landau named Tim Rathmann of District One.
The council unanimously approved Rathmann’s appointment.
Citizens on the committee
• According to his application, Rathmann is a geologist/environmental engineer who has lived in Seal Beach off and on since 2013.
“I currently live in Old Town and I want to help the City with solutions to parking which can be a big issue, especially on weekends,” Rathmann wrote. Rathmann has an office on Main Street.
• District One (Old Town) Council Member Kalmick appointed Matthew Terry of District One. “I am a licensed architect in the state of California, so parking expertise is somewhat of a byproduct of the profession in this state,” Terry wrote.
• District Five (Leisure World) Councilman Nathan Steele appointed Planning Commissioner Margo Wheeler of Leisure World. “As Community Development Director in several Southern California [cities], I have supervised the completion of Downtown revitalization plans and ‘main street’ parking studies,” Wheeler wrote.
“I chose Margo Wheeler because of her knowledge of city planning and park-ing. She’s been in and around city governments for decades. She is well-known and widely respected in the professional and certified City Planning associations,” Steele wrote.
• District Four Council Member Schelly Sustarsic appointed Bill McDannel of District Four. “Most recently as a director with the Boat Owners Association I have been involved with parking planning with the city of Long Beach,” McDannel wrote.
“The city [of Long Beach] is planning 3 major new developments which will impact boat owner parking,” McDannel wrote.
“I selected Mr. McDannel as my nominee for the parking committee for a few reasons. He is a long-time resident of District 4, who is very familiar with parking on Main Street,” Sustarsic wrote.
“Mr. McDannel was involved with the City of Long Beach’s planning process for parking between the new PCH & 2nd development and the Alamitos Bay Marina. He also loves Seal Beach,” Sustarsic wrote.
District Two (Leisure World and College Park West) Council Member Moore appointed Kenneth Husting of District Three.
Husting is the principal transportation engineer/parking administrator for the city of Los Angeles, according to his application.
“Responsible for five parking divisions charged with managing and maintaining citywide parking operations and assets including 110 parking facilities, and 36,000 on-and off-street metered spaces,” Husting wrote.
“He has parking experience being in charge of parking for Los Angeles and is also a Seal Beach resident that frequently parks on Main [S]treet,” wrote Moore.
Officials on the committee
Also on the committee will be District Two Council Member/Mayor Tom Moore and District One Council Member Joe Kalmick. Moore, who terms out in 2024, proposed a moratorium on paid parking on Main Street before proposing the creation of the parking committee. That proposal did not succeed. Kalmick, who terms out in 2026, opposed the creation of the parking committee.
The Seal Beach Chamber of Commerce appointed Rob Jahncke, a past president and owner of the Main Street Javatini’s, to represent the Main Street business community.
City Manager Jill Ingram or someone she designates will also serve on the parking committee. Ingram did not name anyone during the council meeting. Ingram did not name that person during the meeting, but did so in a Wednesday, Aug. 16, email:
“Chief Michael Henderson will be the staff liaison to the Citizen- Council Parking Advisory Ad-Hoc Committee,” Ingram wrote.
