• April 2 responses to questions sent to SBPD on April 1:
When will the 2018 part one crime statistics be available?
Sgt. Michael Henderson, public information officer for th Seal Beach Police Department, said:
“These statistics have been sent to the DOJ and will likely be published at that end of this month.”
According to the California Department of Corrections, Scott Durzo [sentenced last month to three years in prison for 17 counts related to child sex abuse] will be eligible for parole in June 2021. Will SBPD be notified when he is released?
“As he will likely be a registered sex offender, the city of residence will be notified,” wrote Sgt. Henderson.
What advice does SBPD have for parents on protecting their children from predatory adults they meet through youth programs?
“The Seal Beach Police Department recommends that parents take the time to educate their children about predatory adults. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children has some excellent education programs available. The website link is; http://www.missingkids.com/education,” wrote Sgt. Henderson.
• Police Services Study: Seal Beach Police Sgt. Nick Nicholas said on Monday, March 25, that SBPD command staff is reviewing the Police Services Study and does not have an ETA for when it is available. His response came the same day the Sun emailed a question to SBPD about the status of the study.
The Seal Beach City Council commissioned the Matrix Consulting Group to conduct the study in April 2018.
On April 1, Sgt. Michael Henderson said: “There is no movement on the Police Services Study, as we are still reviewing the final document.”
• Parking enforcement: A Sun proofreader wanted to know if the police would use GPS or chalk as part of parking enforcement. On March 25, Seal Beach Police Commander Steve Bowles emailed the following: “We will use both if needed.”
• Traffic enforcement in Leisure World: Seal Beach Police Sgt. Nick Nicholas, said on Monday, March 25, that the issue of Seal Beach PD traffic enforcement in Leisure World is still being researched.
• Organic waste recycling: According to Assistant City Manager Patrick Gallegos, Seal Beach is not out of compliance with state-mandated organic wastee recycling. Seal Beach has an extension to implement the program. He said Seal Beach isn’t the only city in that position.
• Red Car: The Seal Beach Historial Society leases the land on which the Red Car Museum stands from the city of Seal beach. According to Assistant City Manager Patrick Gallegos, the historical society has jurisdiction over the Red Car Museum.
The issue has come up because of local concerns about the state of the Red Car Museum.
• First Street narrowing: On Monday, March 11, Carla Watson raised concerns about what she described as the narrowing of First Street as a result of construction at the former DWP property now known as Ocean Place.
The Sun recently asked city officials to clarify whether the First Street will be narrowed, widened, or left unchanged as a result of the current construction related to the former DWP property now owned by Shea Homes.
On Wednesday, March 20, Assistant City Manager Patrick Gallegos emailed the following to the Sun:
“Here’s a more detailed response to your question about the work being performed on First Street, specifically with the design:
“The street is approximately 40 feet wide between Ocean and Central Way. The street north of Central Way starts at 40 feet in width and transitions to about 80 feet in width at the Marina intersection. The plan is to rebuild the section of First Street from Central Way to Marina to be 40 feet wide just like the section south of Central Way.”
• More on tables on the beach: City staff is looking at getting local authorization to put picnic benches/tables on the Beach.
As the Sun reported in March, Seal’s application to the California Coastal Commission to put picnic tables on the beach was withdrawn in August 2017.
District One Councilman Joe Kalmick recently said city staff is talking about other approaches, including possibly doing it through a Local Coastal Program.
To over-simplify things, a Local Coastal Plan transfers some of the California Coastal Commission’s authority to a local community. LCPs require Coastal Commission authorization. Seal Beach has been working on getting one completed and approved for years. Former District One Councilman Charles Antos worked on the Seal Beach LCP project.
• Drones in Seal Beach: Asked on Feb. 18 and March 26: Has the city developed policies for flying drones? On March 26, Patrick Gallegos wrote, “The City does not currently have a drone policy. However, Assembly Member Jacqui Irwin has introduced AB 1190 in an attempt to establish a statewide regulatory scheme on the use of drones. Here’s a link to the bill: http://www.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB1190
