What a great month it has been to be a volunteer at Seal Beach Animal Care Center. We are celebrating its 25th anniversary and had a wonderful Gala that raised $55,000. The City of Seal Beach recognized the founding members of this life saving organization and the volunteers are feeling all of the positive vibes from our own “Mayberry by the Sea.”
Meanwhile, the Seal Beach City Council recently voted to rezone the area known as “The Accurate Storage Site” from “commercial” to “residential.” The change would allow 90, low to moderate income housing units on the property between the Seal Beach Police Department and Boeing. With the cross streets being Seal Beach Boulevard and Adolpho Lopez Drive, the Accurate Storage Site is also near the Seal Beach Animal Center.
Four council members voted “yes” to rezone the property. Only Councilwoman Ellery Deaton from District One voted against it. One more vote will be taken on June 24 to decide the question. The Seal Beach Planning Commission is not recommending the rezoning and most of the residents speaking at council meetings said they are against it. Residents of nearby Heron Point and local activists say they are unhappy with the plan. Also against it are many of my fellow Seal Beach Animal Care Center volunteers.
On June 10, the Care Center celebrated 25 years to the day that it opened its doors. Many of the same local residents from that era are still in town. They mingle daily with numerous other current or past animal shelter volunteers. Meanwhile, improvements to the Seal Beach Animal Care Center property showcase the efforts of the local Lions Club, The Leos, Women’s Club of Seal Beach, Seal Beach Chamber of Commerce, LOTE and the Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts. Many an Eagle Scout badge has been earned through service projects at and around the animal shelter.
Also on June 10, the Seal Beach City Council recognized the efforts of some of the Seal Beach Animal Care Center’s founding members. During the same city council meeting, two people addressed the Accurate Storage Site rezoning issue. I spoke against it as a taxpayer and animal shelter volunteer. The other speaker quite clearly stated one fact: Seal Beach Boulevard is the only way out of town for Seal Beach residents of Old Town, The Hill, The Coves, and Heron Point. In the event of an emergency that would collapse the bridges at each end of town on Pacific Coast Highway, of course all animals and volunteers would be impacted, as would all emergency vehicles (think fire trucks and ambulances). Do we really need 90 more families in that mix?
The City Council is charged with identifying an area in town for about 14 units of housing for people of low to moderate income. There is no obligation to develop these units. The State of California only requires them to identify where they could be built. Why is it necessary to allow for 90 housing units to comply with a state mandate requiring 14?
This is Seal Beach. If you rezone it they will come. If those 90 units were developed, the votes of the residents living in them would be a powerful lobby. When the “noise” complaints start (inherent in that location, despite the animal shelter’s “good neighbor” policies) the only area the sitting city council members would have any control over is the part occupied by the animal shelter—not the police station or the Navy base. The shelter would be choked out and the efforts of all past volunteers would be nothing but a nice memory.
The many dogs and cats at the shelter are at risk with this decision. They are unable to speak for themselves to the City Council. You could speak for them at the Seal Beach City Council meeting at 7 p.m. on June 24. In the meantime, you could Contact your City Council representative and let them know how you feel. Their contact information is available at the city’s website at www.sealbeachca.gov/government/council/.
Sharman Snow is a longtime Seal Beach resident and volunteer for the Seal Beach Animal Care Center.
