Torrance OKs Business Park Despite Community Protests

Despite opposition from neighborhood residents, the Torrance City Council has approved construction of a new business park on a former school site in a central area of the city.

The council approved rezoning of the 8.8-acre Grace Wright school site on a 4-3 vote last week after hearing two houres of protest from area residents concerned about increased traffic, noise and air pollution from the project.

The development plan calls for nine low-rise office buildings and a self-storage center just west of Hawthorne Boulevard between Del Amo Boulevard and Spencer Street. The rezoning won approval after council members imposed conditions to minimize the project’s impact on nearby residences.

“This kind of blighting development of our neighborhood needs to stop,” said resident Fran Quinlan, who argued that the one- to three-story buildings would damage the neighborhood and cast shadows on nearby homes.

Residents of the adjacent housing tract asked the council to deny the rezoning request, but City Atty. Stanley Remelmeyer warned against such action.

“This is a dangerous game to be playing,” Remelmeyer said. He said the city could not deny developer Karl Fechner a reasonable use of the land without buying the property.