CITY HALL ROUNDUP : The stormy fight is over: Redondo Beach couple can remodel their home.

HISTORIC HOOPLA: Tempers flared Tuesday as a split Redondo Beach City Council rejected the pleas of neighbors and gave Herman and Jackie Bose the go-ahead to remodel their 1908-vintage home on North Gertruda Avenue.

The 3-2 vote gave the Boses the right to add a second story and a garage to their house. Neighbors had argued that the proposed redesign is not in keeping with the period architecture of nearby homes.

“To hell with history in Redondo Beach,” Councilwoman Barbara J. Doerr said angrily as she voted against the majority.

The battle had taken on racial overtones as the Boses, the block’s only black homeowners, accused neighbors of unfairly singling them out for racial harassment.

Councilman Stevan Colin, who also opposed the remodeling, put the blame on the Boses, saying, “I don’t think the Boses are going to last on that street.”

But Colin’s colleagues distanced themselves from his words.

Mayor Pro Tem Kay Horrell said the Boses will be welcome in Redondo Beach, and Councilman Terry Ward added: “I apologize for anything offensive that was said up here tonight.”

ON THE ROAD: Gardena Mayor Donald L. Dear was driving on the 91 Freeway a few months ago when he saw a sign that called it the “Redondo Beach Freeway.”

Something’s wrong, the mayor thought. This freeway ends in Gardena.

So Dear brought the matter before the City Council, drafted a letter to the California Department of Transportation and eventually urged Sen. Ralph C. Dills (D-Gardena) to introduce a name-change resolution in the Legislature.

Redondo Beach residents had better take one last crawl on the freeway in the coming months. The Legislature has granted the name change, and “Gardena Freeway” signs are on their way.

HUSH MONEY: Los Angeles International Airport is relaxing restrictions that have made it difficult for neighboring cities to qualify for funds aimed at girding neighborhoods against airport noise.

Under changes approved by airport officials last month, noise reduction grants that LAX gives Inglewood, El Segundo and other neighboring communities now will be eligible for federal matching funds. In addition, cities are no longer subject to a limit of $2 million annually from the airport and could receive as much as $5 million a year.

El Segundo did not receive any airport noise funds this year. Inglewood has been granted $3 million: $1 million to soundproof homes and $2 million to relocate families living beneath flight paths.

BACKDRAFT 2: Carson Mayor Michael I. Mitoma has been on the hot seat many times during his tenure on the City Council. But he has never felt heat like he did last week, when a broken fuel line in his 1984 Jaguar ignited a blaze that destroyed his car and partially burned his two-story home.

Mitoma said he vainly attempted to push the car out of his garage after noticing that gas on the floor was flowing toward a water heater, which erupted within minutes.

“It felt like the movie ‘Backdraft,’ ” Mitoma said. “It was real exciting there for a little while.”

Mitoma was treated Monday for minor injuries to his face and hands at County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.

Mitoma was critical of the 911 system, saying there may have been a delay in alerting the county Fire Department about the blaze. He asked the city’s Public Safety Department to investigate.

Despite the estimated $200,000 damage to his home and car, Mitoma maintained a sense of humor. During the council’s discussion Tuesday about a donation of a seized narcotics car to the Sheriff’s Department, he offered sheriff’s representatives an alternative.

“I’ve got a Jaguar you can borrow,” Mitoma said, adding that he was having a “fire sale.”

LAST WEEK’S HIGHLIGHTS

Carson: The City Council approved an ordinance requiring liquor stores, bookstores and other markets to keep adult magazines out of view of minors. In addition, such magazines must be covered so only the titles can be seen.

Inglewood: The City Council approved increases in various business taxes. The transient occupancy tax, or bed tax, will rise from 10% to 12%, and the annual apartment rental tax will double from $10 per unit to $20 per unit. Other business taxes will increase by 10%.

Redondo Beach: Council members gave themselves a 5% pay increase, raising their monthly salaries from $607.75 to $638.14, plus a $54 car allowance, beginning in September. The pay hike comes a week after the council cut $950,000 from its $58-million 1991-92 fiscal year budget. City officials also announced that a proposed public referendum challenging the city’s exclusive garbage contract with Western Waste Industries has qualified for the city ballot. Still not settled is when the referendum will be held and whether it, if successful, would invalidate the entire contract.

Torrance: The council refused to consider a resolution by Councilman Bill Applegate that called for moving this fall’s California League of Cities conference from San Francisco because officials there declared the city a sanctuary for opponents of the Persian Gulf War. Hawthorne and Manhattan Beach have approved similar resolutions.

THIS WEEK’S HIGHLIGHTS

El Segundo: City Council members on Monday may again try to appoint someone from a field of 11 candidates to a vacant council seat. The council has failed to agree on an appointment, and if the council does not decide by Wednesday, a special election must be held in November. The vacancy was created when Jim Clutter resigned in June, with 10 months remaining in his term.

San Pedro: The Los Angeles Planning Department will hold a public hearing on proposed zoning changes in San Pedro from 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday at the Harbor Department Board Room, second floor, 425 S. Palos Verdes St., San Pedro.

Torrance: The City Council will consider 4% pay raises for the city manager, city attorney and department heads. The city manager’s salary of $105,396 would increase by $4,215, and the city attorney’s salary of $104,988 would increase by $4,199.

MEETINGS THIS WEEK

Gardena: 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, 1700 W. 162nd St. 217-9565. Televised live on Channel 22 (Paragon) and repeated 7 p.m. on the two following Sundays.

Hawthorne: 7 p.m. Monday, 4455 W. 126th St. 970-7902. Televised on Channel 22 (Paragon) at 7 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday and 6 p.m. Saturday.

Hermosa Beach: 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, 1315 Valley Drive. 318-0239. Televised live on Channel 3 (Multivision).

Inglewood: 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, 1 Manchester Blvd. 412-5280. No cable telecast.

Los Angeles: 10 a.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday, 200 N. Spring St. In San Pedro, 548-7637; in Wilmington, 548-7586; in Harbor City/Harbor Gateway, 548-7664; in Westchester, 641-4717. Televised live on Channel 35; meetings repeated individually at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday and collectively on Sunday starting at 10 a.m.

Palos Verdes Estates: 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, 340 Palos Verdes Drive West. 378-0383. No cable telecast.

Rolling Hills: 7:30 p.m. Monday, 2 Portuguese Bend Road. 377-1521. No cable telecast.

Rolling Hills Estates: 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, 4045 Palos Verdes Drive North. 377-1577. Televised live on Channel 3 (Dimension).

Torrance: 7 p.m. Tuesday, 3031 Torrance Blvd. 618-5880. Televised live on Channel 22 (Paragon), and replayed at 10 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, and at 10 a.m., 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.