SEAL BEACH : City Manager Gets Break in First Week

New City Manager Keith Till had expected to begin his job this week amid a firestorm over the proposed Bixby Ranch Co. development, which many residents vehemently opposed.

The project was mothballed last week, though, and was barely mentioned at Till’s first City Council meeting Monday.

But the former San Marino city manager’s appointment book is full anyway as he takes on continuing problems in the city, ranging from sand erosion to flood control.

“I’m spending my first week meeting with as many people as I can,” said the 42-year-old Till, who lives in Valencia but is shopping for a home in Seal Beach.

Till said he is working on emergency preparedness plans in case winter storms threaten beachfront homes where sand erosion is most severe. Till is also working on contingency flood control plans in the wake of last winter’s storms, which caused about $3 million in damage to Leisure World and flooded downtown homes.

City officials plan to meet with residents Nov. 30 to discuss proposed flood control measures.

Till said he was relieved not to have to face heated public hearings on Bixby Co.’s proposed 223-home development project.

Bixby Co. officials withdrew the plan, saying they thought a majority of council members would vote against it. Bixby Senior Vice President Ron Bradshaw said the company will instead move forward with a 23-acre commercial development that does not require council approval.

The only mention of the 213-acre Bixby project at this week’s council meeting came in response to a question from a resident who asked what would happen if the project were resubmitted.

City Atty. Quinn Barrow said the project’s environmental impact report would have to be reviewed by the Environmental Quality Control Board before returning to the City Council.