BCHD Board to Consider Certification of Proposed Healthy Living Campus Master Plan EIR

Sept. 8 BCHD Board meeting – hosted virtually – will consider the sufficiency under CEQA of the Environmental Impact Report for proposed project

Beach Cities Health District (BCHD) will hold a public hearing Wednesday night, Sept. 8, where the BCHD Board of Directors will consider certifying that the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the District’s Healthy Living Campus Master Plan complies with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).

The process for completing an EIR, mandated by California law, is a thorough review of the potentially significant environmental impacts of a proposed project. In June 2019, BCHD formally initiated the EIR process for the Healthy Living Campus Master Plan, which is intended to modernize its aging 60-year-old former hospital in Redondo Beach with an intergenerational facility serving the health and wellness needs of Beach Cities residents. The proposed plan and alternatives are a direct reflection of community input, with design and planning documents revised twice since the public project discourse began in 2017.

The proposed design of the proposed Healthy Living Campus Master Plan calls for more than two acres of public green space and health facilities that range from a Youth Wellness Center focused on mental health to Residential Care for the Elderly (RCFE). The master plan aims to create a modern Healthy Living Campus that meets the changing health needs of the community and serves residents of all ages.

At the meeting Wednesday, the BCHD Board will determine whether the EIR complies with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The public can view the meeting agenda, resolution and staff report and find links to access the meeting via Zoom and provide written comments prior to the meeting at bchd.org/board-of-director-meetings. The final EIR document and appendices are available at www.bchdcampus.org/eir.

“One of our foremost goals throughout this EIR process has been to assure the public is properly informed and engaged in the planning process,” says BCHD CEO Tom Bakaly. “To clarify the Sept. 8 proceedings, the BCHD Board will vote whether to certify the EIR. If certified, it will be a determination that the in-depth EIR document, which studies potential impacts, measures to reduce or avoid those impacts and analyzes project alternatives, has been properly completed. It is not the approval of the project.”

Since 2017, public input has resulted in the addition of green space, proposed structures have been redesigned and shifted away from neighbors and construction time has been drastically reduced. During the Sept. 8 board meeting, an overview of public comments received during the Draft EIR period (March 10 – June 10), which are included and responded to in the Final EIR, will be provided. If the EIR is certified by the BCHD Board, there will also be a review of next steps in the project approval process. More information about the project is available at bchdcampus.org.