We're moving! SBAOR is proud to introduce our new Government Affairs portal at advocacy.southbayaor.com. All of the government affairs, elections, politics, and policy related items will be posted on this site.
News: All the usual news and information about things happening in the political world in the South Bay. We will on occasion include information from NAR and C.A.R.’s government affairs and lobbying work as well.
Events: This space is to document and celebrate events hosted by SBAOR, such as Mayors Breakfasts and the Elected Officials Reception. This section should have plenty of photos showing REALTORS® mixing it up. ALSO: send me your photos of the government affairs events that we do. If they are published, you will be credited with your name and link to your email or website.
Issues: This is planned to be a general list of how-tos and special notices about the various quirks of doing real estate in different corners of the South Bay.
Calendar: This is a general calendar for community and political events that are not sponsored by SBAOR. This calendar will include things like local town halls, in-district meetings with elected officials, South Bay COG events (like the upcoming General Assembly), and more. SBAOR events will still be located on our main website calendar.
Responsive Design: Look at this website on your desktop computer, your iPad, and your phone. See how the layout is different but is still readable? This is “responsive design” which is now the expectation for all websites. Why? Last year, a study found that 60% of all internet access is from a mobile device, and not your desktop computer. That’s 60% of your prospective clients and 60% of the REALTORS® we are serving.
The site we have been using up to now, Taking REALTOR® Action, will be kept open, so come back and see how far we've gone.
Please share this site with your REALTOR® colleagues and clients. With technology moving ever further into the real estate profession, SBAOR will stay at the forefront. See you on the flip side!
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
Monday, January 26, 2015
Tide is rising for community interest in bringing a real waterfront to the Port of Los Angeles
An online petition began circulating around San Pedro in early January asking the Mayor of Los Angeles and the local City Council office to do something about Ports o' Call and the LA Waterfront. "Help us", the petition urged residents:
And help they did. On January 14, the Daily Breeze reported that the petition had has "collected some 500 signatures in just a few days." And at the date of this writing, the petition boasts 1,054 signatures with a goal to reach 2,000. This online petition is the first of an effort to raise awareness by the newly-formed Los Angeles Waterfront Access & Redevelopment Coalition, or LAWARC.
The City Councilmember for the port and its communities, Joe Buscaino, is also showing that his patience has its limits. The Breeze has noted his frustration at the start-and-stop progress as the waterfront projects lurched forward only to face yet another delay, or a feasibility study, or a slow-going negotiation between a developer coalition known as the LA Waterfront Alliance and Port officials.
Meanwhile, at a Council Committee hearing on November 12 in San Pedro, the Port's Executive Director Gene Seroka told Councilmember Buscaino that his message was received "loud and clear" about the Council Office's commitment to the Waterfront and desire to move it along.
In the early evening of January 27, the Port will hold the second of two community meetings to get feedback on the proposed Public Access Investment Policy. Portions of this policy were found by local REALTORS to be insufficient in providing enough funding for Ports o' Call. In particular, Ports o' Call needs infrastructure improvements - such as streets and sidewalks.
The community meeting is taking place on January 27, 6:00 - 8:00 p.m.,at the Warner Grand Theater, 478 West 6th Street in San Pedro. Port staff will present an overview of the proposed policy, followed by an opportunity for the public to provide comments and/or ask questions. REALTORS are urged to attend and make their voices heard.
This article is the second of two parts on the LA Waterfront, San Pedro and Wilmington. There is much more to come, as this story has been years in the making.
As one of the largest ports in the world, we deserve a seaside waterfront development with a premier promenade that will allow for a better quality of life for residents and a world-class experience for those who visit.
And help they did. On January 14, the Daily Breeze reported that the petition had has "collected some 500 signatures in just a few days." And at the date of this writing, the petition boasts 1,054 signatures with a goal to reach 2,000. This online petition is the first of an effort to raise awareness by the newly-formed Los Angeles Waterfront Access & Redevelopment Coalition, or LAWARC.
The City Councilmember for the port and its communities, Joe Buscaino, is also showing that his patience has its limits. The Breeze has noted his frustration at the start-and-stop progress as the waterfront projects lurched forward only to face yet another delay, or a feasibility study, or a slow-going negotiation between a developer coalition known as the LA Waterfront Alliance and Port officials.
Meanwhile, at a Council Committee hearing on November 12 in San Pedro, the Port's Executive Director Gene Seroka told Councilmember Buscaino that his message was received "loud and clear" about the Council Office's commitment to the Waterfront and desire to move it along.
In the early evening of January 27, the Port will hold the second of two community meetings to get feedback on the proposed Public Access Investment Policy. Portions of this policy were found by local REALTORS to be insufficient in providing enough funding for Ports o' Call. In particular, Ports o' Call needs infrastructure improvements - such as streets and sidewalks.
In 2009, when the waterfront environmental impact report was approved, it was estimated that $220 million would be needed for full completion of Ports O’ Call infrastructure.
“At this rate, the infrastructure will take 25 years to complete,” said Fred DiBernardo, a San Pedro real estate broker for more than 38 years and a lifetime resident of the port town. “This will kill any interest of any major developer.” (Daily Breeze)
The community meeting is taking place on January 27, 6:00 - 8:00 p.m.,at the Warner Grand Theater, 478 West 6th Street in San Pedro. Port staff will present an overview of the proposed policy, followed by an opportunity for the public to provide comments and/or ask questions. REALTORS are urged to attend and make their voices heard.
This article is the second of two parts on the LA Waterfront, San Pedro and Wilmington. There is much more to come, as this story has been years in the making.
Port of Los Angeles struggles to fix not one but two waterfronts - at the same time - but is it working?
A brief reading of the report published on January 9 by the Los Angeles Chief Legislative Analyst bemoans the long-simmer troubles and decades of unmet opportunities on the Los Angeles Waterfront in two communities - San Pedro and Wilmington.
The report blames state law that prohibits housing on the waterfront. It notes that the waterfronts in San Francisco, San Diego and even Long Beach are blessed with density urban growth while San Pedro's largely suburban community would not provide enough of a base to support development in the harbor.
Why does that matter? The same state law also says that the dedicated land uses "must serve statewide, as opposed to purely local, public purposes". These are just the latest in delays and frustrations for local residents - including REALTORS - living and working in both communities.
In San Pedro, the dilapidated Ports o' Call is barely clinging to life with small-scale tourist shops and footpaths which, remarkably, face the parking lot rather the extraordinary theater of the giant container ships offloading their cargo.
Meanwhile in Wilmington, Avalon Blvd. ends at Banning's Landing Community Center, but before it gets there is passes though a neglected business corridor and swaths of empty dirt lots owned by the port that serve no apparent purpose. A proposed railroad and block wall is rumored to possibly slice across Avalon Blvd., effectively cutting of Wilmington from the port (and, ironically, Banning's Landing Community Center) and killing the struggling commercial corridor.
Perhaps it is these two cases taken together that have fed frustrations and doubts of the two communities, San Pedro and Wilmington, that anything will be done. The Port has promised $400 million over 10 years to "continue and promotes private commercial investment in and around the Port’s LA Waterfront."
REALTORS in San Pedro looked at that analysis and found that it amounts to $50 million over five years to make required improvements to the infrastructure around Ports o' Call - an amount that barely scratches the surface of all that needs to be done.
What are the reasons why San Pedro and Wilmington have not fully benefited from the spectacular commerce taking place at the largest port on the West Coast? The answers are as myriad and diverse as the communities themselves. Both areas have a rich history with established immigrant families and traditions.
Residents and REALTORS also remind listeners that they - we - have a legal right in California to access our beaches and waterfronts. It is not hard to look at the waterfronts in either area and question whether that right is being granted to the communities as much as it is to the commercial entities.
Next: Public hearings in January 2015 are the latest opportunities for residents and REALTORS to speak their voice.
The report blames state law that prohibits housing on the waterfront. It notes that the waterfronts in San Francisco, San Diego and even Long Beach are blessed with density urban growth while San Pedro's largely suburban community would not provide enough of a base to support development in the harbor.
Why does that matter? The same state law also says that the dedicated land uses "must serve statewide, as opposed to purely local, public purposes". These are just the latest in delays and frustrations for local residents - including REALTORS - living and working in both communities.
In San Pedro, the dilapidated Ports o' Call is barely clinging to life with small-scale tourist shops and footpaths which, remarkably, face the parking lot rather the extraordinary theater of the giant container ships offloading their cargo.
Meanwhile in Wilmington, Avalon Blvd. ends at Banning's Landing Community Center, but before it gets there is passes though a neglected business corridor and swaths of empty dirt lots owned by the port that serve no apparent purpose. A proposed railroad and block wall is rumored to possibly slice across Avalon Blvd., effectively cutting of Wilmington from the port (and, ironically, Banning's Landing Community Center) and killing the struggling commercial corridor.
Perhaps it is these two cases taken together that have fed frustrations and doubts of the two communities, San Pedro and Wilmington, that anything will be done. The Port has promised $400 million over 10 years to "continue and promotes private commercial investment in and around the Port’s LA Waterfront."
REALTORS in San Pedro looked at that analysis and found that it amounts to $50 million over five years to make required improvements to the infrastructure around Ports o' Call - an amount that barely scratches the surface of all that needs to be done.
What are the reasons why San Pedro and Wilmington have not fully benefited from the spectacular commerce taking place at the largest port on the West Coast? The answers are as myriad and diverse as the communities themselves. Both areas have a rich history with established immigrant families and traditions.
Residents and REALTORS also remind listeners that they - we - have a legal right in California to access our beaches and waterfronts. It is not hard to look at the waterfronts in either area and question whether that right is being granted to the communities as much as it is to the commercial entities.
Next: Public hearings in January 2015 are the latest opportunities for residents and REALTORS to speak their voice.
Wednesday, December 17, 2014
Lame Duck Congress hobbles to the end of its session; fails to authorize terrorism risk protection
This week, the late fall Lame Duck session of the U.S. Congress lurched to a halt as lawmakers wrapped up a flurry of business and rhetorical drama and then went home for the holidays. Perhaps in the rush to get out of town, Congress shockingly failed to renew the bipartisan Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA).
NAR has expressed concern that failure to pass TRIA would stall commercial real estate development projects all over the U.S. that depend on it. By the time that the Lame Duck session of Congress closed on December 16 at 11:25 p.m., the Senate had reached a "unanimous consent agreement" which would have allowed TRIA to proceed, despite the fact that TRIA had passed in the House of Representatives with significant bipartisan support.
In a statement issued today, NAR said that "despite this temporary set-back, REALTORS® will work closely with Congress in 2015 to swiftly reenact TRIA and provide much needed certainty to the commercial market."
NAR has expressed concern that failure to pass TRIA would stall commercial real estate development projects all over the U.S. that depend on it. By the time that the Lame Duck session of Congress closed on December 16 at 11:25 p.m., the Senate had reached a "unanimous consent agreement" which would have allowed TRIA to proceed, despite the fact that TRIA had passed in the House of Representatives with significant bipartisan support.
In a statement issued today, NAR said that "despite this temporary set-back, REALTORS® will work closely with Congress in 2015 to swiftly reenact TRIA and provide much needed certainty to the commercial market."
Thursday, December 4, 2014
REALTORS meet Torrance Mayor Pat Furey
Today the South Bay Association of REALTORS® held the latest in its popular series, "Breakfast with the Mayor" and welcomed Torrance Mayor Pat Furey to a full room at the Marriott Hotel in Torrance.
Members of SBAOR had a great opportunity to meet the new mayor, just 142 days after he was installed in office. Mayor Furey talked at length about his vision for the city, the great accomplishments of his colleagues on the City Council and the work that remains to be done.
In recent years, the mayor noted, many residents were complaining about the poor quality of the streets and sidewalks. Now the city has embarked on an aggressive program to repave, seal, or repair local streets, sidewalks and infrastructure. Even at the risk of new rounds of complaints for construction traffic, the city is clearly on the right track.
In addition, Mayor Furey talked about Torrance as an attractive hub for businesses looking to locate in Los Angeles County. With the disappointing departure of Toyota that was announced more than a year ago, the mayor has not rested and he is working hard to attract large businesses and their investments and jobs to the city.
SBAOR hosts the Breakfast with the Mayor series approximately four times per year. Stay tuned in 2015 for more opportunities to get to know the elected leadership of our cities in the South Bay.
Members of SBAOR had a great opportunity to meet the new mayor, just 142 days after he was installed in office. Mayor Furey talked at length about his vision for the city, the great accomplishments of his colleagues on the City Council and the work that remains to be done.
In recent years, the mayor noted, many residents were complaining about the poor quality of the streets and sidewalks. Now the city has embarked on an aggressive program to repave, seal, or repair local streets, sidewalks and infrastructure. Even at the risk of new rounds of complaints for construction traffic, the city is clearly on the right track.
In addition, Mayor Furey talked about Torrance as an attractive hub for businesses looking to locate in Los Angeles County. With the disappointing departure of Toyota that was announced more than a year ago, the mayor has not rested and he is working hard to attract large businesses and their investments and jobs to the city.
SBAOR hosts the Breakfast with the Mayor series approximately four times per year. Stay tuned in 2015 for more opportunities to get to know the elected leadership of our cities in the South Bay.
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| From left: SBAOR 2014 President-Elect Michele Brown; Torrance Mayor Pat Furey; SBAOR 2014 President Tamara Suminski |
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| Torrance Mayor Pat Furey address REALTORS at SBAOR's "Breakfast with the Mayor" |
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