El Segundo holds CEQA scoping meeting for proposed 323-unit project at Kansas and Washington

The City of El Segundo held a public scoping meeting Feb. 20 to gather community input on environmental issues to be analyzed in a draft environmental impact report (EIR) for a proposed 323-unit apartment development at the corner of Kansas Street and Washington Street.

Planning Manager Eduardo Shawnborn, City of El Segundo, opened the meeting, saying the session was “to obtain comments, regarding the environmental issues that should be discussed in the forthcoming draft EIR.” David Blumenthal, the project manager assisting the city, described the proposal and next steps; Mike Harden of ESA, the city’s environmental consultant, explained the CEQA process and the technical topics that the EIR will examine.

Why this matters: The project would replace a former industrial site with a seven‑story, roughly 72‑foot building (7 stories by plan, visually about 46 feet from some viewpoints), proposing 323 residential units and about 450 parking spaces on roughly 3.67 acres. Neighbors and local groups raised immediate concerns about hazardous materials on the site, traffic and parking, noise during construction and operation, impacts on schools and other public services, and the proposed zoning and density changes.

City and consultant overview David Blumenthal, introduced as the project manager assisting the City of El Segundo, said the application requests a general plan amendment and a site‑specific plan to remove the property from the Smoky Hollow specific plan and adopt a new Grand Kansas specific plan; other entitlements include a tentative tract map and vacating a small portion of Washington Street. He described the project as 323 apartments with 450 parking spaces, multiple courtyards and roughly 9,000 square feet of combined roof‑deck and courtyard outdoor space.

Mike Harden, ESA, said the City of El Segundo is the lead agency under the California Environmental Quality…