Residents raise safety and property concerns after Metro survey notice for rail right-of-way

Several Redondo Beach residents urged the City Council to press Metro for more information after receiving notices that Metro survey crews would begin work along the former rail right-of-way, including drone use and property-boundary measurements.

The concerns surfaced during the council’s public comment period. Holly Osborne said some residents received a mail notice and that survey work “will be taking surveying measurements of the road to confirm existing property boundaries” and warned that drones and crews would be active beginning Feb. 5. “We believe it's actually already started because there was a lot of drone activity, even around Christmas,” Osborne said.

Osborne described what she called inconsistencies in Metro’s engineering work and maps. She said Metro previously claimed a portion of the right-of-way was 81 feet wide when it was actually 75 feet, and that stakes had been corrected only in some places. She said Metro’s plans call for filling an embankment and building a high retaining wall near backyards; she said the nearest train centerline would be about 13 feet from some houses. “If your neighbor wants to build a wall, it should be on their property, not yours,” Osborne said.

Osborne also flagged subsurface risks near the proposed wall. “There are pipelines here. There are going to be four pipelines all moved down here, and they're all going to be put next to this wall,” she said, adding that earlier excavation had produced a sinkhole and that a soils engineer should assess the site.

Nikki Negrete Mitchell, who identified herself from District 3, reiterated the notice’s timeline and geography, saying Metro staff would survey “from the Redondo Beach Marine Station moving south 4 miles through Lawndale, Redondo Beach and Torrance, ending at the Torrance Transit Center.” She quoted Metro’s notice that staff and surveyors would remain within Metro property and “not enter private properties or fenced areas along the right of way,” and that work would include drones, photos, walking the tracks and trucks on the right of way.

Mitchell asked the council to look into lingering maintenance issues on the right of way, including graffiti that she said had remained for over a week and that she had reported. “It just kind of gives the riffraff the impression that it's a good place to tag,” she said.

The council did not take formal action on the concerns during the meeting. No city directive, code change or staff assignment regarding the Metro survey was recorded in the public minutes that evening.

Why it matters: The city’s right-of-way and adjacent private properties face potential physical changes if Metro advances design work for light rail. Residents signaled worries about construction impacts, proximity of rail facilities to homes, underground utilities and slope stability—issues that can require engineering review and coordination between Metro and the city.

City staff or council members did not announce a follow-up response at the meeting; council members and staff indicated they would take the public comments under consideration and follow up outside the meeting.