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Commission urges City Council to hold public hearing on NikeAfter Dark Tour LA over resident notice and access concerns
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Summary
The Parks & Recreation Commission recommended that City Council hold a public hearing on NikeAfter Dark Tour LA, expressing concerns about street closures, Strand access, emergency routes and resident notice; staff and Nike said producers would cover direct and indirect costs and offer community benefits including 100 complimentary resident registrations.
The Hermosa Beach Parks & Recreation Commission voted to recommend that City Council hold a public hearing on NikeAfter Dark Tour LA, a proposed half-marathon slated for Oct. 17, 2026, after hearing questions about road closures, emergency access and how residents would be notified.
Staff told commissioners the city received a formal application from Nike and recommended the commission consider placing the event on the 2026 special events calendar and grant an exception to allow event teardown on Sunday, Oct. 18. The staff report said event producers anticipate participation of up to 10,000 runners and about 1,000 spectators and requested a 500-foot notification radius and coordination with the cityspecial events team.
Jake Wanamaker, a Nike producer, described the After Dark Tour as a global night-race series "created and executed to celebrate women who run," saying the company plans community run clubs, training and on-course activations. He said the firm is exploring routing changes so the course would remain within participating cities and indicated Nike can limit hard closures in residential areas. "We would not look to have anything closed for more than 90 minutes if it's actually affecting residential areas," he said during the presentation.
Commissioners pressed staff and Nike on whether the race would block Hermosa Avenue and Strand access, how emergency vehicles would reach the beach, and where spectators and runners would park. Staff said traffic-control designs could preserve at least one lane on Hermosa Avenue for access and that LA County Fire, police and public works reviewed plans; staff also said overtime and personnel costs are chargeable to the event producer and that the $16,000 estimate cited in the report reflected direct permit fees only, not staffing or parking revenue.
Several residents urged the commission not to approve the proposal in its current form. "This event is too big, very, very, very impactful to the residents," said Tony Higgins, a virtual commenter, who warned the scale could degrade residentsquality of life. Other residents questioned what local businesses would gain given much of the racefootprint centers in neighboring Redondo; proponents, including race operations experts, said flow modeling and targeted activations can reduce disruption and create economic and community benefits.
Nike and its government-affairs partner said the company is open to community-benefit programming, including youth sports support and 100 complimentary registrations for Hermosa residents. EKA consultant Kelly Hawkins said Nike plans community givebacks "in line with what are your rec and parks priorities" and noted event organizers routinely work with local chambers and run clubs to drive patronage.
Commissioners asked staff to include their concerns in the report to council and to press Nike for additional direct resident notice before the council hearing; the commission voted 3-2 to recommend Council hold a public hearing on the event and to encourage earlier, direct notification to impacted residents prior to the March 10 council meeting.
The item will move to City Council for a formal decision; staff and Nike said they will continue route refinement and coordination with neighboring cities and public-safety partners.
