Teen center bids come in as El Segundo pursues $5 million grant; director seeks parks supervisor

The Recreation, Parks and Library Director told the commission that bids for the long‑planned teen center arrived this week and that a low bidder has been identified, with public works moving the procurement through the next steps. "So, there is a low bidder, so public works is working on now, you know, moving through the process," the director said, adding staff were encouraged that bid amounts were generally in line with budget estimates.

The director also said the city has applied for a $5,000,000 capital grant through Congressman Ted Lieu’s office to help fund the center and that a kickoff meeting with public works and upper management is scheduled to start schematic design. "We did apply for a grant with Ted Lieu's office, for $5,000,000 to get some funding for the center," staff said. The director said the city plans to pay for schematic design now because the grant may not cover full project costs and the project must start within a year.

As part of budget planning for next year, staff requested one additional parks facilities supervisor position to provide day‑to‑day oversight of buildings and to reduce reliance on public works contracts. The director described the new role as a hands‑on supervisor who would manage in‑house maintenance, support contract administration and supervise current maintenance staff.

Votes at a glance: the commission approved the consent calendar (regular meeting minutes) by voice vote, 4–0, earlier in the meeting.

What’s next: public works will continue procurement steps for the teen center low bidder; staff said schematic design work will start to keep the grant application timeline on track, and the budget request will be considered as part of next year’s city budget process.