Seaside Lagoon Wins Reprieve

Seaside Lagoon will be open for swimming this summer and beyond, city officials announced on the Save Seaside Lagoon Facebook page Thursday night.

Councilmember Steve Aspel broke the news on Facebook: "we have SAVED SEASIDE LAGOON!" Mayor Mike Gin followed with a note to more than 2,700 Facebook members and Redondo Beach residents who protested  the closure of the popular recreational spot.

"Your letters and photos personalized the great memories that you've had at the Lagoon," the mayor wrote, "and personalized how Seaside Lagoon has touched so many of us over the years."

The city received a notice from the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board Wednesday that it will grant a new operating permit for the saltwater swimming facility.

The Time Schedule Order will allow the Lagoon to operate from May 10 of this year to Sept. 10, 2013 under modified water discharge standards. The mayor said that the water board at last recognized the lagoon's uniqueness in the water reuse process — pumping the seawater, chlorinating it for swimmers and flushing it back to the ocean after de-chlorination. 

Redondo Beach City Council decided to close Seaside Lagoon April 20 for the time being to avoid potential fines. The unanimous decision came only weeks before the scheduled opening of the saltwater swimming facility and was a tough step for Mayor Gin and the council members.

"I believe we have to fight to keep the Lagoon open for the long term," Councilmember Steven Diels said during the council meeting. "And that might mean we are going to lose it in the short term."  

The city faced a minimum potential penalty of $150,000 from the state water board for alleged violations involving water discharged from the lagoon from 2002 to 2008. The city council decided to close the pool to reduce the likelihood of incurring additional penalties.

On top of issuing the operating permit, the water board has revised strict limitations on metal content in the discharged water proposed in February. It is now unlikely that the city will be subject to future fines, the mayor said.

A city request that the existing fine be reduced to $66,000 will be considered at a hearing on May 17.

Gin, who administers the Facebook page, thanked the public and his colleagues for their support and involvement in the campaign to save the historical facility.

"Your letters, faxes, e-mails and photos have made a difference," the mayor wrote.