Redondo Moves Forward With Seaside Lagoon Overhaul

REDONDO BEACH, CA — Redondo Beach is moving forward with a major overhaul of Seaside Lagoon, advancing the long-planned waterfront project to the California Coastal Commission rather than delaying it to explore alternatives that include a dramatically different wave-pool concept.

The City Council on Tuesday directed staff to complete and submit a Coastal Development Permit application for the rehabilitation project at 200 Portofino Way and approve its environmental exemption, according to the city's Sept. 15 meeting records.

Mayor Jim Light said after the meeting that the council voted unanimously to move the application forward, describing the decision as the closest the city has come to beginning construction after roughly two decades of discussions about rehabilitating the aging waterfront attraction.

"Tonight the council was faced with making a tough decision: direct staff to submit an application to rehabilitate Seaside Lagoon or delay to look at more alternatives including a wave pool," Light wrote in a Facebook post following the meeting.

The decision does not amount to final approval of the rehabilitation project. The California Coastal Commission retains permitting authority over Seaside Lagoon, meaning the city must secure a Coastal Development Permit before construction can proceed.

A New Lagoon

The city's current plan would replace the existing saltwater lagoon and its aging flow-through infrastructure with a roughly 770,000-gallon recreational lagoon using a recirculating filtration system.

Plans presented to the Harbor Commission in August called for an approximately one-acre swimming area with a maximum depth of five feet, a sand-covered zero-depth entry leading into a deeper concrete-bottom section, a water slide, splash features and ADA-accessible entry. The surrounding park would include new landscaping, shade and picnic areas, restrooms and fencing designed to allow more of the grounds to remain available when the swimming area is closed.

The overhaul is intended in large part to eliminate the unusual system that currently draws seawater into Seaside Lagoon, treats it for swimming and treats it again before discharging it back into the harbor.

That system has become increasingly expensive to operate as the infrastructure ages. A pump failure forced Seaside Lagoon to close for about two weeks during the 2025 season and cost approximately $60,000 to repair, while Community Services Director Elizabeth Hause told the council in April that the city's most recent two-year round of water-quality fines totaled $175,000 after being negotiated down.

The replacement lagoon would instead continuously filter and recirculate its water. Plans reviewed by the Harbor Commission call for approximately 770,000 gallons circulating at 3,000 gallons per minute, turning over the lagoon's entire volume roughly every 4.3 hours. Patch previously reported on the proposed design when it went before commissioners Aug. 25.

The project has changed substantially since Redondo Beach began developing its latest plans. The state appropriated $10 million for rehabilitation of Seaside Lagoon, while the city has committed another $1 million toward the work.

An earlier version envisioned both a recreational lagoon and lap-swimming area, but Los Angeles County public health requirements meant the two could not operate as a single water feature and would require physical separation and separate filtration systems. The resulting design pushed the estimated cost above $16 million, prompting the city to scale back the first phase.

In April, the council unanimously backed a reduced Phase 1 plan then estimated at about $9.47 million, focusing on replacing the lagoon and its essential infrastructure while leaving other improvements for later phases.

Harbor Commission Pushed Back

The revised project encountered opposition when it reached the Harbor Commission last month. At its Aug. 25 special meeting, commissioners unanimously recommended that the City Council not proceed with the proposed design as presented, instead calling for the city to revisit elements of the earlier concept.

That recommendation included exploring a deeper lagoon, retaining saltwater and a sand bottom and providing more year-round amenities, while also accounting for sea-level rise and seeking additional time for the state funding.

The commission's recommendation was advisory, however, leaving the ultimate decision on whether to advance the city project with the council.

A Wave Pool Enters The Picture

The debate took another turn when Allen Sanford, founder of BeachLife Festival and the California Surf Club, brought forward an alternative concept that would transform much of the site into a purpose-built surfing facility.

The concept presented to the Harbor Commission Monday showed a large wave pool capable of producing artificial surf alongside a smaller zero-depth family swimming lagoon, surf school, open beach area, volleyball court, dining deck, bar and lounge and other recreational amenities.

Monday's official Harbor Commission agenda was carefully limited to receiving and filing Sanford's presentation. Commissioners did not have authority under that item to approve the project, and the city's agenda described it only as a "wave pool design concept at the Seaside Lagoon site."

Light also stressed before Tuesday's council meeting that the wave pool itself was not before the council for approval and said the city was not negotiating with Sanford for a wave pool.

City records do show that Redondo Beach has separately held a series of closed-session real estate discussions with Sanford and BeachLife Festival involving portions of the Redondo Beach Marina parking lot and Seaside Lagoon. The Sept. 1 and Sept. 8 agendas identify the subject only as "price and terms" and do not say those negotiations concern the wave-pool proposal.

The discussions also predate the current wave-pool debate. City records show similar negotiations involving Sanford and BeachLife appeared on council agendas earlier this year, including in January, February, April and June.

Tuesday's vote means the city will not hold up its existing rehabilitation plan while that alternative is explored. Light acknowledged the division surrounding the decision but said moving the existing project into the Coastal Commission process marked a major step after years of debate over Seaside Lagoon.

"We have never been anywhere near this close to construction," Light wrote.