Startup Family Hit Hard as Carwash Opponents Win Big at City Hall

Clad in orange T-shirts opponents of a proposed car wash at 2355 and 2375 Sepulveda secured a huge victory on Tuesday night as the Council voted unanimously in their favor. The “no car wash” contingency had organized in recent weeks and showed up in force on Tuesday with many of them speaking at the meeting raising concerns about noise and traffic. The group had also circulated a petition that garnered a 100 signatures, held a rally over the weekend, and even funded a full page ad in the Daily Breeze.

Brian Burrescia, who helped organize the opposition effort, said the community was at a tipping point due to other approved projects in the area such as the TUSD aquatic center and the recently approved 18 townhome Anastasi project. Afterward he wanted to thank the Council and especially the residents who had rallied in support of the cause, “The residents are the heroes of the evening and the City Council delivered their voices, their passion, and their message.”

The victory came at the expense of Frank and Susan Startup who were dealt a devastating blow by the controversial decision as it thwarted the sale of their property. The Startup’s had previously worked for 44 years in order sustain a locksmith and bicycle shop at the site and were desperately counting on proceeds from the sale in order to fund their retirement and medical expenses.

Susan had previously made an emotional plea before the Council on June 26th. 90 year old Frank was too ill to attend that meeting, but despite a recent stroke was able to join Susan in appearing before the Council this time around. Due to the effects of the stroke, Frank spoke from a wheelchair and his comments were not audible enough to be heard. He did, however, provide a written letter to the Council which stated in part:

For decades, I served the Torrance community working very hard, showing financial discipline and saving every penny so I could buy the subject property … Owning the bike shop was the pride of my life … In 1973, when I purchased my property, there were no homes behind my property … When the initial homes began building … those homes were “subordinate” to the original zoning (M2) and were required to obtain special permitting.  But today, these owners are trying to revise history, and make my property “subordinate” to their property.

If you look at the essence of what the neighbors are saying, they are actually saying: It’s OK to shaft the Startup family, just don’t shaft me … There is an approximately $800,000 to $1,000,000 decrease in the value of my property if this buyer is not able to purchase the property … ask yourself: why should an owner who owned this property for 44 years, before homes were even there, have the value of his family’s life line stripped away, an owner who spent a life time preparing this asset for his family and subsequent generations.

The City initially blocked the project at its June 26th meeting, even though the property is zoned M-2 which expressly allows car wash uses by right, by adopting an urgency ordinance imposing a moratorium on all car wash developments in the City. After that initial meeting, City officials worked with the buyer, Alex Arash, to carve out an exception to the moratorium for his car wash. That agreement, which imposed several conditions on the project, looked headed for approval at the Council’s July 10th meeting. That hearing was postponed, however, in order to allow more time for the matter to be heard.

Alex Arash and his team of representatives presented detailed arguments and provided evidence in rebuttal to each one of the concerns brought forward by the residents. That evidence included a professionally completed Noise Control Plan and Traffic Study. In the end, it was not enough to convince the Council.

Councilmember Goodrich said that he was split 50/50 about the decision as he had heard good arguments on both sides, but that ultimately when deciding questions such as this he felt that he should side with the residents.

After the meeting, Arash initially expressed regret about the Startup’s saying, “I feel bad about the Startup’s. The Startup’s really got hit.” He later expressed deep frustration with City officials, “The City says it’s business friendly, it’s not … the City of Torrance is not about following rules and regulations, the City is about doing political favors.”

Despite the significant setback, Arash is not quite ready to give up on the project as he has already invested upwards of $250,000 that he stands to lose if the car wash never materializes. He is currently exploring legal options.

The Council’s decision disallowing the car wash came on the heels of a controversial decision made about another development in the same neighborhood. The Council did not side with the residents on that day when they approved the 18 townhome Anastasi project by a 4 to 3 vote on June 19th. Those approving that project included Goodrich as well as Mayor Furey, and Councilmembers Rizzo and Weideman. Furey, Goodrich, and Weideman had all received substantial donations from Anastasi in their recent re-election campaigns.

Arash and the Startup’s did not donate to any recent candidates for office in Torrance.