Rancho Palos Verdes residents fight plans to ban building in areas where landslides are feared

For months, landslides have worsened in parts of Rancho Palos Verdes. Some houses have been split in three. Driveways have buckled beyond use. And in one neighborhood, a sinkhole that started as a half-inch fissure now spans around 12 feet, swallowing an entire intersection.

Now, the city is looking to expand a ban on new construction in those landslide-prone areas, and extend the moratorium to include new areas that are starting to see slide damage and could be at risk for more.

But residents are balking, saying the moratorium goes too far.

About 30 people turned out at a town hall Wednesday night — with many more watching via Zoom — to voice their opposition to the moratorium plan.

About the proposed moratorium

• The city has a building ban in effect for the landslide area, but there are some key exceptions. It allows additions and new structures on vacant lots. Now, the city wants to overhaul that ordinance and implement a stricter one: no new additions, no new construction.
• Under the new proposed ordinance, residents can still repair, restore or replace existing structures — so “like-for-like replacement” is allowed. 
• Residents can also build structures such as storage sheds or barns to house animals, as long as those structures have no foundation. 
• Fences, walls, hedges will also be allowed as long as it does not require a retaining wall.
• The city also wants to expand the landslide boundaries beyond the Portuguese Bend and Abalone Cove enclaves to more homes, including those in the nearby Seaview and Portuguese Bend Beach Club neighborhoods.

Jerry Yutronich, whose daughter lives in the Seaview neighborhood, told LAist the neighborhood has seen the “least amount of continuous land movement” in the last few months.

“I was a little bummed that they're putting everybody together … versus taking a look at the areas individually or a case-by-case basis,” he said.

Being included in the moratorium, he said, hurts the neighborhood's “optics.”

It also hurts resale values. And, for many of the residents here, their entire life savings is tied up in their homes.

A few of the individuals in attendance at the Rancho Palos Verdes town hall meeting this week.

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Aiko Offner

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LAist.com

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How we got here

Land movement has plagued parts of Rancho Palos Verdes for decades. But the last three years, the movement has accelerated, city officials say, and the landslide-prone area has expanded from 380 acres to 700 acres.

Above average rainfall in 2022 and 2023 set off unprecedented movement as the mostly clay soil gave way, damaging hundreds of home. Residents were left without power and gas as utility companies deemed the shutoffs necessary due to the unstable ground.

The land movement in the last year, however, exhibited ”a completely different behavior,” leading to concerns about future slides, said Ara Mihranian, Rancho Palos Verdes’ city manager.  

For thousands of years, Mihranian said, a deeper slip plane — about 300 feet below ground — has remained dormant. But water that accumulated following the heavy rainfalls of 2022 and 2023 has activated that slip plane, which is why the recent destruction was as significant as it has been, he said.

“You had two slip lanes, actually two landslides, that were moving at different rates and in different directions,” he said.

The data, he added, “supports the decision that it's not prudent to be building in this area.”

So what does the future look like for that area?

Eventually, open space.

Despite years of trying to hold up the land, it appears the affected homes may increasingly succumb to geological forces.

The city has already initiated a voluntary program through the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Hazard Mitigation Grant program to buy back some homes and convert the properties to open space and is looking for more funding for similar efforts.

When a federal emergency is declared in California, it opens up the opportunity to apply for the grant. Mihranian said the city submitted a notice of interest after an emergency was declared following the January wildfires, and was shortlisted for the formal application process.

“ So we're going to be submitting an application in for round two of this voluntary buyout program,” he said. “We're asking for another $40 million.”

Still, many millions more will be needed if the city intends to buy out everyone in the affected areas.

Why people don't want to leave

The Seaview neighborhood has long attracted families as it affords expansive views of the Pacific Ocean and flat streets, unusual for the city where typically only hilltop homes come with a view.

Yutronich, whose daughter lives in the neighborhood, said it's one of the many reasons people don’t want to leave.

“We are in it for the long haul,” he said, adding that the recent land movement can't just be blamed on the rainfall. He also blames outdated piping and infrastructure.

During the Q&A portion of the town hall meeting, other Seaview residents also expressed dismay that some homes from their neighborhood will be included in the moratorium. The broad brush stroke, they said, could affect their property values and have economic effects.

Why some say the ban goes too far

Mois Mahyar is a resident whose house in the Portuguese Bend Beach Club neighborhood experienced “mainly cosmetic” cracks from recent landslides.

“Certain areas I understand, but I'm not sure about our community,” he said.

He cited the landslide in his area being “the slowest,” and limited land movement in the past year.

“ The dewatering walls that the city has placed seems to be working, so it I don't see why we have to put a moratorium on construction,” he added.

Real estate agents also showed up to express their opposition. One of them, Greg Roberts, said he represented people who have bought in the Portuguese Bend community. He disagreed with the city’s decision to include areas that haven’t had land movement in the past year.

“To ban someone from building on a lot where there's no land movement because there was land movement in another area doesn't seem to be fair,” he said.

Throughout the town hall, other community members and real agents implored the city to look at land in a case-by-case manner, as opposed to a blanket policy.

But some residents like Kit Song, who lives in Seaview, strongly favored the moratorium.

 ”I think it's silly to allow anybody to build in an area that's known to move,” he said.

What’s next

The city will consider the moratorium at the City Council meeting on Aug. 5.

• The final agenda will be posted here.
• To watch the meeting virtually and to submit a public comment, click here.