In an effort to compromise between residents who want to play volleyball and others who would rather enjoy a quiet stretch of the beach, the Hermosa Beach City Council in a meeting Tuesday night approved the installation of one new volleyball court just south of 16th Street on an interim basis.
The council originally was asked to , but it unanimously agreed to experiment with one, placing it as far west of Strand homes as possible.
Hermosa Beach resident Dan Inskeep proposed the courts "based on the fact that on the weekends, there’s a time when all the courts are in use and it’s happening a lot," he told the council.
Inskeep’s wife has had trouble in the mornings reserving female nets to play on and many of their neighbors also have trouble finding available courts in their own neighborhood, Inskeep said.
"That density issue is true and the activity level on the weekends for sure," Hermosa Beach resident John Wallace said during the council meeting.
Additional courts would be advantageous when tournaments are held in town, Inskeep added, "Beach volleyball is a big part of what goes on here."
But some residents at the council meeting argued that beach volleyball is already well represented in Hermosa Beach.
"I love volleyball, but I have a volleyball court too in front of my house… there’s something like 72 or 76 volleyball courts existing right now," said Hermosa Beach resident Sandy Saemann. "We need as much open space as we do volleyball."
Due to this divide on the issue, council members had trouble making their decision. "I’m not quite sure whether we need more courts or not. It’s a hard decision to make," said Councilman Peter Tucker at the meeting.
The council agreed for the one volleyball court to be monitored through September, with the Parks and Recreation Commission reviewing it in October, and then deciding whether the city should add a second (see accompanying city staff report under photo.)
Or, "if there’s issues, concerns, we can take the court out and not add a second one," said Mayor Howard Fishman during the council meeting.
Do you think the council made a fair decision?
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