Support: BCHD Community Health & Wellness (Measure BC)

This Measure will demolish the old South Bay Hospital building, which is beyond repair. In its place it will construct a new state of the art building for allcove Beach Cities which provides free mental health services for youth ages 12-25. It will also construct a surrounding 2-acre park.

Beach Cities Health District is a certified Blue Zones community. Blue Zones are designed to promote health and longevity in residents and center around concepts like a plant-based diet, natural movement, and positive mental health. They are about looking and feeling good as we age.

The Measure is set up as a 30-year general obligation bond with an estimated credit rating of A+ / AA- (per BCHD). It will be sold to bond investors and the interest and principal will be paid back by a property tax assessment on all three beach cities: Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach, as well as grants and other funding. This assessment will be about $30 per million in property value annually.

In an election year where we are already being asked for a sales tax increase AND a new school bond locally, this measure takes a leap of faith. However, the underlying benefits – free youth mental health treatment and healthy aging – are so important to our community. (Please see my “Mental Health” initiative which discusses the current mental health crisis in our youth.) Personally, I look at this as a donation to a cause that is important to me. However, as the economic climate becomes more development friendly again, I also hope that BCHD will continue to explore its options regarding alternative capital structures to successfully complete its projects.