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Ray Jackson Newsletter — July 5, 2026
📬 Councilmember Ray Jackson | Hermosa Beach | July 6, 2026
Dear friends and neighbors,
America turned 250 this weekend, and I have been thinking about what that number actually means. I am the son of immigrants, born in Philadelphia, and just days before the Fourth, the Supreme Court reaffirmed that the Constitution recognized me as an American from day one. To me, this was a layup case. The Constitution didn't change. As I wrote last week, it's a fitting reminder that our Constitution endures and so do the principles that unite us.
Hermosa celebrated the milestone the way only Hermosa can, with surfboards, sand, and the legendary Ironman. Some towns have parades. We have traditions. Here's what happened this week and what's coming next.
🚨 Public Safety
🔹 A safe 250th birthday weekend, by design. Ahead of the holiday, the Hermosa Beach Police Department and L.A. County Fire increased their presence throughout the City from Friday, July 3 through Sunday, July 5, keeping the Strand, the beach, and our neighborhoods welcoming for residents and visitors alike.
→ 🎯 My take: A big holiday weekend in a small beach city goes smoothly because of planning that starts weeks earlier and long shifts most of us never see. To every officer, firefighter, lifeguard, and city employee who worked while the rest of us celebrated: thank you. You made the 250th a weekend to remember for all the right reasons.
🌊 Environment & Protecting Our Coast
🔹 The Coastal Commission convenes in Ventura this week, July 8 to 10. The California Coastal Commission holds its July meeting Wednesday through Friday at the Crowne Plaza Ventura Beach, 450 E Harbor Blvd. Permit decisions, coastal access questions, and policy items from up and down the state are on the docket, and I'll be at the dais representing the South Bay perspective.
→ 💡 Why it matters: The decisions made in that room shape what gets built along the shoreline, what counts as public access, and how a beach city like ours plans for its future. These are public proceedings, and your voice is welcome in them. You can also watch live on Cal-Span from home.
👉 View the Coastal Commission meeting schedule
👉 View the July meeting agenda
💰 Budget & Finance
🔹 Hermosa's balanced budget is now law, and the honest conversation continues. Before the holiday break, Council adopted the Fiscal Year 2026-27 budget, closing a $3.2 million structural gap by trimming roughly $4.5 million in spending while protecting the services and staff residents count on. Council also moved just over $2 million into the Capital Improvement Fund and set aside a projected surplus pending midyear review.
→ 🎯 My stance: I voted for this budget because it tells the truth. We tightened where we could, we protected the people who deliver services, and we did not paper over the structural challenge with one-time fixes. That challenge is still real, which is why Council also directed staff, on a vote I supported, to prepare ballot language for a local half-cent sales tax measure for the November 3 General Municipal Election. Residents deserve a direct say in how we fund Hermosa's future, and you will have one.
🔹 Heads-up: parking citation changes take effect August 1. Council also updated the City's parking fine schedule. Starting Saturday, August 1, most citations, including expired meters and time limits, will be $75, street sweeping fines will be $55, and the late penalty rises to 100 percent of the citation amount if unpaid within 21 days.
→ ⚡ Why I'm flagging it now: You have most of a month to adjust your habits before the new schedule kicks in. Feed the meter, mind the street sweeping signs, and if you do get a citation, deal with it within 21 days. That last part matters more than it used to.
👉 How to pay or contest a parking citation
🏠 Housing
🔹 If affordability is the goal, let's measure affordability. Sacramento continues to weaken local control and upzone neighborhoods with few meaningful affordability requirements. The latest example is next door in Manhattan Beach, where state housing laws cleared the way for that city's first seven-story apartment building. Of its 40 units, only 11 are designated as affordable. And now we're told a coming wave of new tech wealth could intensify competition for Southern California's already limited coastal housing supply.
→ 🎯 My position, plainly: If communities are being told they have no choice and can't stop these projects, shouldn't the result be more homes that working families can actually afford? Success should be measured by the number of affordable homes built, not simply by the number of market-rate units approved. Working families need policies that produce homes they can actually afford, not the promise that affordability will eventually trickle down.
👉 Read my full thoughts on state housing policy (Instagram)
💼 Economic Development
🔹 Welcome to Hermosa, Mi Burrito Mexican Grill. This past week I joined the ribbon cutting for Mi Burrito Mexican Grill and got to meet Juan, Christina, Mora, and their team. The food is already earning rave reviews, and it's easy to see why. I loved the warm hospitality and the welcoming vibe. The smiles said it all.
→ 💡 Why it matters: Every new small business that chooses Hermosa is a vote of confidence in our downtown and our community. Stop in, say hello, and give a new neighbor a strong start.
👉 View the Mi Burrito post (Instagram)
🔹 The World Cup comes to our sand: LA Galaxy Soccer Celebration, July 14 to 19. The City is partnering with the LA Galaxy to host a free, family-friendly fan experience on the beach south of the Pier, with big-screen viewings of the FIFA World Cup semifinals and final, player appearances, youth soccer sessions, music, and giveaways. Event days are July 14, 15, 18, and 19, with no programming on July 16 and 17.
→ ⚡ Why I love this: The world's game is being decided a short drive up the road at SoFi Stadium this month, and our diversity has always been our strength. Different backgrounds, different stories, one flag, one team. Bringing that energy to our own beach, free and open to everyone, is exactly the kind of event a beach city should host. Nearby residents and businesses will be notified directly, and staff is coordinating closely on logistics and public safety.
👉 Read the LA Galaxy Soccer Celebration announcement
🇺🇸 Around Town: America at 250
🔹 The 36th Hermosa Ironman: run, paddle, chug, repeat. Hundreds of participants and even more spectators packed the beach on the Fourth for the 36th annual Ironman, our gloriously unofficial mile run, mile paddle, six-pack tradition. Only in Hermosa Beach does America's 250th birthday get celebrated with surfboards, sand, and questionable life choices.
→ 💡 A word of thanks: Traditions like this one survive because organizers, volunteers, and public safety teams make them work year after year. Grateful to everyone who kept it fun and kept it safe.
🔹 Free art workshops for our veterans. Destination Art's Veterans Creative Muster program offers free art workshops for veterans. If you're a veteran or know someone who is, please share this opportunity. Sometimes the greatest act of service is making sure a fellow veteran knows they're not alone.
👉 Learn about the Veterans Creative Muster program (Instagram)
🔹 Congratulations to Gardena's new leadership. Over the weekend I joined South Bay colleagues, friends, and neighbors at the swearing-in ceremony for Gardena's newly elected and reelected leaders, including my friends Mayor Tasha Cerda and Councilmember Rodney Tanaka. Now it's time to get back to work.
🔹 Neighbors helping neighbors: Coastline Cares. Coastline Cares connects volunteers with South Bay neighbors who need a little extra support, whether it's yard cleanup, home projects, or a hand during a difficult time. If you know someone who could benefit, or you'd like to volunteer, reach out at 310-779-1371. A few hours of kindness can change someone's life.
👉 Learn more about Coastline Cares
📅 Upcoming
🔹 Wednesday, July 8 to Friday, July 10: California Coastal Commission meeting at the Crowne Plaza Ventura Beach, 450 E Harbor Blvd, Ventura. Livestreamed on Cal-Span.
🔹 Tuesday, July 14 to Sunday, July 19: LA Galaxy Soccer Celebration on the beach south of the Pier. Event days July 14, 15, 18, and 19.
🔹 Tuesday, July 28, 6:00 PM: Next regular City Council meeting, Council Chambers, 1315 Valley Drive. Agendas post at least 72 hours in advance.
🔹 Saturday, August 1: Updated parking citation fines take effect citywide.
🔹 All month: July is National Parks and Recreation Month, recognized by Council. A good excuse, as if we needed one, to enjoy a Hermosa park this week.
👉 View City Council agendas and meeting information
📱 Stay Connected
If you have a service issue to report, the Go Hermosa! app is the most direct way to get it to the right department at City Hall.
👉 Submit a service request via Go Hermosa!
For community updates and commentary between editions, you can follow me on Instagram.
👉 Follow @RayForHermosa on Instagram
Two hundred fifty years in, the American experiment still runs on the same fuel it started with: neighbors who care enough to participate. This month you can watch that up close, at a Commission dais in Ventura, at a budget that levels with you about hard choices, on a ballot question coming your way in November, and yes, on a beach full of people cheering strangers through a paddle and a six-pack. I am grateful to serve a city that takes both its self-governance and its traditions seriously. As always, please reach out anytime with questions, concerns, or anything you think I should know.
