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Ray Jackson Newsletter — September 14, 2026
📬 Councilmember Ray Jackson | Hermosa Beach | September 14, 2026
Good Monday morning, Hermosa Beach,
This week, the job stretched from the redwoods to the sand. I spent the middle of the week in Eureka, where my fellow Coastal Commissioners and I met Wednesday through Friday to do the people's work, with recent damage along California's coastline serving as a sobering reminder of what is at stake for every coastal community, including ours. Back home, Hermosa spent those same days proving exactly why the coast is worth protecting: four days of world-class volleyball at the Pier, Magic! headlining the Concert Series on the sand Sunday, and a quiet Friday morning of remembrance on the Greenbelt marking 25 years since September 11. Here is what you need to know.
🚨 Public Safety
🔹 Friday night's checkpoint was about one number: zero. The Hermosa Beach Police Department held a DUI and driver's license checkpoint on Friday, September 11, from 7:00 PM to 3:00 AM, at a location selected using data on impaired-driving crashes, with funding from a California Office of Traffic Safety grant. A few reminders worth repeating: impairment is not just alcohol, since some prescription and over-the-counter medications interfere with driving, and driving under the influence of marijuana remains illegal. A first-time DUI averages roughly $13,500 in fines and penalties, plus a suspended license.
→ 💡 Plain English: I asked our community to get through the weekend with zero impaired driving incidents, and I meant every word. A taxi, a rideshare, or a friend costs a few dollars. The alternative can cost a life. Take care of one another, and if a friend reaches for their keys, take them.
👉 View the checkpoint details (Instagram)
🔹 Hate has no place in Hermosa Beach. Early last week, an act of hate surfaced in our community, and our Public Works team responded immediately. I said it plainly then and I will repeat it here: antisemitism, racism, homophobia, misogyny, and every other form of hate will never define this community or prevail in it.
→ 🎯 My stance: Those who condone hate, or stay silent in the face of it, share in the responsibility. We are better than this, and good will triumph. Thank you to our Public Works crews for treating this with the urgency it deserved.
👉 Read my full statement (Instagram)
🇺🇸 Twenty-Five Years Later
🔹 We still remember, together. On Friday morning at 7:30, the community gathered at the Hermosa Beach 9/11 Memorial, where the Greenbelt meets Pier Avenue, for the City's annual Wreath Laying Ceremony marking the 25th anniversary of the attacks. The Hermosa Beach Police Department Honor Guard and Scouts Troop 860 posted the colors, wreaths were placed by elected officials and Police and Fire representatives, and flowers were made available for attendees to lay at the Memorial. Days earlier, at its September 8 meeting, the City Council recognized Dave Shaw, Ben Colarossi, and Darcy Plourde for their generosity in restoring the Memorial, including the bench adorned with buttons representing the lives lost and the sculpture containing a piece of steel from Ground Zero. After nearly thirty years in uniform, I do not need a ceremony to remember. But I am deeply grateful to live in a town that insists on remembering together.
👉 Read about the ceremony and Memorial restorations
🌊 Environment & Protecting Our Coast
🔹 The Commission went north, and the lessons come home. The California Coastal Commission held its September meeting in Eureka this week, and I traveled up Tuesday to join my fellow Commissioners for three days of hearings. The recent damage along California's coastline is a sobering reminder of what is at stake: we must plan for the long term, protect public access, safeguard critical infrastructure, and prepare our coastal communities for the challenges ahead.
→ ⚡ Why it matters here: Hermosa Beach is 1.4 square miles of coastal city. Every decision about sea level rise, shoreline armoring, and public access made in a hearing room 600 miles away eventually shows up on our sand. When the Commission deliberates, I make sure a South Bay voice is in the room.
🔹 Coastal Cleanup Day is this Saturday, September 19. It is an international day of action to protect our oceans, watersheds, and wildlife from debris and plastic pollution, and Heal the Bay has coordinated the Los Angeles County effort for 37 years, in partnership with the Coastal Commission and the Ocean Conservancy. Thousands of volunteers will fan out across the county, and I would love to see a strong Hermosa showing. Grab a bucket, bring the kids, and give the beach an hour. It gives us everything the rest of the year.
👉 Find a cleanup site and RSVP
💰 Budget & Finance
🔹 The slurry seal project is complete. The City announced this week that the Citywide Slurry Seal Project (CIP 107) is finished, with 1.8 miles of roadway sealed and fresh striping in place. When this work began in July, I told you it was exactly where I want our dollars going, and the math has not changed: the cheapest repair in public works is the one that keeps a small crack from becoming a big pothole. Thank you for your patience with the cones and the no-parking signs. Your streets will last longer for it.
🔹 Measure HB is headed to your ballot. The November 3 General Municipal Election will include Measure HB, a proposed local sales tax of one half of a cent per dollar spent, intended to provide locally controlled funding to protect essential city services and infrastructure. The City is committed to providing factual, unbiased information about what the measure would do if approved, and those materials will be posted on the City website soon.
→ 💡 Plain English: Between now and November, your job is homework, and mine is making sure you have the facts to do it. Read the materials as the City posts them, ask questions, and decide for yourself. I will keep pointing you to the official information as it becomes available.
👉 Visit the City's election information page
💼 Economic Development
🔹 The Beach Volleyball Capital delivered again. The third annual Wedbush Hermosa Beach Open ran Thursday through Sunday on the north side of the Pier, with Olympians, national team athletes, NCAA standouts, and beloved local legends competing across four days, all free to the public. Beach volleyball was born on this sand, and a weekend like this fills our restaurants and shops at the tail end of summer while honoring who we are.
→ 🙏 A thank-you that stuck with me: A neighbor shared a gracious note this weekend thanking the people who work behind the scenes on events like the Open and the Concert Series, and they are exactly right. These events do not just happen. They take countless hours of planning and collaboration from city staff, organizers, volunteers, and our public safety teams, and a little gratitude goes a long way. Consider this mine.
🔹 Malendrina is one to watch on Pier Plaza. Earlier this month, Dave Shott and I wandered onto Pier Plaza craving chicken wings and met the team behind Malendrina, a new wine bar inspired by Sicilian and Palestinian cuisine. Gea, Abraham, Amanda, and Chuck are building something special, and after trying the watermelon, the shrimp, and the chicken, I can tell you to believe the hype. The big scissors and the official grand opening are still to come, but you do not have to wait to swing by and show them some Hermosa love.
👉 Meet the Malendrina team (Instagram)
🏖️ Around Town
🔹 Magic! on the sand, with one Sunday left. The Hermosa Beach Concert Series returned Sunday afternoon south of the Pier, with Auner Garcia Collective and Katt Hall opening for headliner Magic!. This tradition dates to 1998, and it costs you nothing but a blanket and an afternoon. The finale is next Sunday, September 20 at 3:00 PM, with The Lucky Effect opening and Cubensis headlining. If you missed this weekend, you have exactly one more chance this year.
👉 View the Concert Series details
🔹 A century of water you can trust. On Saturday, Cal Water celebrated 100 years of service to our area with a community celebration at Seaside Lagoon, and I was glad to join friends, neighbors, and community partners in honoring the milestone. Reliable, safe, clean water is the kind of infrastructure nobody notices until it fails, which is exactly why the people who deliver it for a century deserve a party.
🔹 Community heart at Gitana Café. Here is a number that stopped me cold: every two minutes, someone is paralyzed. On Saturday, during Spinal Cord Injury Awareness Month, it was inspiring to see our community come together at Gitana Café to support Jenna and the Wings for Life mission to find a cure for spinal cord injuries. Awareness matters. Research matters. Access matters. Every donation goes directly to research, and if you are able to give, it will count.
👉 Donate to spinal cord injury research
🔹 A salute to Ennis Jackson. At its September 8 meeting, the City Council recognized Ennis Jackson on his retirement, honoring his dedicated service and contributions to Hermosa Beach. I add my personal thanks. Cities run on people like Ennis, and we are better for his years of service.
🗳️ A Note on November
🔹 Three seats, one measure, one deadline that matters: yours. The November 3 General Municipal Election includes races for three City Council seats along with Measure HB. This election is too important to sit out. If you are new to the area, recently moved, or simply have not updated your registration, please handle it today. It is simple, it is quick, and your voice matters. Then keep an eye on your mailbox, because Los Angeles County will be sending vote-by-mail ballots to registered voters this fall. Register. Vote. Be heard.
👉 Register to vote or update your registration
👉 Visit the LA County Registrar
📅 Dates & Community Events
🔹 Tuesday, September 15, 5:00 to 8:00 PM: Planning Commission study session on the Commercial Zoning Code updates, Council Chambers, 1315 Valley Drive. This is the next step in the zoning conversation many of you joined at office hours this summer.
🔹 Wednesday, September 16, 6:00 PM: Public Works Commission meeting, Council Chambers.
🔹 Saturday, September 19: California Coastal Cleanup Day, at sites across Los Angeles County and beyond.
🔹 Saturday, September 19, 6:00 PM: Movies at the Beach, hosted by the Hermosa Beach Friends of the Parks, south of the Pier.
🔹 Sunday, September 20, 3:00 PM: Hermosa Beach Concert Series finale, south of the Pier, featuring The Lucky Effect and headliner Cubensis.
🔹 Tuesday, September 22, 6:00 PM: Regular City Council meeting, Council Chambers, 1315 Valley Drive. Agendas post at least 72 hours in advance.
🔹 Saturday, September 26, 8:30 AM: SoCal Beach Foundation adult beach volleyball tournaments, north side of the Pier.
🔹 Sunday, September 27, 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM: Hope Chapel family picnic at Valley Park, with free games, music, and food for all ages.
👉 View City Council agendas and meeting information
👉 View the City calendar of events
📱 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
Looking at the week ahead, I see a beach that needs an hour of your time on Saturday morning and a concert that will repay you with three hours of music on Sunday afternoon. That is a fair trade if I have ever seen one. Whether you spent this past week cheering on the sand, laying a flower at the Memorial, or just keeping our little city running, thank you. If anything in this edition raises a question, write to me. Hearing from you is the best part of this job, and it makes every edition after this one better.
Working together to build an ever better Hermosa Beach.
Ray Jackson
Councilmember, City of Hermosa Beach
