Redondo Beach Pier

  Click to take of tour of Redondo Beach  

If Manhattan Beach is the sharp Sophisticate  and Hermosa Beach is the Adorable younger sister then Redondo Beach is surely the Gorgeous older sister of the beach cities.   While the wind still blew over the empty dunes that would someday become Manhattan Beach and Hermosa Beach .. Redondo was the West Coast Resort town at he turn of the century.  People came from all over the country to the wonderful place that was Redondo Beach.  Most South Bay residents don't realize what a colorful history the City of Redondo has had over th e years.

Redondo Beach got its start because it has a deep seabed close to the shoreline.  In the late 1880's Los Angeles needed a port to handle shipping. Redondo Beach seemed an ideal spot.  By 1888 the city had  a  wharf and the Santa Fe was running a  line from downtown Los Angeles to Redondo numerous times a day.  By 1903 the city would boast 3 wharves and  was a major port...   although it would soon lose out to San Pedro.

In 1890 a grand resort  The Hotel Redondo had been built where Veterans Park now stands.  The hotel had 225 luxurious rooms with an 18 hole golf course, tennis courts and gorgeous landscaped grounds.  If you couldn't afford to stay in the hotel there was a Tent City nearby  where you could rent a tent with electric lights for $3.00 by the week or $10.00 by the month.  There was also the world's largest salt water plunge close to where the Seaside Lagoon is today. There was even a beach that was piled high with Moonstones between Diamond Street and Herondo in Hermosa.

Entrepreneur Henry Huntington  realized what an attraction Redondo was and established the Red Car Service that ran from downtown through Beverly Hills and along the coast through Manhattan and Hermosa to the boardwalk in Redondo.  Huntington decided that Redondo needed another draw and in 1907 or so he hired George Freeth. George was a tall good looking Hawaiian -Irish  kid who knew how to surf.  Huntington billed him as the "man who could walk on water" and soon thousands came to Redondo to see George hit the shoreline on his 8 foot redwood surfboard.  George quickly became not only the first surfer on the California coast  but the Father of California surfing.  

 In 1892 the residents  decided it was time to become a city and with a vote of 177-10 the deed was done. As the city continued to grow  the pier as a port  became less and less important.  By the late 1920's storms had destroyed two of the wharves and in 1926 Wharf #3 was demolished.. along with the grand Hotel Redondo.  The fabulous resort had been done in by the Volstead Act or prohibition as it was popularly know as by the local folk.

During the Depression years until 1940 Redondo was home to the Gambling Ships complete with bad guys, mob guys, alcohol and gorgeous gals.. This was the stuff of movies. With the advent of World War II the gamblers were gone and the city settled down.  The  Monstad Pier was enlarged and soon restaurants and shops were built over the water.  Although storms and fires have destroyed major portions of the pier over the years today it still remains a part of life in Redondo Beach.

In the late 1960's the City of Redondo made a tragic mistake and agreed to tear down the original downtown area and turn the area over to developers.  Fortunately Riviera Village is still a gem in South Redondo but losing an historic place like the original town was a terrible thing for the city to let happen.   Over the years the city has not evidenced a great deal of support for the history of Redondo and many of its buildings of historic value have been demolished.   The Redondo Beach Historical Society has a yearly tour of some of the homes that have survived.  There are not many left and this is a way to see some of the beautiful homes that are part of Redondo's heritage.

Redondo Beach is home to The Civic Light Opera of The South Bay.  The CLOSB has come a long way since it first began and has won a number of Ovation Awards for best show right under the nose of the Dorothy Chandler and Pantages theaters. The Ovation Awards are LA's version of the Tony's on Broadway.  Season tickets are reasonably priced and make a great gift.  The Lobster Festival in May is a must...there are pots  of lobster and corn for thousands.  The annual Super Bowl 10K on Super Bowl Sunday  brings out the best runners in town.  The Redondo Beach Pier is  a great place to visit.  There are fresh fish markets where you can take fish home or have it cooked to order.  There are  some wonderful restaurants you don't want to miss..  Old Tony's  has best view in town.   There is a new restaurant on the site of Tony's Fish market.. Maison Riz.  It is upscale and  features French/Japanese cuisine.   Kincaids is another upscale  restaurant on the north end of the pier.   In the middle is the El Torito Grill and an Irish Pub Kilkenny's.

Over the years a number of single family homes have been torn down and replaced by townhome style condos in both North and South Redondo.  There are only a few neighborhoods in the city that remain as strictly single family areas.  The TRW tract in North Redondo is one and  the upper avenues in South Redondo is the other. There are parts of the  streets east of PCH and south of Torrance Blvd that are also single family neighborhoods.  An interesting note is that the Lady Streets (Gertruda, Irena, Juanita, Lucia, Maria, Guadalupe, Francisca) were supposedly named after the daughters of the owner of Rancho Redondo.  I don't know if it's true ...but it should be as it makes a great story. 

Redondo is the largest of the Beach Cities and over the years has been divided between North Redondo and South Redondo with 190th street as the informal boundary.  The demographics  from the 2000 census  say the city is 6.3 square miles, with the population fairly evenly divided between renters and home owners.  I believe that number has changed in the last few years with a higher number of homeowners.  The median income was $69,173.  In 1900 the population was 885 in 2005 the population was estimated at 62,000 with slightly more males then females.  The city has definitely grown some over the years.  

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School District

There are 8 elementary schools... 5 in North Redondo and 3 in South Redondo.

There are 2 middle schools one in North Redondo and one in South Redondo.

The High School  is Redondo Union in South Redondo.

Library

 Redondo Beach has two libraries.. one in North Redondo ( under construction until June 2010) and the main library at the corner of PCH and Diamond.

City of Redondo Beach

MEETINGS:
City Council:First and third Tuesday at 6:30 PM
Planning Commission: Third Thursday at 7:00PM
Harbor Commission: Second Monday at 7:00 PM
Public Safety: third Monday at 7:00 PM
Library Commission: First Monday at 7:00 PM