Torrance : Lease Compromise Reached

Torrance will lease part of a two-acre parcel to the developers of the Park del Amo project, and the $15,000 collected in rent for the year will be used for the Madrona Marsh nature preserve. Exactly how the money will be spent has not been decided, a city official said.

The developers, who will use the rented site to store construction materials, had sought to lease the lot for $1,000 a month. But the Friends of Madrona Marsh, a Torrance environmental group that will oversee the nature preserve, said $1,500 a month was more appropriate because of the land’s value.

The city staff recommended $1,250 a month and the City Council this week unanimously agreed.

Park del Amo, which will have 1,480 residential units and 850,000 square feet of office space when completed in 1990, is adjacent to the Madrona Marsh wetlands, one of the few remaining stopping grounds for migratory birds and other small wildlife in the South Bay. The city gave its approval for the project in 1983 only after the developers, Torrance Investment Co., agreed to set aside nearly 43 acres of the 182-acre site for a wildlife preserve.