RANCHO PALOS VERDES (CNS) – Property owners affected by the recent landslides in Rancho Palos Verdes may receive up to $10,000 each after the City Council unanimously approved an emergency financial assistance program.
The council Tuesday night approved a program that allocates $5 million in landslide relief funding from the office of County Supervisor Janice Hahn to provide immediate aid to city residents impacted by land movement and utility shutoffs. The package includes $2.8 million for up to 280 eligible homeowners, with the remaining $2.2 million earmarked for the city’s ongoing landslide response and stabilization efforts.
“Our community has faced unfathomable challenges in the face of this landslide disaster, and it’s critical that we swiftly deploy this funding to support our residents who have been most impacted,” Rancho Palos Verdes Mayor John Cruikshank said. “These emergency grants will deliver long-overdue immediate assistance to those whose lives have been upended by land movement and utility shutoffs, helping them cover essential costs like home repairs and temporary housing. We extend our gratitude and appreciation to Supervisor Hahn for helping secure this vital funding for our community.”
Grants will be made available to homeowners in the Portuguese Bend Community Association, Seaview and Portuguese Bend Beach Club neighborhoods. An estimated 280 households in those areas have indefinitely lost electricity and/or natural gas service or suffered damage due to the landslides. Grant recipients are required to provide documentation, and the city’s finance department will oversee the program.
Officials said that once applications are approved, residents can expect to receive reimbursement within a week. Information on how to apply will be shared with property owners in the coming days via their homeowners’ associations.
City officials are continuing to advocate for more local, state and federal assistance to mitigate the rising costs of the landslide response.
The land movement in Rancho Palos Verdes accelerated across 680 acres following heavy rains in spring 2023, causing damage to homes, roads and utilities. Gov. Gavin Newsom proclaimed a state of emergency Sept. 3 in the city in an effort to free up state resources to assist in the response. Utility shutoffs prompted by rapid land movement have also extended to neighboring Rolling Hills.
The Rancho Palos Verdes City Council also received an update from staff Tuesday on the city’s efforts to stabilize the landslide. In recent weeks, workers have successfully drilled six new deep dewatering wells that are collectively pumping out 7.2 million gallons of water per week. The wells are located at the toe of the landslide along the shoreline, helping relieve built- up water pressure that is fueling the slide.
The emergency project represents a shift in strategy away from the horizontal hydrauger well project, a change driven by the discovery of the deeper and faster-moving Altamira Landslide.
The council voted Tuesday to allocate $6.1 million to continue emergency work, up to $4 million for additional dewatering wells, and $4 million for winterization efforts to prepare for the next rainy season, including lining canyons and filling fissures and grabens to prevent water from percolating underground and worsening land movement.
Data presented to the council at Tuesday’s meeting showed a continued slowing trend across the landslide complex. Between Aug. 1 and Sept. 4, the average movement velocity decelerated by 13%, with an overall movement of 8 inches per week, officials said. However, land movement remains 80 times faster than in October 2022, and it continues to severely impact public and private roads, private property, including hundreds of residential structures, utility infrastructure and trails and open space areas.
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