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Bruce's Beach

African-American history of CaliforniaAfrican-American resortsAnti-black racism in CaliforniaBeaches of Los Angeles County, CaliforniaEminent domain
History of Los Angeles County, CaliforniaManhattan Beach, CaliforniaReparationsSeaside resorts in CaliforniaUse mdy dates from June 2022
Bruce's Beach 3
Bruce's Beach 3

Bruce's Beach was an African-American beach resort at Manhattan Beach in Los Angeles County, California. The property, which was located at 26th Street and Highland Avenue, was owned and operated by Charles and Willa Bruce for the benefit of the black community when racial segregation prevented them from enjoying opportunities provided at other beaches in the area. After it opened in 1912, it became a successful and popular visitor destination for African Americans. In 1924 the city of Manhattan Beach council used eminent domain to close it down as the area proposed was to be redeveloped as a public park. The property, acquired from the Bruce family and other owners, remained undeveloped for decades. Part of the site was eventually turned into a park in the 1960s and renamed Bruce's Beach in 2007. A lifeguard facility and parking lot were constructed on the beach parcels. In 2021, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to approve returning the county land to the heirs of Charles and Willa Bruce. The complex process of transferring the parcels to their great-grandsons was completed in 2022. In January 2023 the Bruce family announced their decision to sell the beach back to the county for $20 million.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Bruce's Beach (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Bruce's Beach
North Bay View Drive,

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N 33.894444444444 ° E -118.41555555556 °
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North Bay View Drive 2676
90266
California, United States
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Bruce's Beach 3
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Beach Cities Greenway
Beach Cities Greenway

The Beach Cities Greenway in Manhattan Beach and Hermosa Beach, California is a 3.9-mile (6.3 km) rail trail. The greenway is a linear park on the median between Valley Drive running along the west side and Ardmore Avenue on the east. Northern trailhead of the Beach Cities greenway is Sepulveda Blvd. and Valley Drive opposite the Manhattan Village shopping center in Manhattan Beach; southern trailhead is Herondo Street and Valley Drive at the Hermosa Beach-Redondo Beach municipal boundary. (Note: Manhattan, Hermosa and Redondo are collectively called the Beach Cities.) Hermosa's section is officially named the Hermosa Valley Greenbelt. Manhattan Beach's section was called Manhattan Parkway until 1988 when was renamed Veterans Parkway. The Manhattan Beach section is approximately 21 acres (85,000 m2) in area and 2 miles (3.2 km) long. The Hermosa Beach section is approximately 19 acres (77,000 m2) in area and 1.9 miles (3.1 km) long. The boundary between the two municipalities is approximately the 1st Street crossing but technically occurs “mid-block.” Popular with joggers and dog walkers, amenities along the trail include quarter-mile markers, outdoor fitness equipment, public art installations, benches and drinking fountains. For those who seek an extended workout, two blocks from the southern terminus of the greenway, down Herondo Street, is the Strand, part of the larger 22-mile (35 km) Coastal Bike Trail along the Pacific Ocean. Bicycles are not permitted on the greenway. The route is unpaved; locals sometimes call the route “the wood-chip trail.”

Scattergood Generating Station
Scattergood Generating Station

Scattergood Generating Station is an electricity-generating facility in the Playa Del Rey area of Los Angeles, California, in proximity to El Segundo and LAX. Scattergood has an 830 MW capacity spread across three steam turbine units. Owned and operated by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP), the station is a coastal landmark of the Santa Monica Bay in southern California. One writer described Scattergood and similar plants as “steel T. Rexes” hovering over southern California’s “finest beaches.” Another local journalist wrote that the presence of the “large, noisy” generating station discouraged tourism at adjacent beaches.Construction on the 56-acre (230,000 m2) site began in the late 1950s. The power plant, which cost $65 million, was named for Ezra F. Scattergood, first chief electric engineer of the Los Angeles municipal power system. Units 1 and 2 were brought online in 1958 and 1959, respectively; Unit 3 came online in 1974 with a potential 460 MW output.Circa 1964, the entire plant could be operated with as few as six staffers. As of 1971, Unit 3 was projected to cost an additional $68 million but provide power for 10 percent of the city. Between 2013 and 2015, the Department of Water and Power replaced the original Unit 3 “with a highly efficient combined cycle (natural gas and steam) turbine and two simple-cycle turbines.”The power source for the plant is currently natural gas; the Los Angeles City Council is considering a long-term plan to shift to hydrogen. Waste gas from the neighboring Hyperion sewage treatment plant was used during the 1960s. The plant cycles through 500,000,000 U.S. gal (1.9×109 L) of seawater daily as coolant. The seawater cools the freshwater that is turned to steam and back again; the steam turns the turbines that generate the electricity. The seawater is released back into the ocean 20 °F (−7 °C) cooler than when it was removed.The plant’s electricity production was considered “extremely stable” circa 1977. Output is transmitted through an intertie line.