DIGS is the premiere luxury real estate lifestyle magazine serving the most affluent neighborhoods in the South Bay and Westside of Los Angeles, California.
Issue link: https://www.southbaydiggs.com/i/1519952
MAY 3, 2024 | ISSUE 325 TO OUR READERS South Bay DIGS welcomes your feedback and encourages reader response to our editorial features. Please send your letters to the Publisher at 722 1st Street, Unit D, Hermosa Beach, California, 90254 or via email to Contact@WestsideDIGS.com. Please include your name and contact information. Letters may be published and we reserve the right to edit. ADVERTISING For inquiries, please contact Publisher Warren Dow at 310.373.0142. EDITORIAL For editorial inquiries, please email Editorial@SouthBayDIGS.com On The Cover 722 1st Street, Unit D, Hermosa Beach, California, 90254 Office: 310.373.0142 South Bay DIGS Magazine is published every other Friday by m3 Media, LLC. Reproduction in any form or by any means is strictly prohibited without the prior written consent from m3 Media LLC. The Publisher and advertisers are not responsible or liable for misinformation, misprints, or typographical errors. All advertised properties are subject to prior sale or withdrawal without notice. Real estate advertised in this publication is subject to the Federal Fair Housing Act. M3 Media will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate which is in violation of the law. All persons are hereby informed that all dwellings advertised are available on an equal opportunity basis. Any and all submissions to this publication become the property of m3 Media, LLC and may be used in any media. CREATIVE SERVICES & AD DESIGN/ORIGINAL ARTWORK PROVIDED EXCLUSIVELY BY SOUTH BAY DIGS. © 2024 Micro Market Media, LLC. All rights reserved. C O N N E C T W I T H U S Listen & subscribe on iTunes, digs.net or your favorite podcast provider. The Titans of Real Estate INFLUENCERS PODCAST .net Founder & CEO / Publisher President & COO Digital Media Director Video Editor Senior Graphic Designer Contributing Writers Senior Staff Photographer Warren J. Dow William Bud Moore Kieron McKay Matt Polizzi Rufus Agbede Jenn Thornton Constance Dunn Karine Monié Abigail Stone Paul Jonason TUCKED AWAY TREASURE Over 10,000 square feet of sculpted living space flourishes in a little-known corner of East Manhattan Beach. Feature story on Page 50. PRESENTED BY NICK SCHNEIDER AND NATHAN STAGGS OF SCHNEIDER PROPERTIES | COMPASS COVER STORY WRITTEN BY CONSTANCE DUNN COVER PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF SCHNEIDER PROPERTIES DRE#: 01368971 Maureen Megowan 310.541.6416 mdmegowan@gmail.com MADRONA MARSH S O U T H B A Y History Tidbits The Madrona Marsh Nature Preserve, located just east of Del Amo Fashion Center and bounded on the north and south by Plaza del Amo and Sepulveda Boulevard, and on the east and west by Maple and Madrona avenues, is considered to be the last remaining vernal marsh in Los Angeles County. Vernal marshes are found in low-lying areas where rainfall runoff accumulates. The Marsh preserve is a remnant of once extensive natural systems that existed along the coastal plain and coastal terraces of Southern California. The preserve is situated on land that has been in oil production since 1924. This is why it was never initially developed for commercial or residential uses. In the early 1960s, this area had been included as a proposed site for a new state college, that eventually became Cal State Dominguez Hills. In 1964, this area was then proposed for a Torrance Municipal golf course, but was never pursued due to high cost estimates to acquire the land. In 1972, Torrance Investment Co., a firm consisting of developers Ray Watt, Guilford Glazer and Shurl Curci proposed developing the whole parcel for homes, condominiums and office space. The group, Friends of the Madrona Marsh was formed in 1972, and together with another group, STOP, Stop Torrance Overdevelopment Plans, opposed the development proposals. Negotiations with environmentalists, debates and environmental impact reports continued throughout the 1970s. In 1980, the developers offered 15 acres for preservation. In 1983, they came up with an offer which eventually would be accepted: 34.4 acres would be deeded to the city, with another 8.5 acres made available for sale. The developers used the land to develop the Park del Amo condominium project. In 1984, Torrance was given a deed to the marsh, but it would be two more years until the arrangement would become formalized. The city finally won clear title to the land on September 16, 1986. Over the years, the marsh began to take shape as a nature preserve. Tons of truckloads of trash and other dumped debris were hauled away in 1989, and in 1994, 200 tons of inactive oil drilling pipes on the property were dug up and removed. The 8,000-square-foot Madrona Marsh Nature Center located across from the marsh at 3201 Plaza del Amo, opened on Saturday, April 28, 2001. The $1.8 million project was a joint venture of the Friends of the Madrona Marsh and the City of Torrance, using funds from Proposition A, which passed in 1996. Activities include bird and nature walks, natural history classes and workshops, habitat restoration, science and astronomy programs, art exhibits, and children's nature programs. In recent years, Madrona Marsh has been closed for several days over concerns about mosquito larvae found there. The Marsh, however, remains as a precious preserve for plant life and animals and a wonderful resource to teach our children about nature. The above is an excerpt from my book "Historic Tales of Palos Verdes and the South Bay". For more info see http://www.southbayhistory.com. 22 DIGS.NET | 5.3.24