What a new Hermosa Beach pier would cost — and the decision on the clock

June 2026 · Last updated: June 10, 2026

A new Hermosa Beach pier would cost an estimated $58.6 million in 2032 dollars, according to the city staff report presented at a joint Public Works and Parks and Recreation commission meeting on May 5, 2026. The alternative — repairing the existing pier indefinitely — pencils at roughly $100 million, and neither figure includes financing costs, which staff said could equal the construction cost itself. (Easy Reader, May 7, 2026)

City Council has to pick a direction by the end of 2026. Here is what each path costs, and what it means if you own property, pay taxes, or just walk the pier on Sundays.

What shape is the pier in right now?

"The pier is in poor to serious condition," Public Works Director Joe SanClemente told commissioners, per Easy Reader's report. Repairs must be completed by 2027 — otherwise, he said, the city faces additional inspections and possible closure. High-priority repair work is planned to start after the summer crowds leave, in September or October 2026, and run through the winter.

The structure itself dates to 1965, with a renovation in the early 2000s, and extends 1,140 feet from the Strand, per the city's pier page. The staff report says it will need reinspection and repair every 5 years for the foreseeable future as it ages in a corrosive marine environment.

What are the city's options?

Three, roughly:

Replace it. Estimated at $58.6 million in 2032 dollars. Permitting alone would take 6 to 8 years, SanClemente told commissioners.

Repair it forever. Roughly $100 million in ongoing repairs over time, per the staff report — the more expensive path on paper, spread across decades of 5-year inspection-and-repair cycles.

Do nothing. "We would have to close it," SanClemente said when a commissioner asked. He described continual monitoring, then limited closures, then full closure — "and it's not far off if we fail to do these high-priority repairs." Demolition alone would cost millions. The liability risk is not hypothetical: in 1987, a man was awarded $3.26 million after a 150-pound concrete slab fell from the Manhattan Beach pier and left him a paraplegic, per Easy Reader.

Why does the decision have to happen by the end of 2026?

Because of the permitting math. A decision to replace by the end of 2026 allows groundbreaking in 2032. Miss that window, and the next realistic decision point is 2030, with groundbreaking in 2036 — plus, SanClemente said, the city gets "locked in to another $4 million for improvements by 2030" to keep the existing pier safe in the meantime.

Who actually pays for this?

That's the open question, and it's the taxpayer's question. The staff report identifies no funding source, and the city's capital budget is already strained. Administrative Services Director Brandon Walker told commissioners Hermosa needs $8–12 million a year for basic citywide infrastructure repair but is replenishing its General Funds at $4–6 million. "There is no consistent structural General Fund support for capital projects," he said, adding that the COVID relief funds and vacancy savings that propped up recent capital spending can no longer be relied on.

One possible outside source: the Piers Reinvestment Act, introduced April 27, 2026 by Rep. Robert Garcia, would make piers eligible for federal Department of Transportation grant funding for the first time — current federal programs fund bridges but exclude pier structures, per Garcia's office. It is a bill, not a law. Absent grants, a project this size in a city with these capital numbers means borrowing, new revenue, or both; the city has not said which.

What happens next — and how do you weigh in?

City Council has directed staff to workshop the plan through the Public Works Commission, with a draft plan officials hope to finalize by the end of 2026. Repairs begin in fall 2026 either way.

To follow it or comment: agendas post at least 72 hours before each meeting on the city's agenda portal, and the city accepts written eComments on any agenda item up until 3 hours before the meeting starts — details on the Agendas, Minutes & Video page. Meetings also take live public comment.

We track this story, and everything else that hits your money in MB and Hermosa, in the twice-weekly Pier to Pier newsletter.

General information, not advice.

Sources

  • Easy Reader, "Clock ticking on Hermosa Beach pier's future," May 7, 2026 — https://easyreadernews.com/clock-ticking-on-hermosa-beach-piers-future/
  • City of Hermosa Beach, Hermosa Beach Pier facility page — https://www.hermosabeach.gov/Home/Components/FacilityDirectory/FacilityDirectory/129/248
  • City of Hermosa Beach, Agendas, Minutes & Video — https://www.hermosabeach.gov/our-community/agendas-minutes-video
  • Office of Rep. Robert Garcia, press release, April 27, 2026 — https://robertgarcia.house.gov/media/press-releases/congressman-robert-garcia-introduces-bill-upgrade-aging-piers-and-invest

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