These lots off Porto Marina are owned by L.A. City.
Castellammare neighbors are worried that a recent transient is illegally camping in a now-City owned home on Porto Marina Way.
A young man, with a skateboard, who has been offered help by the Homeless Task Force on Homelessness, has allegedly been peering in windows of homes in Castellammare.
More recently, the man was spotted going into a home at 17909 Porto, and neighbors called the Pacific Palisades Task Force on Homelessness.
One of the PPTFH members remembered that about two years ago, a fenced empty lot sat next to the house. A hole had been cut in the fence and upon entering the property, PPTFH members found a large encampment that was cleaned, and the fence fixed.
At the time, officers went to the house that adjoins the lot to speak to the homeowner, but no one responded. That property belonged to George and Selma Lerner. Officers noted that there were several vintage autos in the driveway.
That area of Pacific Palisades came under scrutiny in a L.A. Times March 4, 1993, story (“Trouble in Paradise: Dream Homes Slip Away: Pacific Palisades: For some, the lush life has turned to mud, as houses wrecked in slides inspire grief and lawsuits.”).The paper reported that “the neighborhood, which dates to the 1920s, straddles half a dozen slides–30-foot layers of clay-like earth that are always inching downhill but get extra slippery when it’s wet. Even without the rain, there seems to be a lot of water underneath, but no one is sure why. Speculation ranges from chronically faulty mains and leaking swimming pools to gathering lakes of rainwater from uphill.”
In 1993, the City spent $2.7 million for emergency reconstruction on Porto Marina Way and Castellammare Drive. Water and sewer lines were moved above ground to prevent breakage. Gas was turned off in several homes.
The LA Times wrote: “Some of the homes are lost causes. They will have to be torn down and the lots bolstered to prevent more slippage. For those that can be saved, the costs of engineering and other studies required by city inspectors can run easily into the tens of thousands of dollars. The actual work, of course, will cost even more.”
In that story it was reported that, “George and Selma Lerner haven’t left their house on Porto Marina Way, despite the encroaching earth wall behind them that is pushing over a retaining barrier and threatening the house. City officials delivered a notice that the property must be made safe before it can be lived in, but George Lerner said the couple refuse to surrender to fear.”
In an October story (“It’s an Uphill Battle: City Spending $2.5 Million to Anchor Homes”), they noted that Selma Lerner refused to move.
“The Pacific Palisades house she fell in love with seven years ago is cracked and looks as if it’s about to be bowled over by a looming mass above. No one knows yet if the house can be made safe–even with the $2.5 million the city of Los Angeles is spending to fix landslide damage caused by last winter’s rains and to brace the hillside against further slides.”
Although her carport was partially bulldozed by the landslide she was quoted as saying, “Even if they say the house is going into the ocean, I’ll go with it.”
The article mentioned that the City’s fix of sinking a string of steel beam 80 feet into the bedrock beneath was called by one engineer “like holding a sandwich together with toothpicks.” About 15 property owners had filed claims against the City.
George passed away, first. CTN was told that Selma received permission to live in the house until she died. CTN has been unable to confirm that – if anyone has information about the Lerners, please email editor@circlingthenews.com
Councilmember Traci Park’s field deputy Michael Amster was contacted, and he spoke to general services, who will board the windows and secure the property. If residents see suspicious activity on any City-owned parcels in Castellammare area, they should reach out to Senior Lead Officer Brian Espin (310-444-0737 and 37430@lapd.online)
The home at 17909 was occupied by squatters.