A new public shuttle system to ferry people around town could eventually make its way onto Hermosa Beach streets sometime soon. The Hermosa Beach City Council Monday night agreed to explore this proposal along with five other revitalization projects presented by its volunteer Economic Development Committee.

In April, the volunteer committee of school officials, community members, business and property owners, city officials and employees unveiled its findings to the council with various recommendations aimed at attracting retail and commercial development to the entire city.

Led by resident Joe Mark and Hermosa Beach City Manager Steve Burrell, the group members volunteered their time and knowledge in formulating numerous strategies to enhance and balance the city’s current business and housing area.

The group partitioned the city into separate corridors, encompassing both residential and commercial districts. The first of these is the Beachfront and Core Business District, comprising the vicinity around the pier, the pier plaza, and the downtown area along Pier and Hermosa avenues. The Civic and Park District encompasses the greenbelt, the city’s Community Center, and the areas adjacent to the city’s numerous parks along Valley Drive and Pacific Coast Highway. The Hermosa Hills and Prospect Square District, and the Pacific Coast Highway Business Corridor make up the last two areas.

In November of 2000, the council adopted a moratorium on the conversion of retail and office space with the intent of hiring a professional consultant who would analyze the city’s various commercial and retail areas with the purpose of developing incentive programs to attract new businesses.

Formed last March, the committee of 40-plus members spent more than a year comparing information from 10 cities with similar demographics such as La Jolla, Manhattan Beach, Newport Beach, Coronado and Seal Beach.

On Monday night, Mark spoke before the council on behalf of the committee and stressed the group’s overall focus in a citywide revitalization entailing a two-prong approach involving both the municipality and its residents.

“What we are looking at really, is a philosophy on what we want to do to this town,” he said. “It doesn’t necessarily have to be a one-, two-, three-step process. If the city helps by creating the momentum, then the retailers will come and step up to the table.”

Following Mark’s review, the City Council agreed to concentrate on six key issues over the next year rather than attempt to address the broad range of topics outlined by the committee all at once.

“I think it’s all great, but I want something a little more specific,” said Councilman Sam Edgerton. “So I would like the committee to pick two or three things it can accomplish with the city’s backing and really hone in on that.”

City officials and committee members will take a closer look at building parking spaces along an alley north of Pier Avenue between Loma Drive and Bard Street. They will also explore constructing a two-story parking deck, even with the street, at a parking lot near the corner of Manhattan Avenue and 14th Street.

“I think there is a lot of opportunity for new parking that would benefit both businesses as well as residents and these are the things I’d like to explore,” said Councilman J.R. Reviczky. “If we could only get some of our residents to clean out their garages so they could park their cars inside them. They store $2,000 in their garages and park $40,000 out on the street.”

The city may also sponsor a beautification project where it would provide free trees to residents who would then plant them and agree to maintain them. It will also examine installing medians along Pacific Coast Highway, and implementing a public transportation service that would run on an hourly basis and would transport residents from one area of town to the other.

“In my personal view, if we could take advantage of a shuttle system, I think it would take a lot of traffic off PCH,” said committee member Cathy McCurdy. “I think it would tie the whole city together and it would be a fairly easy thing to put in place as part of our start-up plan.”

Councilmen Michael Keegan and Reviczky will meet with business owners on Pacific Coast Highway and Aviation Boulevard in the near future. They hope to advocate mixed use of both residential and commercial in the areas by proposing that developers build two-story buildings with small studio-type apartments located on the top level and stores on the ground floor.

“I think right off the bat, we are eons ahead because this was done by the community without the use of any professionals,” said committee member Pete Tucker. “So this plan is a reflection of what we as residents would like to see and many people are interested in where this is going.”

The next committee and city meeting is scheduled for mid-September.