The 26th Street parking lot has been fenced off since August 10. Manhattan Avenue between 26th and 27th Streets has been closed to through traffic since the contractor mobilized in May. Bruce's Beach residents have spent the fall with orange overnight permits and a new resident-priority street program. The neighborhood is already living with most of the costs of the 28th Street Stormwater Infiltration Project.
The payoff hasn't arrived. Nothing under the street is diverting water yet. Work on site slowed this fall while the prime contractor and a subcontractor argue over a replacement, so the first storms of this wet season will leave the North End the way they always have. Water will run down the 28th Street storm drain and out onto the sand. That makes the old rules for this stretch of beach the ones that count this winter.
What the pipe under 28th Street does today
The storm drain that empties near 28th Street serves a drainage area of more than 1,500 acres. According to the City of Manhattan Beach project page, more than 99% of the water flowing into it comes from inside Manhattan Beach. When it rains, the trash, bacteria and other pollutants that runoff picks up go straight into Santa Monica Bay.
The water-quality grades show the same thing. Heal the Bay's 2025–2026 Beach Report Card, published May 20, 2026, grades the 28th Street monitoring sites alongside the rest of the Manhattan Beach shoreline.
| Monitoring site, 2025–2026 report card | Summer dry | Winter dry | Wet weather |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manhattan Beach at 28th St. storm drain | A | A | F |
| 28th St., 50 yards south of storm drain | A+ | not listed | D |
| Manhattan Beach Pier | B | A | A+ |
| Manhattan State Beach at 40th St. | A | A+ | A+ |
In dry weather, 28th Street scores as well as the pier. After rain it falls to an F at the drain and a D fifty yards south. Meanwhile the pier and 40th Street both earned A+ in wet weather. Heal the Bay counts grades from C through F as carrying an increased risk of illness. At 28th Street, the problem only shows up when it rains, and wet weather is the one condition the project is built to handle.
What the project is built to catch
The system pulls water off the existing 28th Street storm drain before it reaches the outfall. A pump station and pretreatment unit buried under the street strip out trash and sediment. Then the water goes to drywells that let it soak into the ground. When it's finished, only access lids will show at the surface.
The design is aimed at the start of each storm. The City's overview says the system will divert up to 0.8 inches of rainfall, the portion it calls usually the most polluted. Its FAQ puts the figure at runoff from about one inch of rain. Either way, the target is the first flush, the early water that washes a dry season's buildup off streets and into the drain. Most of what pushes the 28th Street site from A to F should be in that first water.
The project is large. In December 2025 the City Council considered a staff report recommending Zusser Company, Inc. for a $25,308,810 construction contract, plus a $2,530,881 contingency. That report listed $17,569,298 in Measure W funding, $8,535,000 from Proposition 1 and $4,936,566 from Proposition 68. The project is also the top priority of the Beach Cities Watershed Management Program, which Manhattan Beach shares with Hermosa Beach, Redondo Beach, Torrance and the Los Angeles County Flood Control District.
How the calendar got here
The schedule on the City's project page went like this:
- March 5, 2026: groundbreaking ceremony, followed by a community meeting on March 19.
- May 1–7: pre-construction surveys and settlement monitors for nearby residents.
- Week of May 4–15: contractor mobilization, signage, fencing and the Manhattan Avenue closure between 26th and 27th.
- May 18: tentative start of drywell drilling at Bruce's Beach, with the 26th Street lot next.
- August 10: the whole 26th Street lot closed to give the drilling more room.
- Summer 2027: posted close-out, covering final inspections, punch list and acceptance.
The City's FAQ estimates about 18 months of construction, done in phases. It expects roughly six months of impact at the 28th Street and Manhattan Avenue intersection, six to nine months for the Manhattan Avenue closure and 12 to 15 months for the parking facility. Counting from the May mobilization, the City's own range for Manhattan Avenue runs from about now into early 2027. The latest City statement on the street, dated June 11, said only that it would stay closed to through traffic.
The schedule got harder in the fall. At the October 6, 2026 City Council meeting, the Public Works director explained that the prime contractor wants to replace a subcontractor and the subcontractor objects. Under California law, the City has to hold a hearing to decide. She said the City had cut back its own construction management and inspection staff on site "to control costs while there are reduced activities on site." She told the council, "The prime contractor has not abandoned the project," and when asked about the schedule, said, "The finish date has not changed." She added that a late start means the contractor has to speed up, barring unknown site conditions.
The hearing follows Public Contract Code Section 4107, the state rule on replacing a listed subcontractor on a public works job. It requires written notice to the subcontractor, gives five working days to object and calls for at least five working days' notice before a hearing. In late October, the newest notice on the City's project page was still the August 5 parking-lot update, and the October 20 council agenda had no item on the project. Citizen Portal's October 7 report on the meeting called the project stalled "ahead of wet season," and that timing is the reason the stall matters on the sand this winter.
The parking arrangements last as long as the work
The City's parking measures run for as long as construction does, so a slower site means more time on these workarounds. The City lists three for the Bruce's Beach neighborhood, the area bounded by Marine Avenue, Ocean Drive, 33rd Street and Highland Avenue, not counting Marine and Highland themselves.
- Street sweeping: enforcement has been suspended since July 6, 2026, though the signs stay up.
- Overnight parking: since August 1, orange Bruce's Beach Resident Overnight Parking permits work in designated spaces in the Grandview School upper lot, every day from 6:00 PM to 7:00 AM. This replaces the overnight parking lost in the Bruce's Beach lot.
- Daytime street parking: resident-priority permits let residents park past the posted one-hour limit between 7:00 AM and 7:00 PM. No permit is needed at night or in front of your own driveway. Permits are sold at the City Hall cashier, and enforcement started September 1, 2026.
Construction generally runs Monday through Friday, 7:30 AM to 6:00 PM. Resident and emergency vehicle access stays open the whole time. For permit questions, call Traffic Engineering at (310) 802-5521. Project questions go to the Project Management Team at (310) 802-5014 or [email protected]. These details come from the City's posted notices. Confirm your own permit eligibility with the City directly.
The 72-hour rule still applies at 28th Street
Until the drywells are running, the 28th Street outfall works the way it always has, and the County's rules for it stay the same. Los Angeles County Public Health issues a rain advisory after significant rainfall that could push bacteria levels above health standards. The advisory stays in effect for 72 hours after the rain stops and covers all county beaches. The County says to avoid water contact especially near storm drains, creeks and rivers that are discharging.
Near an underground storm drain that empties onto the beach, the County posts warning signs 50 and 100 yards on either side of the outlet. It advises against water contact in the signed area between them. At 28th Street, that signed area includes the monitoring point 50 yards south that earned a D in wet weather. Heal the Bay also recommends staying out of the water for at least 72 hours after rain.
On dry days this winter, the 28th Street site should match its A grades from last year. After a storm, surfers and swimmers at the North End should count three full days from when the rain stops before going in near the drain, at least until the City's posted Summer 2027 close-out.
Projects like this one shape what daily life looks like on a given block, and Ryan Shaw Group follows them closely across Manhattan Beach's North End. If you live near 28th Street and want to talk through how construction and its timeline affect your property, we're glad to share what we're seeing. When you're ready, request your home valuation.
