Signal Hill
A small hilltop city of about 12,000 entirely surrounded by Long Beach, Signal Hill sits atop one of the most productive urban oil fields in the country and offers sweeping views across the LA basin from its namesake summit.
- Population 11,848
- Size band small
- Area 2.2 sq mi
- Government Council–Manager (general law)
- Council at-large
- Incorporated 1924
Coverage: 14 meetings · 71 substantive items · 2025-12-08 → 2026-05-26 · agenda source: Legistar
Signal Hill's council has been dominated by two interlocking themes: active land development negotiations and fiscal housekeeping. The city has conducted repeated closed-session real-property negotiations over at least three distinct parcels—most persistently the 1.9-acre city-owned site on the 2400 Block of Gardena Avenue (Heritage Square Central Business District, appearing in closed sessions from December 2025 through May 2026), a 59,916 sq. ft. vacant lot near Cherry and St. Louis Avenues, and a 4.92-acre private site at 3201 Walnut Avenue. These have been backed by substantive public actions: an Exclusive Negotiation Agreement with Red Mountain Group (April 14), a PlaceWorks contract for CEQA analysis of 'Opportunity Study Areas' (February 24), a General Plan Annual Progress Report (March 10), and a public hearing on a Development Impact Fee Study (May 26). The Zenith Energy pipeline franchise followed a parallel two-step arc: Resolution of Intent in April followed by a public-hearing ordinance introduction in May, signaling new industrial energy infrastructure in the city.
On the fiscal side, the council has been systematically modernizing its financial management. The FY 2025-26 mid-year budget review and a new Budget Management Policy both appeared in February; the council separately directed staff to schedule a Biennial Budget Workshop (February and March); a Budget Study Session was held May 19; and a Development Impact Fee Study public hearing opened May 26. Investment oversight was professionalized by issuing an RFP for investment management services (February) and awarding a contract to Chandler Asset Management (April 28). Monthly Schedule of Investments reports appear at every meeting. Infrastructure spending draws on multiple regional/state programs: Measure R (Metro) for the Willow Street/Cherry Avenue efficient corridors project, Measure W (Safe Clean Water) for stormwater projects, and SB 1 for road repair—all approved in March with FY 2026-27 project lists. Completed capital projects include the Citywide Roof Replacement and the City Hall Window Replacement, both accepted in the April–May window.
Personnel transitions have been notable and ongoing: the Community Development Director was appointed by closed session in January and started March 2; a Public Works Director appointment went through closed session in April; an employee discipline/dismissal item appeared in April; and a new Assistant City Clerk was introduced in May. The council also addressed state compliance (SB 707 on meeting disruptions, AB 2561 on vacancy rate reporting) and community-facing policy (fee waiver updates, naming rights discussion, a digital billboard lease with Clear Channel, and a homeless outreach services update in March).
(Synthesized from the 120 most recent items.)
What to watch AI-generated
Key items (8)
- [26-1392] FISCAL YEAR 2025-26 MID-YEAR BUDGET REVIEW AND RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING APPROPRIATIONS FROM THE FISCAL YEAR 2024-25 GENERAL FUND OPERATING POSITIVE FUND BALANCE; CURRENT YEAR APPROPRIATION ADJUSTMENTS AND CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN BUDGET AND RELATED FUNDING; TRANSFERS FOR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN PROJECTS; AMENDING THE FISCAL YEAR 2025-2026 BUDGET — Signal Hill, 2026-02-24 · Mid-year budget review and CIP adjustments—foundational fiscal document setting the year's spending trajectory
- [26-1548] EXCLUSIVE NEGOTIATION AGREEMENT WITH RED MOUNTAIN GROUP — Signal Hill, 2026-04-14 · Exclusive Negotiation Agreement with Red Mountain Group—the public face of months of closed-session real property talks
- [26-1406] FUNDING AGREEMENT WITH THE LOS ANGELES COUNTY METROPOLITAN TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY FOR THE WILLOW STREET AND CHERRY AVENUE EFFICIENT CORRIDORS PROJECT; MEASURE R FUNDING — Signal Hill, 2026-03-10 · Measure R funding agreement with LA Metro for the Willow/Cherry corridors project—largest identified transportation investment
- [26-1458] RESOLUTION APPROVING A LIST OF PROJECTS TO BE FUNDED BY THE SAFE, CLEAN WATER PROGRAM - MEASURE W FOR FISCAL YEAR 2026-27 AND AMENDING FISCAL YEAR 2025-26 — Signal Hill, 2026-03-10 · Measure W Safe Clean Water project list for FY 2026-27—regional stormwater funding tied to specific local infrastructure
- [26-1536] PUBLIC HEARING - INTRODUCTION OF AN ORDINANCE GRANTING A PIPELINE FRANCHISE TO ZENITH ENERGY WEST COAST TERMINALS LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY — Signal Hill, 2026-05-12 · Zenith Energy pipeline franchise public hearing—new industrial energy infrastructure with city-revenue implications
- [26-1637] PUBLIC HEARING - DEVELOPMENT IMPACT FEE STUDY — Signal Hill, 2026-05-26 · Development Impact Fee Study public hearing—directly links land development pressure to how the city will fund future infrastructure
- [26-1525] UPDATE ON THE CITY'S EFFORTS AND INITIATIVES TO DELIVER HOMELESS OUTREACH AND PREVENTION SERVICES — Signal Hill, 2026-03-24 · Homeless outreach and prevention services update—only substantive policy report on a recurring social services theme
- [26-1610] BUDGET STUDY SESSION — Signal Hill, 2026-05-19 · Budget Study Session—the formal preview of the upcoming biennial budget, signaling near-term spending priorities
Honest scorecard vs 6 cohort peers
Each topic is shown as this city's share of council attention (% of its substantive items) next to the median share of its peer cohort — so size doesn't distort the comparison. Dollars are shown per resident (a causal denominator) and suppressed where too few peers have extracted amounts.
| Topic | Attention share | Peer median | vs peers | $ / resident | Peer median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Budget & Finance | 46% | 31% | ▲ +15pp | — | $441.41 |
| Governance & Administration | 25% | 25% | ≈ | — | $9.89 |
| Streets & Infrastructure | 11% | 14% | ▼ -3pp | — | $205.75 |
| Permitting & Land Use | 8% | 9% | ≈ | — | n/a |
| Economic Development | 4% | 4% | ≈ | — | $0.48 |
| Public Safety | 3% | 6% | ▼ -3pp | — | $12.07 |
| Climate & Environment | 1% | 5% | ▼ -4pp | — | $126.34 |
| Homelessness | 1% | 0% | ▲ +1pp | — | n/a |
| Housing | 1% | 4% | ▼ -2pp | — | n/a |
| Other | 0% | 1% | ▼ -1pp | — | n/a |
pp = percentage points of attention share. Peers: Sierra Madre, Culver City, Calabasas, Claremont, Redondo Beach, Pomona.
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Peer cohort comparable cities
Cities most comparable to Signal Hill by population, size, governance, and sub-region — the basis for fair comparison. Budget attributes are not loaded yet; cohort uses size, governance, and sub-region. With a small sample this is a soft grouping — the framework scales as cities are added.
Learning from peer cities
Matches found from similar agenda wording across cities — useful starting points to investigate, not proof that one city copied another.
Where Signal Hill and peers overlap
Matters Signal Hill worked on that peer cities also took up.
Ideas from peer cities (not found here yet)
Matters peer cities acted on that we haven't found a comparable item for in Signal Hill.