A proposed mixed-use waterfront redevelopment of the 50-54 acre former AES Redondo Beach Generating Station at 1100 North Harbor Drive — a power plant that operated from 1907 until December 31, 2023. Developer: Leo Pustilnikov, operating through Next Century Power LLC and SLH Investments. Pustilnikov acquired the site from AES in 2020 for approximately $150 million. The August 10, 2022 preliminary application under SB 330 — the first Builder's Remedy application filed anywhere in Southern California — proposed approximately 2,700 residential units, 540 affordable units (20% of total), a 300-room hotel, approximately 550,000 square feet of office space, ground-floor retail, and 22.5 acres of public park and open space. Buildings would range from an 8-wing apartment compound to a 200-foot residential tower. The preserved AES concrete plant building would host event space or a museum. The Builder's Remedy basis: Redondo Beach's Housing Element was not HCD-certified at the time of the August 2022 SB 330 application. The City of Redondo Beach contested Builder's Remedy at every step: arguing its Housing Element was already "substantially compliant" (rejected by HCD); voting to ban Builder's Remedy entirely in December 2022 (struck down by courts); issuing multiple "incomplete" determinations in 2023; and invoking coastal zone requirements and Charter City voter-approval claims. The state (Governor Newsom, AG Bonta, and HCD) sued Redondo Beach in March 2023. A Feb. 8, 2024 Superior Court ruling against Pustilnikov on Coastal Act grounds came in a separate case over Ten21, his 30-unit builder's remedy project at 1021 N. Harbor Drive across the street; in April 2024 two of his suits over the power plant site were stayed pending the appeal of that ruling, and on July 30, 2026 the Court of Appeal upheld the city's denial of Ten21. YIMBY Law filed a separate suit in August 2023. On Oct. 10, 2025, in New Commune DTLA LLC v. City of Redondo Beach, the Second District Court of Appeal reversed a trial court judgment that had upheld the city's housing element. It held that the element did not comply with state law because the base zoning on its overlay sites still allowed projects with no housing, and ordered the trial court to issue a writ requiring the city to revise it. The California Supreme Court denied the city's petition for review on Jan. 28, 2026. The council adopted a revised housing element in May 2026, HCD found it in compliance on May 20, 2026, and City Attorney Joy Abaquin-Ford said the city is not subject to the builder's remedy under it. On March 30, 2026 the site's owners settled one of their six lawsuits against the city, a $120 million suit claiming that the city had engaged in a multi-year scheme to block development of the site; five suits remain pending. The project has not been approved.
Court
| Date | Event | What the record shows |
|---|---|---|
| January 1, 2020 | Pustilnikov Acquires AES Power Plant Site for $150 Million | Leo Pustilnikov and SLH Investments acquire the 50-54 acre AES Redondo Beach Generating Station site for approximately $150 million. The plant was required by state regulations to close by the end of 2023 due to the ban on once-through ocean cooling. Easy Reader News: https://easyreadernews.com/one-redondo-builders-remedy/ |
| August 10, 2022 | First Builder's Remedy Application in Southern California Filed | Leo Pustilnikov files a preliminary application under SB 330 for One Redondo — the first Builder's Remedy application filed anywhere in Southern California. The application proposes approximately 2,300+ residential units (later expanded to ~2,700), 540 affordable units, a hotel, office space, retail, and 22.5 acres of public park on the former AES power plant site. Mayor Pro-Tem Nehrenheim's immediate reaction: "The drawing is absurd." Reason: https://reason.com/2022/09/09/this-renegade-california-developer/ |
| December 20, 2022 | Redondo Beach Votes to Explicitly Ban Builder's Remedy | The Redondo Beach City Council becomes the first city council in California to vote to explicitly ban Builder's Remedy applications. Governor Newsom and AG Bonta begin preparing a lawsuit. Easy Reader News: https://easyreadernews.com/redondo-beach-builders-remedy-ban/ |
| February 1, 2023 | City Issues First Incompleteness Determination | Community Development Director Brandy Forbes issues the first incompleteness determination for One Redondo, citing missing coastal development permit materials, Charter City requirements, and CEQA compliance. The Real Deal LA: https://therealdeal.com/la/2023/05/denying-one-redondo/ |
| March 1, 2023 | State Sues Redondo Beach — Newsom, Bonta, HCD | Governor Gavin Newsom, Attorney General Rob Bonta, and the California Department of Housing and Community Development file a lawsuit against the City of Redondo Beach for its ban on SB 9, ADU, and Builder's Remedy applications. The city is ordered to process SB 9 and ADU applications. California Attorney General: https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-governor-newsom-and-state-housing-department-sue-redondo |
| May 9, 2023 | City Council Denies Builder's Remedy Appeal | The Redondo Beach City Council votes to uphold the incompleteness determination and denies the developer's appeal. The city's position: Charter City argument requires a popular vote; application lacks Coastal Act compliance materials; Builder's Remedy does not apply. The Real Deal LA: https://therealdeal.com/la/2023/05/denying-one-redondo/ |
| August 4, 2023 | YIMBY Law Files Separate Lawsuit | YIMBY Law files a lawsuit against Redondo Beach alleging the city violated state housing law by denying the One Redondo Builder's Remedy application. Rafa Sonnenfeld: "Redondo Beach has ignored state law as well as their own municipal code. These homes must be approved." Urbanize LA: https://urbanize.la/post/yimby-law-sues-redondo-beach-over-builders-remedy-project-rejection |
| October 30, 2023 | Trial Court Upholds Housing Element | In New Commune DTLA and Leonid Pustilnikov v. City of Redondo Beach (22TRCP00203), Judge Ronald Frank denies the developer's petition, finding that the city substantially complied with housing element law when the council adopted its element on July 5, 2022, before HCD's Sept. 1, 2022 certification. Court filing: https://www.coxcastle.com/assets/htmldocuments/New%20Commune%20DTLA%20v.%20Redondo%20Beach%20CA_SUP_LAX_23STCP00426_Order%20002.pdf |
| December 31, 2023 | AES Power Plant Closes Permanently | The AES Redondo Beach Generating Station closes permanently. The plant, operational since 1907, is now shuttered. The 50-acre site begins decommissioning and is now entirely vacant — a blank slate on the Los Angeles waterfront with no approved development plan. The Real Deal LA: https://therealdeal.com/la/2024/01/power-plant-closes-redondo-beach/ |
| February 8, 2024 | Ruling in Neighboring Ten21 Case Backs City on Coastal Act | Judge James Chalfant denies a petition by Pustilnikov's New Commune DTLA (23STCP00426) over Ten21, a separate 30-unit builder's remedy project at 1021 N. Harbor Drive, across the street from the power plant site. He finds that the developer could invoke the builder's remedy but could not ignore the city's certified Local Coastal Program, which does not allow housing on that parcel. Two of Pustilnikov's suits over the power plant site are stayed in April 2024 pending the appeal, and on July 30, 2026 the Court of Appeal upholds the city's denial of Ten21. Easy Reader: https://easyreadernews.com/judge-rules-against-pustilnikov-for-s-e-a-lab-project |
| October 10, 2025 | Court of Appeal Strikes Down Redondo Beach Housing Element | The California Second District Court of Appeal issues its ruling in New Commune DTLA LLC v. City of Redondo Beach (B336042), finding that Redondo Beach's Housing Element violates state law. The ruling means the city's Housing Element is invalid — potentially reopening Builder's Remedy eligibility for One Redondo and other projects. Davis Vanguard: https://davisvanguard.org/2025/10/california-court-strikes-down-redondo-beachs-housing-element-plan/ |
| January 28, 2026 | Supreme Court Declines To Review Housing Element Ruling | At its Jan. 28 conference the California Supreme Court denies review in New Commune DTLA v. City of Redondo Beach (S294028) and denies a request to depublish the opinion, leaving the Oct. 10, 2025 ruling in place. Supreme Court of California: https://supreme.courts.ca.gov/sites/default/files/supremecourt/default/documents/conference%20results%20-%20012826.pdf |
| March 30, 2026 | Owners Settle One of Six Suits Against City | Pustilnikov agrees to dismiss, with prejudice, a $120 million suit he and developer Ely Dromy filed claiming the city engaged in a multi-year scheme against the property. Five other suits by the site's owners remain pending. Easy Reader: https://easyreadernews.com/pustilnikov-redondo-beach-settle-one-waterfront-case-five-pending |
| May 20, 2026 | State Certifies Revised Housing Element | HCD finds the housing element the council adopted earlier in May in compliance. City Attorney Joy Abaquin-Ford: "The city is not subject to Builder's Remedy with the newly certified Housing Element." Easy Reader: https://easyreadernews.com/builders-remedy-immune-state-certifies-revised-redondo-beach-housing-element |
| Date | Body | Action | Vote | Staff rec. | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 30, 2023 | Court | ruling issued | — | Unknown | Court filing: https://www.coxcastle.com/assets/htmldocuments/New%20Commune%20DTLA%20v.%20Redondo%20Beach%20CA_SUP_LAX_23STCP00426_Order%20002.pdf |
| October 10, 2025 | Court | ruling issued | — | Unknown | Easy Reader: https://easyreadernews.com/aes-ruling-against-redondo-may-open-door-to-builders-remedy-developments-statewide |
| January 28, 2026 | Court | ruling issued | — | Unknown | Supreme Court of California: https://supreme.courts.ca.gov/sites/default/files/supremecourt/default/documents/conference%20results%20-%20012826.pdf |
Rating 3 of 5. Multiple sources, including at least one primary record. Corrections: https://whokilledthebuilding.com/corrections.