Hawthorne residents are welcome to file a speaker card at the start of the Dec 9th Hawthorne City Council meeting to talk about the Final Mitigated Negative Declaration for the Hawthorne Airport Hangars Project.
The project appears to be the demolition and reconstruction of multiple Hawthorne Airport hangers, including the hangers along 120th Street.
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING — CITY OF HAWTHORNE CITY COUNCIL
Public Hearing: Tuesday, December 9, 2025 at 6:00 p.m.
Location: City Hall Council Chambers, 4455 W. 126th St., Hawthorne, CA 90250
According to the Community Network Committee Chair Donny Sandusky, the project will add 130,000 sf of new hanger space into a hot market where jet hangers are in high demand with the closure of Santa Monica Airport coming up. According to Google AI, “130,000 square foot hangar can fit 3 large commercial airliners or a varied fleet of around 12 to 21 private jets.”
The project is complex but as far as we can see, some areas of concern include:
- It’s unclear how this hanger project is related to the arrival of Archer Aviation. Not much communication coming from the City about Archer.
- The public hearing notice and documents were published on November 6, the same day Archer announced they’re taking over the airport lease.
- Why is the City and airport moving so fast on this construction project, but done so little on soundproofing for residents within the 65 CNEL line? Where do residents fall in the airport’s list of project priorities?
- The documents state there is no negative impact – but demolition and construction on this scale will result in construction noise right across the street from residents.
- What are the construction best practices being implemented to prevent noise?
- What about the City specifying construction hours of operations to avoid noise early and late in the day?
- What about temporary exterior sound curtains to lower construction noise and contain dust?
- What about requiring the installation of a block wall along 120th as part of this project to block noise from construction and air traffic?
- According to the documents, the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) raises concerns about the new hangers impeding remediation and monitoring efforts (page 272). Why is pollution prevention and monitoring not considered?
- In a news article, Chief Andrew Salas of the Gabrieleño Band of Mission Indians – Kizh Nation explained that city emails to the Nation’s legal representative suggest key recommendations were brushed aside and that the city treated the initial outreach as a formality. “They’re just checking the box,” he said, adding that despite what the MND says, the city’s interaction has left him skeptical and seeking meaningful cooperation.
- What else should be considered about this project? Would have been nice for the City to host a public information workshop to provide information in detail.
Hawthorne Quiet Skies 