Councilman Denies Plan for Annexation

Inglewood Councilman Jose Fernandez said at a Lennox community meeting that Inglewood has no plans to annex the unincorporated area, although he said such a move would help relieve Lennox’s drug, crime and blight problems.

Although Inglewood is studying the costs and benefits of annexing the portion of Lennox north of Lennox Boulevard, Fernandez said such a move is not in the works and would not be made unless Lennox residents were behind it.

After the meeting, several residents said they are still apprehensive that Inglewood, Hawthorne or the county have secret plans to redevelop their community.

Lennox is inside Inglewood’s and Hawthorne’s “sphere of influence,” a planning term that gives those municipalities the right to consider annexation. The county is preparing a revised community plan for the area, which officials say they will present to residents in September.

“We’re poor people that are not against progress, but we want to preserve our rights,” said Hector Carrio, vice president of the Lennox Coordinating Council.