Connection starts here
South Bay Spaces is a Torrance, CA based social enterprise dedicated to building community through meaningful experiences in the South Bay. We host a variety of gatherings designed to help people connect, create, learn, and grow together through our different community collectives.
Our Collectives
Join our community for moments of connection and shared experiences.
About South Bay Spaces
Jonathan Palencia
Founder & Host
Tori (Yimin) Huang
Writer in Residence & Co-Host
Tori Huang is an MFA creative writing graduate from the University of San Francisco and an author and poet. Her short stories have been selected as finalists for Singapore's Writing The City Showcase 2021 and 2022. Her writings have also been published in Neocha, The Hooghly Review, Expat Living, Hey! Young Writer and Cha: An Asian Literary Journal. Her bilingual poetry collection Estrangement is available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. She is currently working on a short story collection on the Chinese diaspora.
Tori has been a huge supporter of the book club since Catherine and I started it in November 2025 and has been a trusted and amazing friend. She wears her heart on her sleeve, which Catherine and I admire.
Tori will be the Host for South Bay Paper Trail gatherings and writing workshops.
Born and raised in Torrance, CA, I moved back in 2023 after living in New York for a decade. I share my life with my wonderful and supportive fiancée, Catherine.
I have a background in corporate accounting in the hospitality industry. I've been immersed in the hospitality industry for over a decade, working on the front lines and then pivoting to the back office.
I quit my job because something was missing. I began to "work" on myself. Part of that journey was being part of a community.
I began reading a lot of self-help and non-fiction books. Catherine (a far more interesting reader than I am) and I decided to try to join a Silent Book Club. Unfortunately, the closest silent book clubs were 20-30 minutes away from us. So we started our own in Torrance.
I then began to search for other communities since reading was just a portion that makes up my life. Life is complex.
I then decided to create South Bay Spaces. South Bay Spaces is home to multiple community collectives to begin satisfying the complexities and journeys of life that I could not find comfort, belonging and guidance elsewhere.
My hope is that you find what you are looking for here, whether it is to find connection, create, learn, or grow with others - or all of the above.
Cora
Head of Remote Operations
Cookie
Junior Intern (Probationary Status)
Specializes in shredding paper and "testing" the durability of the home furniture even though we've told him that it's not necessary multiple times...
Tori (Yimin) Huang
Writer in Residence & Co-Host
She has a strict 14-hour nap schedule that conflicts with our meetup times. She frantically catches up on tasks when she wakes up at the South Bay Spaces headquarters and keeps Cookie in line.