Open Space

Welcome to the latest episode of SGV Connect, Streetsblog Los Angeles' podcast covering the San Gabriel Valley, featuring hosts Damien Newton and Brian Velez. SGV Connect's new episode includes a series of interviews conducted by Brian Velez on the pending report by the U.S. Department of the Interior examining whether or not previous administrations followed proper procedure in creating national monuments.

Parking fees and increased shuttle service are solving congestion issues in Griffith Park

Starting next week, Griffith Park will use new parking revenue to provide DASH Observatory Shuttle service seven days per week.

Nearly two years ago, President Obama noted the need for greater and more equitable park accessibility while speaking at the San Gabriel Mountain national monument designation ceremony:

The L.A. City Department of Recreation and Parks has released a new "Griffith Park Action Plan" [PDF] designed to deal with car congestion primarily from Hollywood Sign visitors. Last night, DRP and City Councilmember David Ryu hosted a community meeting to receive public feedback on the proposal. Nearly 200 people attended the forum, where DRP and Ryu received over an hour of public testimony critical of many aspects of the proposal.

A big property acquisition is underway that will set the stage for planned large-scale revitalization of the Los Angeles River. The City of Los Angeles is expecting to complete the purchase of a former railyard site that Mayor Eric Garcetti and others describe as the "crown jewel" of any large-scale restoration of the river.

I'm feeling sorta trashy.

I got a chance to do a preview kayak tour of the Los Angeles River yesterday. The tour was part of the Los Angeles Conservation Corps Paddle the L.A. River program. It took place in the most natural stretch of the 51-mile-long L.A. River: the Sepulveda Basin. The river runs through the middle of the 2000-acre Sepulveda Dam Recreation Area, located in the middle of the San Fernando Valley, near the intersection of the 101 Freeway and the 405 Freeway. The Sepulveda Basin is easily accessible via the Metro Orange Line; both the Woodley Avenue and the Balboa Blvd. stations are located there.

Last Wednesday, proponents of preserving the historic Riverside-Figueroa Bridge lost an appeal before the L.A. City Public Works Commission. EnrichLA, RAC Design Build, and others, have pressed for converting the bridge into a "Landbridge" - an elevated park, similar to New York City's Highline, accessible to pedestrians and cyclists.