Monday blurbs
Pacific Avenue will soon find itself lined with trees. According to a story that is no longer on the Breeze website, the corridor will be planted with more than 100 trees. While I'm generally in favor of more trees being planted around town, I'm not sure this is the right way to go about it. Maintenance can be costly, and given the sporadic nature of the city's cleanup crews, it's likely they might make a mess rather than provide aesthetically pleasing views.
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The Welcome Park is coming along nicely. At the last Central meeting, when Hahn's representatives announced it would be open by labor day, the person next to me muttered, "Where's everybody going to park?" That is a really good question. Now that Pedro's entrance is semi-complete, can we get CalTrans (which has jurisdiction of the street from the freeway to 9th Street) to fix Gaffey for pete's sake? Hahn recently stated that the city may take jurisdiction of the street, and that the bridge might even be removed!
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Random Lengths reporter Art Vinsel recently indicated that designs for the controversial fence/wall for Point Fermin and Sunken City are going to be displayed and comments will be taken at some upcoming public meetings. According to Frank O'Brien, they will be shown at a meeting of the Point Fermin Resident's Association in September (most likely Sept. 8 at Point Fermin Community Center) where comments will be taken. "The overall goal is to provide both safety and security and to do it in a way that's appropriate for the site," said O'Brien.
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The Welcome Park is coming along nicely. At the last Central meeting, when Hahn's representatives announced it would be open by labor day, the person next to me muttered, "Where's everybody going to park?" That is a really good question. Now that Pedro's entrance is semi-complete, can we get CalTrans (which has jurisdiction of the street from the freeway to 9th Street) to fix Gaffey for pete's sake? Hahn recently stated that the city may take jurisdiction of the street, and that the bridge might even be removed!
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Random Lengths reporter Art Vinsel recently indicated that designs for the controversial fence/wall for Point Fermin and Sunken City are going to be displayed and comments will be taken at some upcoming public meetings. According to Frank O'Brien, they will be shown at a meeting of the Point Fermin Resident's Association in September (most likely Sept. 8 at Point Fermin Community Center) where comments will be taken. "The overall goal is to provide both safety and security and to do it in a way that's appropriate for the site," said O'Brien.
Labels: Point Fermin, Sunken City, welcome park
19 Comments:
Banditos Yanquis wrote:
While I'm generally in favor of more trees being planted around town, I'm not sure this is the right way to go about it. Maintenance can be costly, and given the sporadic nature of the city's cleanup crews, it's likely they might make a mess rather than provide aesthetically pleasing views.
Yeah, we should probably adopt a more cautious approach. I suggest waiting for the tree fairy to plant some for us. Seriously, what in blue heaven are you talking about? It's a frigging tree. You plant it, you trim it every now and then. It gets too big or dies, you pull it out and plant another one. Done. Your reward? Not only "aesthetically pleasing views," but also shade, oxygen, insulation, and that rarest of contemporary urban/suburban phenomena: the sense that somebody out there actually gives a shit how people experience the streets they walk on.
On a more practical note, how do I sign up to volunteer?
it's not that simple. the article said there will be something on the order of 180 trees planted along pacific. that number of trees takes A LOT of maintenance. have you been to point fermin lately? there are a ton of leaves and things falling from trees that need to be cleaned up, but haven't. parks and recs is supposed to maintain it, but it hasn't been doing a very good job.
2ndly, if they're big trees like some found near the beach in long beach, they'll tear up the concrete, creating hazards for old people and stuff.
look, it's not that simple. i'm all for trees, but it's a question of whether they're right for the area.
I can assure you that the trees that will be planted have specifically been selected to not damage the sidewalks. There is a lot more urban forestry knowledge out there than back when those trees at Pt Fermin were planted. In addition, the property owners that have trees in front of their property have to give their permission for the trees to go in so, in theory, they are willing to take on some of the maintenace issues like sweeping the sidewalk. Anyway, it's Department of Street Services that would manage these trees, not Parks and Rec.. Sue Castillo of CSNPC is the prime organizer of this event; I'll ask her to post here the particulars for anyone who would like to volunteer.
Yes, km is right. The Central and Coastal neighborhood councils are working with the City of Los Angeles and TreePeople with an AQMD grant. We have over $80,000 in supplies and labor to plant as many trees as possible on Oct 27th. Of course, the City of LA has strict rules as to location and tree species (found to be appropriate in root non-agressiveness and litter characteristics, etc.). Gaining approval from property OR business owners for 27 blocks is a huge task however. Getting permission from large businesses such as Goodyear Tires, AutoZone and AllStar Inn may be next to impossible. These owners are corporations located in other states who have little to no interest in our community. Many locally-operated businesses are much more enthusiatic.
If you have questions, or would like to be a part of this effort on the planting day of October 27th or in any other way, please give me a call:
Sue Castillo
Central San Pedro Neighborhood Council (& TreePeople Citizen Forester).
310-489-3026
"In addition, the property owners that have trees in front of their property have to give their permission for the trees to go in so, in theory, they are willing to take on some of the maintenace issues like sweeping the sidewalk."
property and business owners change often, so that's no guarantee the trees will be maintained.
look, all i'm saying is, 180 trees sounds like a lot to put in on a street that doesn't have that much sidewalk space.
27 blocks is 1.4 miles. We will get 10 trees per block in the best of cases - most blocks will get less based on proximity to street lights, utility poles, and underground utility lines. There is plenty of analysis going on here - no autopilot (or autoplanting).
sc
On a totally different subject: Yay for the removal of the eyesore bridge over Gaffey! That thing is depressing.
Leaves! Things! The possible need for sweeping! One wonders how mankind has managed to incorporate trees into the built landscape for so many millennia.
Seriously--like, seriously seriously--relax, B.Y. They're trees. The benefits so massively outweigh the possible drawbacks that it's not even worth discussing. Pacific Avenue is currently a pedestrian-hostile corridor, oppressively hot in the summer and just depressing and mean the rest of the year. And you're fussing over a couple of leaves? Really? You're actually not kidding, here?
I was a at a CRA meeting where Tree People, the organization doing the planting, did their presentation. The trees are being planted in partnership with owners, there are commitments to replace trees that don't survive the transplantation, and the species being panted are all species that are not going to push up the sidewalks. The trees are going to be a good thing.
I'm looking forward to seeing trees on Pacific. The north end of that street is a blazing inferno in the summertime, and the project looks well organized and thought out.
However - A wall around Pt. Fermin and Sunken City??? Obviously the intent is for something taller than the existing fence/wall (and view blocking) so I really really hate the idea. The common-sense deficient will still find a way around or over anything they build and the rest of us folks lose a beautiful unobstructed view.
I'm right there with you on the fence idea. At least it's not razor wire and spotlights, though. I can't tell you how many people I see just hop the fence like it's totally safe. I want to just walk up to them and say "Unstable cliff. Gravity works. Don't be dumb."
Nothing in life is totally safe. But walking on the far side of those fences is actually pretty darned safe for those who are sober, have a good sense of balance, know how to walk on cliffs, are not afraid of heights, and are not suicidal.
Driving to work, on the other hand, is insanely dangerous. I mean, there's nothing but a painted line separating you from oncoming vehicles, a good portion of which are piloted by drunks, idiots, and the dangerously distracted. Can we please have a big, tall ugly fence erected around everybody's car?
So if they remove the bridge at Gaffey and the 110, where will everyone make their community announcements? How will i know that Robert will be missed, or that Jill is very loved?
Yeah, that's awesome that the bridge is being removed. Now visitors to San Pedro will have a much better view of the billboards, strip malls, gas stations, and fast-food fry pits of Gaffey Street.
And as for people who may want to cross the street without being in cars? Eh, fuck 'em. This is America. Burn hydrocarbons or stay home!
the breeze follows up.
I love how everybody's solution to the earth-shattering problem of transients and graffiti is to install yet more "security" cameras. The bazillion surveillance cameras currently extant have certainly done a bang-up job of eliminating those two scourges, haven't they?
agreed. security cameras aren't going to solve anything.
What cameras? Where?
the article on the welcome park includes a statement by someone stating he wants to put security cameras up at the park to deter graffiti.
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