Recommendation to request City Manager to study feasibility of acquiring open space for public park development along LA River consistent with the Long Beach RiverLink plan and the Lower LA River Master Plan and report back within 60 days.
Thank you. Next up is item 60 in? Communication from Councilman Austin, Councilwoman Zendejas, Councilmember, your UNGA recommendation to request City Manager to study the feasibility of acquiring open space for public park development along L.A. River and report back within 60 days. Thank you, Councilman Austin. All right. Thank you. I'd like to thank my councilmembers Van de Haas and Durango for joining me in signing on to this important item. Creating new parks in open space has been a priority for our city council and for me personally. For many years, for nearly two years, I served on the Lower L.A. River Revitalization Plan Working Group, identifying potential projects and working with other cities along the entire 90 mile stretch of the lower L.A. River, which extends from the city of Vernon to the mouth of the L.A. River in Long Beach. In just the past 12 years, more than 70 acres adjacent to the L.A. River have been opened to the public to enjoy its parks, walking trails, natural habitat and open space. In 2008, L.A. County opened more than 35 acres of the Dominguez Gap wetlands. In 2018, we opened an additional 32 acres of the entire forest wetlands connecting to the Dominguez Gap wetlands and creating the longest contiguous stretch of open space along the entire L.A. River. We also opened Molina Park in 2018, providing an additional 3.5 acres of park active recreational park space along the L.A. River in North Long Beach. We are also doubling the size of Davenport Park with additional with an additional nearly three six acres of additional park space. In addition, there are a number of projects along the river that are being designed under development or have opened, including the Jake Travis Greenbelt, Wrigley Greenbelt, the 51st Street greenbelt, and the Hamilton Loop, just to name a few. With these efforts, we have significantly increased the amount of open space along the western part of our city and we must continue to do so. So at this time, I'd like to request the City Manager to study the feasibility of acquiring additional properties that may not be currently publicly owned along the L.A. River. This feasibility study can somewhat mute. Can everyone mute, please? Except for the councilmen. Thank you. Thank you. This feasibility study should provide a realistic assessment of what was a visit with L.A., what the Long Beach River Link Plan and the Lower L.A. River Masterplan. What funds are there from different funding sources, including local, regional, state and federal levels and potential costs for acquisition and development of open space. I would also like to just say we should be also looking at any opportunities for public private partnerships. And as we look at equity for communities throughout Long Beach, it will be helpful to understand what other part projects are currently in the works in the city and that they also may be competing for these funding sources. We know that we cannot limit this to any particular properties and I don't want to do that. But I do want the city manager and our city team to provide a comprehensive look at what is feasible in Long Beach. I ask my colleagues for their support on this particular item. This is very, very important to many in the community, as there's been a new, new reinvigorated interest in the lower L.A. River in our city. And I think this merits our attention, but also the attention of our state legislators as well. And so I'm happy to bring this forward and look forward to hearing your comments, but also from the public. Thank you. Next up, it's customary, Ringo. Thank you, Mary. And I want to thank Councilmember Alsup for inviting me to sign into the title. I have been a long time supporter of increasing parks space. In fact, in last year we made great strides in creating some space and by purchasing the park, which added 1.3 acres into the end to create park space, we were also able to execute an agreement for city ownership and management of the cemetery. I think recently the acreage for little things complex for over three attacks, 13 acres and allowed it to be continuously to our Willow Street. So the sale was a continuation of our work to get more park space into the city. And I am proud to support the sentiment that get the members of the City Council to also support you. Thank you. Thank you, Councilwoman Sara. Yes, I want to thank that Councilmember Austin and as well as the other members on the floor signing on to. This. For bringing this forward. I appreciate Councilmember Austin's leadership and having represented. Long Beach. On the Lower L.A. River Revitalization Working Group, as well as council member Urunga, having served as a sitting on the board of the Rivers Mountains Conservancy. I just have a few question about the the the naming of the reference of the report in the title. Its it refers, it refers to lower L.A. River Master Plan. I just want to make sure and then but in below that it discussed the lower L.A. River revitalization plan. I just wonder if that was meant to be. And the Lower L.A. River revitalization plan as there is no such. There's nothing. We don't have a lower L.A. River master plan, only an L.A. River master plan. And it's. Currently. Hasn't been adopted. It's currently going through public comment. And so I just want to make sure we clarify that. We're talking about which document, which document we're referring to. Well, this typically want to acknowledge all of the visiting and work that has actually occurred over the past two decades, even before I joined the council. And so there are a number of documents or other plans. I reference the L.A. River River Lake Plan, but I know that the County of Los Angeles just recently released a plan as well. But the visioning, that process that went through we went through for the Lower L.A. River Revitalization Task Force was there were a number of projects and opportunities identified in that plan as well. And so I want our city staff to look at the sum total. Thank you. All right. I just wanted to make sure because I want just to make sure there's alignment in terms of since I agree with you, there are so many different plans working towards the same vision. The other clarification I just wanted to make, Councilmember Austin, is I heard you say kind of public and private partnership. Can I just clarify if if this feasibility will also include both public and private property, that will be part of the feasibility plan? Well, absolutely. I certainly I don't think we should limit our potential. I think we should be aspirational. And I think private properties, if there are willing sellers, should be certainly included and looked at as opportunities as along with public spaces as well. There are there are county parcels along the lower L.A. or along the river in Long Beach that that are currently undeveloped on an unplanned at this time. And we need to be looking at public spaces as well. And would you be open if I just made sure we offer a friendly amendment that we just specifically clarify to say, you know, adjacent to the L.A. River, both public and private property, just so that we're clear and there isn't confusion that we're not overlooking any any areas. That would be fine. Including golf courses. Yeah. Thank you. And if I can just circle back really quick, this is just my last if I may just include maybe if we could refer back to the recommendation to be and the Lower L.A. River Revitalization Plan just because that's been adopted versus the L.A. River Master Plan, which hasn't yet. And I just want to make sure we have the staff look at documents that's been adopted that's going to be reporting back in the next six days as the L.A. River Master Plan will. Be. Are just taking public comment right now for the next 60 days. So I just want to make sure staff has the right document that's been adopted to review. Again, I'm not not necessarily interested in limiting, and I don't know that that really serves a purpose. I think staff should consider all documents that are that are currently adopted and under consideration right now. Councilwoman. Okay. Just wanted to, you know, just provide those comments as we're working toward that. Thank you. No further question. Thank you. Councilman's in the house. Thank you. First of all, I'd love to thank Councilmember Austen for inviting me to sign on to this to this item and for bringing this item forward. I also would like to thank our engaged community members who have done such a wonderful job of identifying this space and advocating for expansion of park access in Long Beach. Although obviously this is not in my district access to green space and especially the development of open space along our L.A. River corridor has been a huge passion of mine for a long time. I'm incredibly interested in seeing this feasibility study come come to fruition, and I absolutely share the vision. And I hope that we can see these large parcels of land be turned into park space for our entire city to enjoy. So thank you again, Councilmember Austin. Thank you, Councilwoman. Vice Mayor Richard. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Just a couple of questions for her staff and before I get there. You know, we've been pretty engaged. And in my first term, we spent a lot of time on the uptown open space plan. It was modeled after the Great Providence plan. We saw the Drake Chavez, you know, follow the process. They did a plan and they saw funding and they expanded, expanded. Drake traveled the uptown open space plan. We follow the same model. We saw there's a lack of open space. So we worked with the community and we got we went through a planning process, a one, I believe, a Parks and Rec award. And from there, all other efforts stem from the DeForest Art vision, the Hamilton Loop vision, the Highland Park Master Plan. All of those things came out of this this focus here. I think what I'm unclear on, based on this motion is this centered on just river, because I see a larger issue. And and I'd love to see some connectivity if it all started with Jake Chavez. And the top of the river is in the bank district, the Forest Park and North. I'd love to see a plan that brings it all together that the five members of the council along that L.A. River can be engaged in. I know that there's been significant work on the West Side with Councilman Turanga and the Westside Livability Plan. And I know that Councilman sorrow. Councilman Zoro has tremendous history with the Mountain Conservancy. And I would just hope that what we have here ultimately is a vision that's inclusive of all those. So so so my first question to staff is based on this motion, are you or do you anticipate moving forward with creating a larger vision for this area that incorporate all of this work, including the river work? How are you how are you planning to respond to react to its motion? So we see this as requests for information. Vision plans tend to be pretty involved documents where you're setting aside consultant resources and staff resources to really go out and start from scratch and kind of engage your community and you start looking at vision. We've perceived this to be more of a feasibility analysis, to look at, kind of answer the questions about what are some of the opportunity parcels out there. We've done some of this work already. We can't remember your UNGA brought some attention to this a couple of years ago as we looked at oil operators. We've had our deputy city manager, Kevin Jackson, really following a lot of the L.A. River plans and been giving input into into those plans. And so we see this as a report back in a memo format to talk about what it takes to be able to procure land. What are some of the opportunities, both public and private, along the L.A. River and kind of connected areas to really help educate what are the opportunities and what are some of the challenges and some of the high level costs and next steps. Okay. Perfect. Thank you. I think. I think what I'm interested in is, you know, not reactionary. There's been a lot of proactive work that's taking place. It's been highlight for wetlands tells me you rank his work on the oil properties. Drake Chavez uptown open space. I'd love to see us advance to the next step of unifying, connecting those plants. And I would hope that we can draw on, you know, I want certainly want to make sure that I'm a part of this conversation given the river, the uptown sort of pathway. And I think it's important to remember sorrow is a part of the conversation as well. Given her professional expertize, the the Mouth Conservancy. So those are my suggestions. I'm happy to support the motion. Thank you. Thank you. Let's go to public comment, please. Our first speaker is. And Cantrell. And Cantrell. The next speaker is Aimee Valenzuela mere. Hi. Can you hear me? Yes. Please be in. You can. Thank you. My name is Amy Valenzuela, and I thank you all for your time tonight. I'm going to be the first person to speak, and I just want to introduce our team. We have a group of neighborhood volunteers who've come together to form in a very short time, the River Park Coalition. Some of you have heard of us. We've started as a grassroots organization, as mostly people who had participated in the planning processes that Councilmember Austin has spoken of tonight, as well as some of the other council members. And we have in a very short period of time really under threat of one property that is now being developed . That was part of the signature feature of the Lower Los Angeles River Revitalization Plan as it pertains to Long Beach, which includes the Wrigley Park north and south. So although we came in opposition 23701 Pacific Place, we've really come to understand that the entire park that was planned through the River Link and other documents is under threat . And so we really appreciate Councilman Austin's bringing forward the feasibility plan. We also feel very strongly that we need to be at the table. I think we're all clear on what the challenges are. We're all clear on what the costs are. We've been part of planning for decades now, and it's just really time to act. So we've launched this grassroots process. We want to come to you and especially to our council members who've worked so hard on this issue over the years that we're here. We're not going away. We're going to be partners in this. We thank you. Our next speaker is Carlos Servais. Good evening. I'd like to address two points. One is support for Councilmember Austin's memo, and the other is related to the activity at 3701 Pacific Place during the very framework for reconciliation listening sessions, one of the items raised with the issue of environmental racism and park inequity in Western Lobby, where the highest level of pollution in the nation, the most overcrowded conditions, a higher incidence of asthma and other respiratory diseases, higher incidence of cancer, high rate of poverty even pre-COVID, a shorter life span than the east side of Long Beach. A contributing factor to all of this is the lack of parks and open. Space. We have one park acre per 1000 residents versus 17 in the eastern side of the city. Even with the parks mentioned by the council members, we are still woefully short. Council, I strongly urge you to consider equity in supporting parks in open space such as the Council Approved River Link Project Reference in town Councilman Austin's memo regarding the ongoing construction at 30 7a1 specifically the developer took out permits for grading and soils. However, development services have turned a blind eye to the fact that £1 million surcharge pile built under city permit is causing damage as we speak through a major storm drain that services this area, as well as damage to two abandoned oil wells and two active oil pipelines making an existing environmental disaster even worse. This is why council must require a full environmental impact report that will look in-depth at this and many other issues before accepting the plan. Thank you. Your next speaker is Clayton Hurd. Hi. Good evening. Everyone. This is Clayton Hurd from the office of Congressman on file. Just want to read a brief letter from the congressman. Dear, honorable mayor and. City council members. The Los Angeles River has been a source of inspiration and opportunity long before my time on the Long Beach City Council. From the original caretakers, the Gabrielle, you know, and tons of people to countless neighborhoods and communities alongside the 51 mile waterway, the river has always offered unlimited potential. The existing river and limited open space provide a patchwork of areas for residents to experience nature. Exercise with friends, and spend. Time with loved ones. As the river continues to transform, I strongly encourage the city to explore all options to develop new public access and open space alongside the Los Angeles River, with a focus on communities lacking park space and those disproportionately impacted by environmental injustice. Long Beach has already made progress in the past few years to provide park space that connects the community to the Los Angeles River in areas like the Forest Park and into Wetlands and Drake Park. However, certain areas of the city still lack significant access to park and open space. Many of the communities surrounding the L.A.. River are also disproportionately impacted by several sources of pollution, from heavy traffic on the 710 freeways to refineries and port activities in the south. Additional greenspace will help reduce the urban heat island effect, making neighborhoods cooler and even reduce some of the harmful air pollution that has resulted in higher rates of respiratory illness compared to other areas of the city. For these reasons, I strongly support the agenda item and I look forward to supporting efforts to ensure all residents have access to open space and part. Think your next speaker is Elina Teachey. Hello. I'm opposed to the proposal that proposed land use on the brownfield site at 3701 Pacific Place. As a resident living near the L.A. River and as a landscape architect, I would like to see greater park equity across West Long Beach, and I would like to see the city council and Mayor Garcia keep your promise for open space at that site, along with all of the sites recognized in the River Link Vision Plan and the Lower La River Revitalization Masterplan. The industrialization of all river adjacent open space, including brownfield sites, should cease. I would like you to support full environmental impact reports for each of those sites, as well as what other clean up and mitigation is required. I want to point out that there are funding sources and grant moneys available to purchase parcels, clean them up and convert them to green and recreational spaces and or green infrastructure sites. I would encourage you to make a bottom up rather than top down land use decision. Most importantly, I believe that as part of the River Park Coalition, we are demonstrating that there is public will. I have sent you all a detailed letter of my thoughts on this issue. Thank you for your time and consideration of my views on this matter. Think your next speaker is Gabrielle Weekes. Gabrielle Weeks. Our next speaker is McFadden. Okay. I'm sorry. Hi. My name is Gabrielle Weekes. I'm the chair of the Sierra Club. For the region. So that's not just our city, Long Beach, but many cities around here. As you heard. From some of the previous speakers, many of us have been excited about the L.A. County project re-imagining the Los Angeles River from end to end. I was a commissioner on that as well. As a lower revitalization plan. Some of the work that's been done at the northern end of Long Beach, there's been a lot of action around our rivers and I think that's wonderful because we need more still. Somebody had referenced the River Link and I know some of you on the council, we've been around long enough to know what that was. I helped Susan with that almost 20 years ago. And for decades the community has known we need more open space in central and west Long Beach, more trees, more. Recreational opportunities for. Humans, more wildlife areas. We need more of all of that. And especially with this wonderful thing that the county is doing in partnership with Frank Gehry, now is a really great time for us to look for IMC money or state programs, to work with people like Alamogordo or reps in Sacramento to really make. Our river. Here as beautiful as the stuff that they did up in City of L.A. a few years ago. I hope that you guys will vote to do this. And to have some. Ambitious. Goals and police work with. Us to accomplish this. I think your next speaker is McFadden. Hello. My name is Mark McFadden and I'm with River Park Coalition. First of all, I'd really like to thank council members Austin and Ringo for requesting this feasibility study. This is a wonderful first step towards gaining park equity for the park for residents of West Long Beach. But I'm confident that the feasibility study will find, however, that there are precious few parcels left for developing into open space, one of the largest of which is 3701 Pacific Place. I'm urging this body to halt development by the builder on this site until this feasibility study can be completed. Furthermore, in light of the fact that this property factors into the Long Beach River Link plan and the L.A. River Master Plan, which is still under its own secret process, a complete are must be conducted on the site to analyze the biological and cultural resources that are vital to the larger L.A. River community and that will be severely affected by industrial activity here. There are at least three precedents in the state of California for an M and B being deemed insufficient, and the government instead opting for the sequel required air. You'll find those precedents in the binder that we presented to your office there in Enclosure three under the letter from Chatterton, Brown, Parsons and Minter, environmental lawyer. Thank you. Thank you. Our next speaker is one of a. I congratulate council members and they got enough in for bringing up this agenda. Item Council Member Austin. As the key author of the item, I am pleased to see you are addressing your campaign commitment that stated with your vote upgrade and improve our space. I am supportive of such an item. This can be the start of meaningful action that takes our city from aspiration to implementation. I also encourage that this motion not be limited to just open space but to any vacant land along Gilbert River, private or public studies and plans. Years and decades, taxpayer funds, community involvement have clearly shown that there is a desire that only requires the political will to develop action steps and connect the dots, such as the Over the River Revitalization Plan in our city's own River Link plans developed by our Parks Department and approved in 2007 and again reaffirmed by many of you in 2015. I would also like to note that the only river master plan identifies the oil operators and former golf driving range as the crown jewel of the Lower Elk River. Over 70 acres of land, which should be at the top of any list, studied the feasibility of acquiring vacant land for park space. Again, thank you for bringing this portion to the council because it's not just about dollars and cents or feasibility studies. It's about doing the equitable thing and addressing environmental justice to a community. Thank you. Our next speaker is Kyle Scepter teacher. Lately, Mr. Mayor and council members. My name is Keith Taber and I'm a resident of the of those neighborhood. I'm also a licensed architect in the state of California, certified by the National Council of Architects Registration Boards and a lead accredited professional. I'm here to voice my strong opposition to the 3701 development, and we'll say, in my 30 years of practice, I've never been activated to categorize a development as reckless and irresponsible as this one. And equally short sighted is the paving of the L.A. River. I believe that this project deserves the rigor of fully air. Furthermore, the designation of a light industrial zoning central to a residential district I think is negligible. The development's tepid response to its opposition by providing a publicly accessible green space, all with a front row view of an RV parking lot is not equal to or better than that of a park parkland, which is the intent of the River Link plan. Our leaders of Long Beach have the responsibility to ensure that a development within the L.A. River watershed are ecologically responsible, promote the proliferation of natural flora and fauna, and benefit the future generations of the communities they serve. They must consider the problem zoning districts around and provide equitable greenspace in the community with a deficit 17 times that of this Long Beach. Our City of Long Beach also has an opportunity to set an example for every community along the river. They must take that opportunity seriously to the betterment of our region's quality of life. Thank you for listening. Think your next speaker is Kimberly Walters. Good evening. Thank you so much. Council Members Austin Oranga for getting the city of Long Beach back on track with a long standing Long Beach reveling plan and the Lower Los Angeles River Revitalization Plan. I'm also extremely grateful to Congressman Lowenthal and Assemblymember O'Donnell, who have lent their support to getting Long Beach back on track. New field reps are here tonight to support this plan. Our message here is the funding is out there. As has been referenced, there is EPA funding for brownfields cleanup programs that EPA funding for environmental justice grants. Just right now. March 12, 2021. California Department of Parks and Recreation has a grant opening for almost $400 million for the statewide park program that could help us acquire these lands. And there's over $30 million available from the RNC specifically for the lower L.A. River from Prop 58 and another $30 million available from the RNC for Prop one for an open call for projects. There's also money from the state, from outdoor equity and for land and water conservation, for habitat conservation. So there's also, as you know, money from the county in Measure A and also the port has a great deal of funding that they could put towards this. We also removing River Links coalition plan to go for direct philanthropy so that the many millions of dollars it will take to acquire, to make safe and to green these parcels will in fact be feasible. And this is possible. Think your next speaker is Shane Weaver. You mean honorable mayor and council members? My name is Shane Weaver, Long Beach Road Representative for Assembly Member Patrick O'Donnell. I'm here this evening to speak on behalf of the Assembly Member O'Donnell, support of River Park Coalition's effort to create more create more open space and improve the quality of life for neighbors living near the Los Angeles River. Assembly member O'Donnell acknowledges the River Park Coalition's efforts to engage their neighbors in hopes of a better quality of life. Assemblymember O'Donnell has long been involved in securing open space in many parts of the city. The city council member as a member of the San Gabriel Rivers and Mountains Conservancy and as assembly member serving as your voice in Sacramento, the member would like to thank those, including councilmember councilmembers Austin, Urunga and Sun House for making this effort a priority. And please consider the Assemblymember your partner in this effort. Together, we can make this happen. Thank you. That concludes public comment for the sun. Thank you. We are going to go back to the item. Councilman Austin, you have any additional comments before the vote? No. I just want to appreciate all the comments from all the public, all my colleagues. And I think staff is clear on on the direction we are looking at repeatability and we're looking at more than one parcel. We're looking at the entire lower L.A. River, the L.A. River in the city of Long Beach, encompassing all of the districts in the city. I think it's very, very important, again, that we understand that, that we're looking at a big plan. We're looking at a plan that has and vision that has been in place for for many years. We're looking at the complicated parcels. And, you know, I heard some comment, comment that all it requires is political will requires a lot of money to. And so I'll be also in my capacity as a vice chair and a member of the state large committee pursuing state resources and any other resources and grants to work to help realize our vision here in the city, as we always have been over the last eight years. Thanks. Mayor. This is City Attorney Park. And may I make a short comment? Sure. Thank you. There was a lot of public. Comment this evening on a particular. Project, but I just want to point out that project is not before us tonight and is not part of this agenda item and that this is a request to explore possible open space acquisition adjacent to the L.A. River. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. I can say. Something. Roll call vote. We need to be able to speak. Well, I guess not so. I. I'm sorry, Mr. Clarke. Did we conclude a public comment, Mr. Clarke. So. Mr. Kirk. Okay. Yes. It's public comment. I just wanted to make sure that I heard something. Go ahead and roll call. Sorry. We have one more person that you missed. Leslie Guertin. Leslie Gerritsen. Leslie. Claire Dirksen, are you there? I can choose for the company. We'll do a roll call vote. District one. What I. District two. I. District three. I. District four. I. District five i. District six. I. District seven. I. District eight. Hi. District nine. Motion carries. Thank you. Next item, please. 17. Communication from Councilwoman Zendejas. Councilwoman Allen. Recommendation to request city manager to work with all appropriate departments to report back within 30 days on violent and quality of life crimes in Long Beach.