Residents question $65 million Echo Park project March 2011
Catch-and-release fishing at Echo Park Lake;
Photo by Lauren Rigney
Residents of the Echo Park area continue to question a $65
million lake improvement project that will keep the park closed for two years,
starting this summer when construction begins. Focused on improving Echo Park
Lake’s water quality, the plan includes many major construction measures,
including dredging and re-lining the lake. The project is funded by Proposition
O, which was passed by voters in 2004 to allow Los Angeles City to issue up to
$500 million in bonds for water cleanup.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Works will open bidding for the construction this March, but local residents still have many concerns. Jose Sigala, president of the Greater Echo Park Elysian Neighborhood Council, says that the most common worries from the community have been regarding traffic, security, noise and the overall length of the project. During the estimated two-year construction period, the 24-acre park will be entirely closed off to the public.
“People are actually starting to learn more about it and getting less excited.,” said Kelly Smith, local resident and editor of the blog Echo Park Now. “This is a very dense neighborhood. Not everybody has yards, or barbecues, or windows, or sunlight, so they’ve got to go somewhere.”
Eugene Novak has lived in the Echo Park area for 63 years, and frequents the park with his dog. “It’s extremely unhealthy. There’s mosquito infestation, dog feces, trash,” Novak said.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Works will open bidding for the construction this March, but local residents still have many concerns. Jose Sigala, president of the Greater Echo Park Elysian Neighborhood Council, says that the most common worries from the community have been regarding traffic, security, noise and the overall length of the project. During the estimated two-year construction period, the 24-acre park will be entirely closed off to the public.
“People are actually starting to learn more about it and getting less excited.,” said Kelly Smith, local resident and editor of the blog Echo Park Now. “This is a very dense neighborhood. Not everybody has yards, or barbecues, or windows, or sunlight, so they’ve got to go somewhere.”
Eugene Novak has lived in the Echo Park area for 63 years, and frequents the park with his dog. “It’s extremely unhealthy. There’s mosquito infestation, dog feces, trash,” Novak said.
Still, he’s not convinced that closing the park for two years is the answer, and wishes the City would spend the money on security, instead. “If they take a few steps on the front end, they’ll save on the other end,” he said. “I would start by not letting people throw trash in there.”
While the litter and pollution that Novak mentioned are part of Echo Park’s problems, the Department of Public Works contends that the issues with the lake are much more serious and widespread. Echo Park Lake is within the Los Angeles River Watershed, which means that the lake’s water, and therefore its contaminants, flows into the river. The lake is also part of the storm water system. All of the water runoff from the streets of the Echo Park area go into the lake, bringing with it large amounts of pollutants. |  Trash & debris float in Echo Park Lake; Photo by Lauren Rigney |
To establish healthy water standards, the Environmental
Protection Agency sets requirements that cities must have their water bodies
abide by. The EPA is entitled charge a fine for each day that a city does not
meet the requirements. The City of Los Angeles has not yet been fined for Echo
Park Lake, but is aware that current levels of pollutants in the lake, such as
algae, ammonia, copper, lead and polychlorinated byphenyls (PCBs), may be
greater than acceptable EPA standards.
California also sets its own standards for what should be deemed toxic waste, and sampling in 2008 found that both lead and copper in the lake exceeded state hazardous waste limits. Further testing in 2010 found no copper samples over the hazardous waste limit, but did find hazardous levels of lead in multiple locations of the lake.
California also sets its own standards for what should be deemed toxic waste, and sampling in 2008 found that both lead and copper in the lake exceeded state hazardous waste limits. Further testing in 2010 found no copper samples over the hazardous waste limit, but did find hazardous levels of lead in multiple locations of the lake.
“The U.S. EPA is coming down hard on municipal agencies to
minimize the amount of trash and bacteria that goes in our waterways,” said
Michelle Vargas, public information officer for the Department of Public Works.
“Before that happens, we need to clean up our act. We need to keep trash out of
the river, we need to keep trash out of the ocean, and clean up our lakes.”
To reach EPA standards at Echo Park, the lake rehabilitation project will require some major changes in and around the lake. One of the construction phases that is most concerning to the community is the draining and dredging of the water body. The Bureau of Sanitation has found that many of the contaminants, such as the hazardous levels of lead, are contained within a thick sediment layer at the bottom of the water. During the construction phase, the lake will be entirely drained and an estimated 50,000 cubic cards of potentially polluted sediment will be hauled out on trucks. |  A sign tells park visitors not to enter the water; Photo by Lauren Rigney |
Smith is also worried how the
dredging process will affect the area’s air quality, and may even produce
excessive odor. “All those particles are going to release into the air,” Smith
said.
Vargas confirmed that she has received calls from people regarding the air quality during construction. “Realistically there will be impacts, but SCAQMD [South Coast Air Quality Management District] is going to come down hard on us about the air quality that we’re going to have to maintain,” Vargas said. She added that a neighborhood odor-monitoring group will be in place by the time construction begins.
Before the lake is refilled, a liner will be installed to ensure that the water body is safely contained. In its current state, contaminated water from the lake is leaking into the ground, causing the City to use potable water to refill it. The Department of Public Works estimates that between February 2004 and October 2005, 92.4 million gallons of drinkable water was added to the lake.
To naturally maintain the health of the lake, the Bureau of Engineering has also included multiple environmentally-forward features in the design. To ease the impact of street runoff, the park’s asphalt pathways will be replaced with pervious walkways, and new planting along the lake’s perimeter will help runoff water filter through plant and soil before reaching the lake.
Another key element is the installation of more than 4 acres of grassy wetlands in the lake, which will be used as natural water filters to maintain the water quality. David Attaway, environmental supervisor at the Department of Recreation and Parks, said that the wetlands will prevent excessive nutrient-loading, which the lake currently suffers from. “These types of plants have a great ability to uptake nutrients from the soil itself, as well as the water column. The nutrients get absorbed into the plant tissue,” Attaway said.
Vargas confirmed that she has received calls from people regarding the air quality during construction. “Realistically there will be impacts, but SCAQMD [South Coast Air Quality Management District] is going to come down hard on us about the air quality that we’re going to have to maintain,” Vargas said. She added that a neighborhood odor-monitoring group will be in place by the time construction begins.
Before the lake is refilled, a liner will be installed to ensure that the water body is safely contained. In its current state, contaminated water from the lake is leaking into the ground, causing the City to use potable water to refill it. The Department of Public Works estimates that between February 2004 and October 2005, 92.4 million gallons of drinkable water was added to the lake.
To naturally maintain the health of the lake, the Bureau of Engineering has also included multiple environmentally-forward features in the design. To ease the impact of street runoff, the park’s asphalt pathways will be replaced with pervious walkways, and new planting along the lake’s perimeter will help runoff water filter through plant and soil before reaching the lake.
Another key element is the installation of more than 4 acres of grassy wetlands in the lake, which will be used as natural water filters to maintain the water quality. David Attaway, environmental supervisor at the Department of Recreation and Parks, said that the wetlands will prevent excessive nutrient-loading, which the lake currently suffers from. “These types of plants have a great ability to uptake nutrients from the soil itself, as well as the water column. The nutrients get absorbed into the plant tissue,” Attaway said.
 | To naturally maintain the health of the lake, the Bureau of Engineering has also included multiple environmentally-forward features in the design. To ease the impact of street runoff, the park’s asphalt pathways will be replaced with pervious walkways, and new planting along the lake’s perimeter will help runoff water filter through plant and soil before reaching the lake.
Another key element is the installation of more than 4 acres of grassy wetlands in the lake, which will be used as natural water filters to maintain the water quality. David Attaway, environmental supervisor at the Department of Recreation and Parks, said that the wetlands will prevent excessive nutrient-loading, which the lake currently suffers from. “These types of plants have a great ability to uptake nutrients from the soil itself as well as the water column. All the nutrients get absorbed into the plant tissue,” Attaway said. |
Vargas said the community has not been as supportive as the City hoped they would be. “The City is finding itself in a position where it doesn’t only need to sell the project, it also has to deal with some issues about peoples’ impression of the city as a bureaucracy in itself,” she said.
“There’s these two conflicts for me personally,” said Smith. “The environmentalist side of me is like, ‘Yeah we need to clean up something that’s disgusting and a huge pollutant.’ And then also at the same time, it’s a huge waste of money.”
Those with questions or concerns are encouraged to contact Vargas, who is the outreach coordinator for this project. Construction on the project will begin this summer, and is estimated to take 25 months.
“It’s something that the community needs to just hold off for a few years and go through the headaches of the major construction,” Sigala said. “But at the end of the day we’re going to have a destination that people will want to come and enjoy.”
“There’s these two conflicts for me personally,” said Smith. “The environmentalist side of me is like, ‘Yeah we need to clean up something that’s disgusting and a huge pollutant.’ And then also at the same time, it’s a huge waste of money.”
Those with questions or concerns are encouraged to contact Vargas, who is the outreach coordinator for this project. Construction on the project will begin this summer, and is estimated to take 25 months.
“It’s something that the community needs to just hold off for a few years and go through the headaches of the major construction,” Sigala said. “But at the end of the day we’re going to have a destination that people will want to come and enjoy.”
