Two environmental groups have sued Los Angeles County over a Los Angeles River plan to create Frank Gehry-designed “platform parks” they say does little to naturalize a 51-mile flood channel made of concrete.
LA Waterkeeper and the Center for Biological Diversity filed the lawsuit accusing officials of violating state environmental laws when they approved the Los Angeles River Master Plan, the Los Angeles Times reported.
The complaint seeks to bar the county from developing any new river project without conducting a review of “all foreseeable significant impacts to the environment that the master plan will authorize.”
“The river master plan is clearly deficient, and we see this as a crucial moment in the life of the river,” Bruce Reznik, executive director for LA Waterkeeper, told the Times.
The master plan intends to improve the appearance of the concrete channel and improve water quality, increase wildlife habitat and address social inequities for communities along the river.
The project includes plans by architect Frank Gehry to build a cultural park at the confluence of the L.A. River and the Rio Hondo south of downtown.
His plan calls for “elevated platform parks,” or massive, bridge-like green spaces high above the channel’s floor and 4 feet above the rim of the channel walls. Built on hulking concrete planks and giant girders, they would stretch a mile over both rivers and support trees, grass, ponds, paths and horse trails.
The lawsuit’s plaintiffs – along with other nonprofit environmental groups including Friends of the Los Angeles River, East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice, Heal the Bay, and the Nature Conservancy – withdrew support for the project before the master plan vote by L.A. County Board of Supervisors last month.
The groups would prefer a plan that explores ways to naturalize the 51-mile-long river channel by removing concrete wherever possible. They accuse the county of trying to spur development of the platform park without first reviewing its environmental impact.
The lawsuit says county officials seek “federal funding in the amount of $8.6 billion for L.A. River projects contemplated under the master plan.” In the meantime, there are no signs of pending major river improvements, according to the groups.
County officials say the river master plan has no legal jurisdiction over land use, and no authority to implement its recommendations. Decisions about what happens along the lower river corridor must be made by the county and 14 cities that border it.
Mark Pestrella, director and chief engineer of the Los Angeles County Flood Control District, has described the river master plan as “one of the most robust, progressive and community-driven planning efforts ever undertaken by L.A. County.”
“It addresses a wide range of priorities brought to us over three years of community engagement, including ecological disparities, homelessness, gentrification and limited access to public open space and clean water,” he said.
– Dana Bartholomew