A project to develop a six-acre park in western Long Beach received two state grants totaling $19.3 million, which advocates Wednesday described as “significant victory” for residents and the environment.
The San Gabriel and Lower Los Angeles Rivers and Mountains Conservancy, a state entity, awarded the Watershed Conservation Authority two separate grants for the Wrigley Heights River Park on Jan. 22. The funds are expected to facilitate the acquisition and environmental restoration of about six acres of land owned by the Jeanne E. McDonald Revocable Trust.
Benjamin Harris, a senior staff attorney for Los Angeles Waterkeeper, told City News Service the project is a good example of bigger picture efforts the nonprofit organization is working on around the Los Angeles River.
The parcels of land that will be acquired are along the San Diego (405) and Long Beach (710) freeways next to the Los Angeles River, have been open space for many years, but contains contaminated soil due to past industrial use and activity.
“This is kind of one of those pivotal turning points that we as an organization see about how we want to make decisions about land use as a region moving forward because this is right next to the L.A. River,” Harris said.
“We see so many ecological and community health benefits associated with keeping it as open space, remediating the soil and turning it into a vibrant open space area.”
The Rivers and Mountains Conservancy identified the land — located at 3701 Pacific Place, where Pacific Avenue/Place ends at on-ramps to the northbound San Diego and Long Beach freeways — as a high-potential park opportunity site in its Lower Los Angeles River Revitalization Plan. The project is formally known as Wrigley Heights River Park North.
Funding for the acquisition and park plans is also consistent with a 2015 update to Long Beach’s RiverLinkPlan, which was also approved by City Council that same year.
Long Beach residents, the Riverpark Coalition and other organizations have advocated for the preservation and use of these lands for open space since 2007.
According to Harris, the project could include recreational amenities or an artificial wetland construct that would help advance Los Angeles County’s need for habitat.
The future park is expected to promote equity and accessibility to green space for Long Beach’s Westside residents, improve the environment, and bolster flood resiliency as well.
Juan Ovalle, president of the Riverpark Coalition, in a statement called the funding a “momentous victory” for western Long Beach, which he described as sorely lacking in park space.
“…Residents have less than two acres of green space per 1,000 people, and the Eastside, which boasts 17 acres per 1,000,” Ovalle said in a statement.
Harris told CNS the area around the park has faced disproportionate industrial activity as there are a lot of large warehouses, general commercial structures and storage spaces.
Further west is Wilmington, a harbor neighborhood in Los Angeles, which is a hub of activity due to the Port of Los Angeles.
Additionally, the Long Beach Freeway places further pollution burdens for residents as a result of so many trucks moving in and out of the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
Harris told CNS the park project is something residents can look toward to — a “haven” from a lot of the surrounding gray infrastructure, industrial and commercial activity. He also noted there are similar projects that have been developed in the county such as the Dominguez Gap Wetlands.
Built in 1957, Los Angeles County transformed the Dominguez Gap basin into a multi-benefits wetlands in 2008. While maintaining its use for flood protection and water conservation, the site offers visitors a nature reprieve with trails and wildlife habitat.
According to Los Angeles Waterkeeper, more needs to be done to protect the future Wrigley Heights River Park. In 2021, the Riverpark Coalition and Los Angeles Waterkeeper stalled a self-storage warehouse project through a lawsuit filed under the California Environmental Quality Act.
Proposed by InSite, the development would also serve as a recreational vehicle storage lot located adjacent to the park site.
“Now that we have a grant to acquire these parcels, we are going to pay close attention to what that means for the adjacent, larger parcel,” Harris told CNS.