If you value independent local news, become a sustainer today. Your gift could help unlock a $1M challenge.
Low-Income Communities Have Less Park Space Than More Affluent Neighborhoods. That's Starting To Change
Looking out from Kenneth Hahn State Recreation Area towards Downtown Los Angeles. Aside from these views of the skyline most of the hike through the park feels isolated from the outside world.
(
Chava Sanchez
/
LAist
)
The 51st Street Greenbelt Park project in North Long Beach has secured $2 million in funding to transform from a dirt lot near the Los Angeles River into a green space with trees, fitness equipment and plants that naturally remove pollutants from rainwater runoff.
Why it matters
Congressmember Nanette Barragán, who represents a large part of North Long Beach, helped secure the federal funding. She says half of L.A.'s population lives in neighborhoods without access to parks and open spaces.
"[Low-income and communities of color] have less than 10% of park acreage per resident than, say, more affluent areas in East Long Beach," she said. Last year, a report from the non-profit Trust for Public Land revealed that communities of color have 43% less park space than white neighborhoods.
About the 51st Street Greenbelt project
The park will have fitness equipment, a play area for kids, a natural walking trail and more. Barragán says it's important for "these neighborhoods to have green spaces for their kids, for [wellness], and for mental health reasons. She says "It's good for getting to know your neighbors."
Sponsored message
How parks help with the climate crisis
Barragán noted that parks provide a cooling effect that help combat the urban heat island effect — when pavement, buildings and other surfaces absorb and retain heat.
"Having more tree canopy and shade — it's going to help reduce air pollution by sequestering carbon and other toxins and improve water quality by removing contaminants from stormwater runoff," she said. "So this is really a greater effort to [help] these communities combat the climate injustice that they have and the lack of green space."
What's next
Barragán's spokesperson Kevin McGuire says there's no timeline on the project, but it could be completed in five years. But Barragán expects an additional $15 million and a new round of community-funded projects for more urban parks later this year.
Trending on LAist
-
In her first public statements since controversy erupted over millions of unaccounted for tax dollars, Rhiannon Do says she’s no longer with the O.C. nonprofit Viet America Society. She also says she never had a leadership role. Public documents show otherwise. -
After San Gabriel's city council rejected the proposal as "too narrow", one city councilmember argued the entire DEI commission, created in the aftermath of George Floyd's murder, had "run its course." -
A medical industry challenge to a $25 minimum wage ordinance in one Southern California city suggests health workers statewide could face layoffs and reductions in hours and benefits under a state law set to begin phasing in in June. Some experts are skeptical, however, that it will have such effects. -
“It was a downer,” said Agustin Ruelas, the co-owner at Brewjeria, the Latino and POC-owned craft brewery in Pico Rivera. “We just wanted to honor Selena.” -
Sandhill cranes are returning to the Lake Tahoe basin after a century long hiatus in what many say is a conservation success story. -
The Dodgers fired Mizuhara in March after Ohtani's lawyers accused him of stealing millions of dollars from the baseball player to place bets with an Orange County-based bookie.
Best of LAist
