Showing posts with label San Gabriel River trail: maint issues. Show all posts
Showing posts with label San Gabriel River trail: maint issues. Show all posts

August 13, 2020

Third fire (that we know of) at the Eldorado park nature center August 12 2020

So here we are once again reporting on a fire at the El Dorado nature center on August 12, 2020 (approx 445pm). Pictures here. LB fire tweet here. The fire was in this approx location. When we spoke to the LB Park Ranger on scene blocking the southbound bike path at Spring St. we asked if this fire was due to homeless activity in the nature Center and he said "most likely". The two prior fires were April 3 2019 and June 19 1019 that WE KNOW of and there have most likely been others that were never picked up by the media (like this one). Long Beach city staff and Long beach city council (Mungo and Supernaw; the nature center in Supernaw's district; north of spring St Eldlorado park is in Mungo's dist.) are well aware of the problem (we raised the fencing problem and potential fires in the nature center as far back as Dec 2017 with Mungo and Supernaw as well as city Manager) and we were led to believe that Supernaw's office was going to develop some secret plan with LB Fire dept to fix the issue in the nature center.

The nature center (the restricted area here) is a very problematic area for fires. It is filled with brush and hundreds of very dry trees. It is very hard to access (being a no trespassing area) and in previous larger fires water dropping helicopters had to assist. There are also no hydrants in the area and fences usually have to be cut by the FD to access the area (as was done yesterday) these of course are left unpaired for months on end. So all we need for an out of control fire is lots of dry conditions (8 mo out of the year) and wind. That could cause the entire nature center to go up in smoke. Highly feasible if conditions are right and FD response is delayed to to slow reporting (likely).

So other than complete inaction (ineffectual action) by the city council what are the causes and solutions?

The homeless problem (the criminal element parts of it at least) on SG River and in the area of the nature center is well known. We suspect the LB park rangers and LBPD have been told to leave them alone (based on discussions we have had on this topic with officers). Part of the reason we feel the city takes a "hands off approach" is that not a lot of people (voters) can see the problem on the river and in the nature center as its very well hidden from everyone's view except for the few people who live very close, or walk, run or bike ride on the river path. So the city leaders would just as soon leave the homeless there than chase them over to in a visible are on the street that more voters will see (and demand be fixed).

The city (and county) use the Boise case (Martin v. City of Boise, 902 F. 3d 1031 - Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit 2018) to try to excuse their politically correct stance on the homeless criminal element that are living in NO TRESPASSING areas. The Boise case says nothing about removing people from and keeping people out of no trespassing areas. It simply holds as follows:

"Our holding is a narrow one. Like the Jones panel, "we in no way dictate to the City that it must provide sufficient shelter for the homeless, or allow anyone who wishes to sit, lie, or sleep on the streets... at any time and at any place." Id. at 1138. We hold only that "so long as there is a greater number of homeless individuals in [a jurisdiction] than the number of available beds [in shelters]," the jurisdiction cannot prosecute homeless individuals for "involuntarily sitting, lying, and sleeping in public." Id. That is, as long as there is no option of sleeping indoors, the government cannot criminalize indigent, homeless people for sleeping outdoors, on public property, on the false premise they had a choice in the matter."

The city and county will have to commit to keeping all the fencing repaired in that area. They know areas with cut fencing is a sign that homeless are in a no trespassing area but they then refuse to remove them and until removed the fence will keep getting cut. The city and county need to commit to a homeless trespassing removal program and a fencing check/repair program. They likely wont do it. Its not a budget issue its simply an issue of unwillingness to actively solving the problem. Could also be a problem with public unions not wanting to do the work (can never rule out public union pressure when extra work required; public unions are big campaign contributors as well). The other excuse now being thrown around is "covid 19" ..."we cant interact with homeless due to Covid..." (covid is now the generalized excuse for everything in government) Of course Covid did not stop them in interacting with BLM protesters or even in interacting with taxpayers in general.

The other problem as we have discussed before is that when the city or county encounters homeless people in no trespassing areas even if they have beds available (under Boise) they will not force the people to take them and they wont remove them from the no trespassing areas (like the nature center which excludes even taxpayers). This is even true in instances were they know the homeless person is a threat to others (this has been documented) This is an example of how government entities (via their employees) give uneducated voters false interpretations of case law and statutes to excuse inaction (very common with police). Lakewood on the other hand does remove trespassing homeless from the west side of the Carson St. overpass over the SG river. Its amazing to see the difference in approaches to the problem. Same laws. Different interpretations.

So until voter pressure forces the city council to do its job the fires will continue. Lets hope the city wises up before the entire nature center is lost to a fire. It will take years to recover from that as nothing will be done to fix it once it burns down.

As an addendum to this story above this is an interesting note on the Azusa ranch fire This was initially reported to us by one of our loyal readers after hearing it on KFI radio... "It was reported about 2:45 p.m. near North San Gabriel Canyon Road and North Ranch Road, according to the Azusa Police Department and the Los Angeles County Fire Department, which called in a second-alarm response. At least two residents said the fire began after a fight between two people at a homeless encampment in the river bed area.

"They were arguing over a bike," said resident Jimmy Pockets. "Things got escalated to where the fire started. It took off so quick."...Fire officials have not determined a cause..." Given where the fire started this seems highly plausible.

Update: A witness who lives in a riverbed near Mountain Cove told NBC4 an argument between two homeless men sparked the fire."There were two gentlemen in the back (of a homeless encampment) fighting and they were arguing over a bike and one guy said he'd burn the other guy out, and things got escalated to where the fire started," evacuee Jimmy Pockets told the station. "Ran over to try to put it out but it just took off so quick."

Long Beach Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Long Beach, CA | A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™ | click here to receive LAAG posts by email

December 11, 2009

Ban on trash in L.A. River

This story below is good news. There was no mention in the story of similar rules applying to the San Gabriel River (where most of Lakewood's storm drains empty to) however we assume similar rules are in force as the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board also has control over the San Gabriel River. See this San Gabriel River report for more detail. This is why we urged Lakewood some years ago to enforce a logical parking ban; so that city wide street sweeping covering all streets weekly would comply with these rules, which will become more difficult over time to comply with without thorough sweeping programs. Next wee need to see storm drains inlets modified (and the catch basins cleaned before storms) to deal with all the trash and other pollutants not collected by the sweeper. Of course the story linked above does not mention which agency is supposed to clean out these catch basins once a week and all during a rain storm so they don't overflow and cause flooding nor is there any mention of the funding mechanism for this after the initial money is spent on installation of these snazzy catch basins. Also we are not keen on delaying this until 2016 but that is the slow pace of local government. I hope federal stimulus money is spent on this and perhaps the work will start sooner that way.

latimes.com/news/local/la-me-trash11-2009dec11,0,6852403.story
latimes.com
Water board moves to enforce ban on trash in L.A. River
Cities along the watershed are required by 2016 to keep all trash out of their storm drains. Those that don't comply will now be in violation of the federal Clean Water Act.

By Bettina Boxall

December 11, 2009

Regional water quality officials on Thursday put some teeth into their long campaign to cleanse the Los Angeles River system of the tons of trash that turn it into a movable landfill after major storms.

Standards previously adopted by the Los Angeles [Regional] Water Quality Control Board give cities along the watershed until 2016 to keep all trash out of their storm drains.

On Thursday, the board incorporated those limits into storm water permits, putting municipalities that don't meet the requirements in violation of the federal Clean Water Act. Until now there had been no penalty for noncompliance.

"It's taken two decades to get to this point," board vice-chair Madelyn Glickfeld said after the 5-0 vote. "If we hadn't done this today, it would have been a signal" to cities "to relax, guys."

During storms, tons of trash and plastic debris wash up in municipal drains that empty into the Los Angeles River and its tributaries. The trash floating at the river's mouth in Long Beach can be so thick that it is hard to see any water. In the unusually wet winter of 2005, Long Beach hauled more than 12,000 tons of garbage out of the river.

Much of the trash winds up in the Pacific Ocean, contributing to huge floating garbage patches. Pieces of plastic can wrap around wildlife and kill birds and fish.

Trash was formally identified as a pollution problem in the river in 1996. Five years later, the regional water board adopted standards. But 22 cities sued to overturn the trash limits, saying they would be expensive and difficult to meet.

The courts found the board had not performed an adequate environmental impact analysis of the new rules, but otherwise upheld them.

After conducting an environmental review, the board readopted the trash standards in 2007.

In the meantime, some cities in the watershed, including Los Angeles, started installing screens and collection systems to keep street debris from washing into sewers. Sixteen cities in the watershed recently received $10 million in federal stimulus money to outfit their catch basins.

Local officials pointed to progress Thursday. "We have taken trash reduction seriously," said Signal Hill Councilman Larry Forester.

Another official showed the board photographs he took after Monday's storm. Parts of the river that have been coated with trash in the past were largely clean.

Local representatives argued that it wasn't necessary to write a target of zero trash discharges into the storm permits, and that doing so would set a burdensome precedent for other pollutants.

Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA
A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™

click here to receive LAAG posts by email

August 25, 2009

Community Workshop to discuss proposed improvements to the San Gabriel River Bikeway

Today we received a press release (below) from the city of Seal Beach regarding the section of the San Gabriel River bike path that is situated in their city and Orange County. We have complained about the deterioration of the path for years (since June 2006 to be exact). The County of LA claimed they could do nothing as the path was Seal Beach's responsibility by an agreement created in the early 1970's when the path was first built. We argued that that should never have been the case. We argued for OC transportation funds to be used. We argued for federal "Stimulus funds" to be used. All to no avail. Finally it appears that the money that was originally "promised" by the State on Sept. 2008 (then "withdrawn" on Dec. 2008) is now starting to ooze thru the mess that we all know is ongoing in Sacramento (don't get us started on that). Well don't hold your breath for the funds to ever make it into "real" improvements you can ride on. They may all get eaten up by consultants and other types of "pre-groundbreaking activities". But at least this is a good start.

So for those of you that use this section of the San Gabriel River Bikeway (405 south to the ocean) we hope to see you at the meeting on Sept. 10. It is important that bike riders that use the trail show up and provide input (and support) as we are actually the ones that know the problems and how to fix them. Its your trail and your tax dollars. So please pass this along.

Press Release text:

“The City of Seal Beach will be holding a Community Workshop to discuss proposed improvements to the San Gabriel River Bikeway and River's End Staging Area. This project will include repaving the bike trail from the First Street parking lot to I-405, improvements to the First Street parking lot, and remodeling the existing First Street restroom. The workshop will include a presentation of the draft plan for the area followed by an opportunity to ask questions and provide your feedback.

The project is being funded through a grant from the State of California, Rivers and Mountains Conservancy. Funding restrictions through the State had caused the City to place this project on hold recently. However, with portions of funding back in place, the City is pleased to bring this project back online and would like to gather input and feedback from the community and those who utilize the San Gabriel River Bike Trail.

The workshop will be held at the City of Seal Beach Council Chambers on Thursday, September 10, 2009 at 6:30 pm.

For further information regarding this project, please contact David Spitz, Associate Engineer at (562) 431-2527 ext. 1331.”

David Spitz, P.E.
Associate Civil Engineer
City of Seal Beach
211 8th Street
Seal Beach, CA 90740
p - (562) 431-2527 ext 1331
f - (562) 430-8763
dspitz@ci.seal-beach.ca.us


Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA
A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™

click here to receive LAAG posts by email

July 31, 2008

graffiti "community service" bill

This law sounds good. First problem. You have to have police catch someone and that has to hold up in court. I want to know how many successful graffiti prosecutions LASD has prosecuted on the San Gabriel River or in the city of Lakewood in the past year. I am going to take a shot at none. And as the LASD and city of Lakewood reads this blog regularly we challenge them to prove us wrong. They send the stats we will post them.

The law (on the surface) is a common sense measure which ones does not usually see out of the legislature. Of course how do you really make a graffiti artist clean up the area for a year? You don't. Also the press release makes it sound like the "clean up" sentencing is mandatory, until you read the "weasel words" the legislature put in the bill to make sue some bleeding heart liberal judge can still let the defendant off. Really this sounds like nothing more than a press release event (to attempt to show how "hard working" our legislature is) rather than a real enforcement or punishment tool. I cant wait to see how often this is used. I suppose next the ACLU will challenge it as "cruel and unusual punishment" for "artists" and that what we need is more taxpayer funded "afterschool programs" to "channel their talent".

We found the law interesting due to the rise of graffiti in Lakewood and the San Gabriel River. Looks like we got our hopes up for nothing.

PRESS RELEASE

07/30/2008 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Gov. Schwarzenegger Signs Graffiti Vandalism Legislation

Continuing his commitment to public safety, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today signed legislation to hold offenders accountable for crimes of vandalism and to remove graffiti from California's streets and neighborhoods. AB 1767 by Assemblymember Fiona Ma (D-San Francisco) mandates community service for a person who has committed a criminal act of graffiti vandalism, and AB 2609 by Assemblymember Mike Davis (D-Los Angeles) requires defendants convicted of graffiti vandalism to clean up or repair the defaced or damaged property.

"As Governor, I have made the safety of our communities my top priority," Governor Schwarzenegger said. "By cleaning up graffiti and holding offenders accountable for their actions, this legislation will make our streets and neighborhoods a safer and cleaner place to live."

AB 1767 authorizes the courts in San Francisco to launch a pilot program where violators of graffiti vandalism are ordered to participate in a minimum of 24 hours of community service, when available, if they have reached a civil compromise with the victim. This law targets graffiti abatement service programs as the community service outlet for offenders and remains in effect until January 1, 2012.

Similarly, AB 2609 requires the court to order offenders paroled for a graffiti violation to clean up, repair or replace the damaged property. Defendants would also be required keep the damaged property or another specified property in the community free of graffiti for up to one year.


BILL NUMBER: AB 2609 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT

CHAPTER 209
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE JULY 30, 2008
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR JULY 30, 2008
PASSED THE SENATE JULY 3, 2008
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY JULY 14, 2008
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 10, 2008
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 17, 2008

INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Davis
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Anderson and Solorio)

FEBRUARY 22, 2008

An act to amend Section 594 of the Penal Code, relating to
vandalism.



LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 2609, Davis. Vandalism: penalties: community service.
Existing law, amended by Proposition 21, an initiative measure
enacted by voters at the March 7, 2000, statewide primary election,
and requiring a 2/3 vote of the Legislature to amend, makes a person
who maliciously commits specified destructive acts with respect to
another's property guilty of vandalism. Existing law grants the court
the authority to order a defendant who is convicted of violating
this provision, or to order the defendant and his or her parents, if
the defendant is a minor, to clean up, repair, or replace the damaged
property or keep the damaged property or another specified property
in the community free of graffiti for up to one year.
This bill would, in addition, require a court, when appropriate
and feasible, to impose the above cleanup penalties for any defendant
who was convicted of violating those vandalism provisions, as
specified. By increasing the penalties for a crime, the bill would
impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

SECTION 1. Section 594 of the Penal Code is amended to read:
594. (a) Every person who maliciously commits any of the
following acts with respect to any real or personal property not his
or her own, in cases other than those specified by state law, is
guilty of vandalism:
(1) Defaces with graffiti or other inscribed material.
(2) Damages.
(3) Destroys.
Whenever a person violates this subdivision with respect to real
property, vehicles, signs, fixtures, furnishings, or property
belonging to any public entity, as defined by Section 811.2 of the
Government Code, or the federal government, it shall be a permissive
inference that the person neither owned the property nor had the
permission of the owner to deface, damage, or destroy the property.
(b) (1) If the amount of defacement, damage, or destruction is
four hundred dollars ($400) or more, vandalism is punishable by
imprisonment in the state prison or in a county jail not exceeding
one year, or by a fine of not more than ten thousand dollars
($10,000), or if the amount of defacement, damage, or destruction is
ten thousand dollars ($10,000) or more, by a fine of not more than
fifty thousand dollars ($50,000), or by both that fine and
imprisonment.
(2) (A) If the amount of defacement, damage, or destruction is
less than four hundred dollars ($400), vandalism is punishable by
imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, or by a fine of
not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both that fine
and imprisonment.
(B) If the amount of defacement, damage, or destruction is less
than four hundred dollars ($400), and the defendant has been
previously convicted of vandalism or affixing graffiti or other
inscribed material under Section 594, 594.3, 594.4, 640.5, 640.6, or
640.7, vandalism is punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for
not more than one year, or by a fine of not more than five thousand
dollars ($5,000), or by both that fine and imprisonment.
(c) Upon conviction of any person under this section for acts of
vandalism consisting of defacing property with graffiti or other
inscribed materials, the court shall, when appropriate and feasible,
in addition to any punishment imposed under subdivision (b), order
the defendant to clean up, repair, or replace the damaged property
himself or herself, or order the defendant, and his or her parents or
guardians if the defendant is a minor, to keep the damaged property
or another specified property in the community free of graffiti for
up to one year. Participation of a parent or guardian is not required
under this subdivision if the court deems this participation to be
detrimental to the defendant, or if the parent or guardian is a
single parent who must care for young children. If the court finds
that graffiti cleanup is inappropriate, the court shall consider
other types of community service, where feasible.
(d) If a minor is personally unable to pay a fine levied for acts
prohibited by this section, the parent of that minor shall be liable
for payment of the fine. A court may waive payment of the fine, or
any part thereof, by the parent upon a finding of good cause.
(e) As used in this section, the term "graffiti or other inscribed
material" includes any unauthorized inscription, word, figure, mark,
or design, that is written, marked, etched, scratched, drawn, or
painted on real or personal property.
(f) The court may order any person ordered to perform community
service or graffiti removal pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision
(c) to undergo counseling.
(g) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2002.
SEC. 2. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the
Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the
meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.


Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA
A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™<b>r>
click here to receive LAAG posts by email

January 6, 2008

San Gabriel River Graffiti Hotline (800) 675-4357

Date: Thu, 27 Dec 2007 19:20:42 -0800
From: "Lakewood Accountability Action Group"
To: "El-Rabaa, Maged"
Subject: Re: SG river issues: Graffiti
Cc: "5th Dist. Gerrie Schipske" ,
"Josh Butler, 5th dist." ,
"Phil Hester, Dir Parks, Rec, and Marine" ,
LBPD ,
"Cadena, Diego" ,
"Afshari, Shari" ,
"Maselbas, Paul" ,
"Yusuf, Abu" ,
"Connie Sziebl, LB rep" ,
"Erin Stibal, Lkwd rep" ,
"Carol Oberman, lkwd office" ,
"Julie Moore, DPW coord" ,
"Capt. Dave L. Fender" ,
"Lt. Terry W. Benjestorf" ,
"Andy Berg, LASD Lkwd Spokesman"

We noticed two things today at 430pm on the path. First there was spraying done today to mask the graffiti at most bridges but it looks like they missed some at the del amo tunnel or it was not done at all. We also saw (and had reports of) fresh graffiti over the fresh abatement spray paint at Carson overpass and also the 405!! They dont waste much time. Maybe when the little criminals are back in school the rate of application will slow down.

I also assume that the "County's Contractors" will only work as far south as Wardlow? After that its city of Long Beach?

On Dec 27, 2007 6:06 PM, El-Rabaa, Maged < MElRabaa@dpw.lacounty.gov> wrote:

We have sent our contractor to clean up the graffiti in this area today. Beginning January 1, 2008, our new contractor will have four crews instead of two that will be responsible to patrol this area and clean up the graffiti. Upon execution of the new contract, we will inform you of their routine patrols in this area. Our goal for clean up in the flood control channels is 72 hours upon notification. Please inform your members to report graffiti to our Graffiti Hotline (800) 675-4357 (HELP).

Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention and Happy New Year.

Maged


From: Lakewood Accountability Action Group | LAAG [mailto:updates@LAAG.us]
Sent: Wednesday, December 26, 2007 11:14 PM
To: 5th Dist. Gerrie Schipske; Josh Butler, 5th dist.; Phil Hester, Dir Parks, Rec, and Marine; LBPD; Cadena, Diego; Afshari, Shari; Maselbas, Paul; El-Rabaa, Maged; Yusuf, Abu; Connie Sziebl, LB rep; Erin Stibal, Lkwd rep; Carol Oberman, lkwd office; Julie Moore, DPW coord; Capt. Dave L. Fender; Lt. Terry W. Benjestorf; Andy Berg, LASD Lkwd Spokesman
Subject: SG river issues: Graffiti

All:
We need some Graffiti cleanup at all the bridges.overpasses from South St. to the 405. My readers report that it has been months since the guy in the unmarked white pickup has been out working and it shows. (this guy carries a number of 5 gal cans of paint and a large paint sprayer and is presumed to be a graffiti abatement guy working for the County or Long Beach) The worst area is at the Carson overpass. Today at 430pm I saw some under 18 teens applying some fresh graffiti to the bridge. They could care less that anyone sees them. The sooner these kids go back to school the better. Anytime I see more than 3 kids down there walking in the river together I pretty much know they are doing something illegal or looking for an opportunity to do so.

The point is as you all know graffiti begets more graffiti and more graffiti attracts groups of hoodlums who prey on law abiding people who use the trail. I dont dare say anything to these hooligans for fear of being attacked. They outnumber me and could carry weapons. If I were to get attacked no one would see it. I advise all trail users to carry a phone and keep it turned on and to carry pepper spray.

I suggest that graffiti checks be done at least twice a month and that abatement be done at least once a month or sooner if warranted or there are complaints.

Users also report that they are seeing bike patrols on occasion now (during the day not dusk). The uniforms are dark blue or black and say "police" so I have to assume they are LBPD not Sheriff. Good to see that. Problem is we need more of them at more times of the day.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA
A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™

click here to receive LAAG posts by email

Lack of Street Sweeping sends trash to Long Beach

We have said it over and over on this website yet government leaders only pay lip service to this problem. Trash anywhere on the streets and sidewalks of Lakewood heads straight into the ocean in Long Beach. This story along with photos on LBReport.com graphically exemplifies what we are talking about. Quite frankly it is sad that a city the size of Long Beach (the 5th largest city in the state) allows other cities to dump their trash on its beaches. If I ran the city of Long Beach I would send the clean up bill to the County of LA and each city in the County. Perhaps that would spur some real action in cities like Lakewood that are afraid to take on the "free parking anywhere anytime lobby".

The solution is simple:

1. Real weekly street sweeping the day after trash day with ALL vehicles moved or towed out of the way. ALL streets must be swept weekly; the Lakewood clean sweep program has a LONG way to go. Right now only 1/4 of the city streets are swept and parking enforcement is weak or non existent. Worse it has taken the city over 30 years to even attempt a fix on the street pollution problem. We have written about this previously.

2. More trash cans everywhere on public and private property. We have asked for public trash cans for trash throwing Mayfair HS students on various streets with virtually no response from the city. Typical. These trash cans also have to be dumped once a week or more often.

3. Holding businesses and residences responsible for trash and other potential run off problems on or near their premises (like oil from cars on the streets and driveways);

4. Taking littering seriously and addressing the problem with laws and citations. It is just a plain lack of concern and enforcement;

5. Once the trash makes it to the storm drains and the LA or San Gabriel River it is the responsibility of the County of LA to clean it out before the rain starts. This may need to be done weekly during the rainy season. There should be inspections before anticipated rain. The County seems to have the time to lock gates on the river preceding a rain so it can also clean up the trash while its down there.

We complain about beach pollution yet we let this trash pileup in the ocean occur. We needs to stop the slobs that are heaving trash out their vehicle windows (including glass bottles) and start encouraging everyone to police this own neighborhoods for trash in the street.

Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA
A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™

click here to receive LAAG posts by email

December 22, 2007

San Gabriel river bike path safety group

Date: Sat, 22 Dec 2007 16:11:44 -0800
To: "5th Dist. Gerrie Schipske" "Josh Butler, 5th dist."
From: Lakewood Accountability Action Group | LAAG
Subject: SG river issues “bike path safety group”
Cc: "Phil Hester, Dir Parks, Rec, and Marine", "LBPD" , (LA County Dept of Pub Works) "Diego Cadena, Dep. Dir." "Afshari, Shari, Div Head" , "Paul Maselbas, Principal Eng", "El-Rabaa, Maged, Program Dev.", "Yusuf, Abu, Cnty Bikeway Coord" (LA County 4th Dist) "Connie Sziebl, LB rep" , "Erin Stibal, Lkwd rep", "Carol Oberman, lkwd office" "Julie Moore, DPW coord" , "Capt. Dave L. Fender LA County Sheriff Dept", "Lt. Terry W. Benjestorf", "Andy Berg, LASD Lkwd Spokesman" "David N. Carmany, Seal Beach City Manager", "Lee Whittenberg, Seal beach", "Todd Rogers, Lkwd City Council"


Ms Schipske:

In regards to this article on your blog (below) please see attached agreements. If there are others that are not attached here (and that involve responsibility for law enforcement patrolling the SG river from South St. to the Ocean) consider this a public records request by LAAG to the City of Long Beach, LA County Dept of Public Works and LA County Sheriff's dept for copies of these additional agreements not attached herein.

If there is going to be a public meeting in Feb 2008 we would like to know the time and place so we can have someone attend to represent trail users (who quite frankly know where and what the problems are). I like to call these rivers "crime channels" or "vagrant rivers". We have already passed along some ideas we had on crime suppression in the river.

I also thought this letter below was rather timely. It was reported about a week after the bike jacking LAAG reported

http://www.presstelegram.com/ci_7618801
Monday's Letters
Article Launched: 12/02/2007 08:43:24 PM PST

Safety problem
How sad to report that Lakewood's sheriff's deputies do not care about our safety. For one month I have been trying to get them to clean out the riverbed located at Centralia and Bloomfield. The transients/felons have set up housekeeping in the holes in plain view of the street. They are drinking in public daily and more of them show up on a daily basis to start their own personal town.

Whenever I call the Lakewood Sheriff's Station I am either placed on hold until I go away, or after the tenth complaint was told that it was not their jurisdiction, but Cypress's. After contacting Cypress, they told me that without a doubt, it belongs to Lakewood.

Last night was the saddest night, as I had to tell them to please not dismiss my complaints, and disperse the dangerous element in the riverbed, because my brother was murdered in the riverbed 20 years ago. I can't wait to move out of Lakewood.

Lorene Diaz
Lakewood

Cleaning up the neighborhood and making it safe
Coyote Creek and other Bike Paths

21. December 2007 Uncategorized, Coyote Creek

Along the Coyote Creek, San Gabriel River and Los Angeles River are bike paths that go quite a distance up into Los Angeles County and down through Orange County to the ocean.

Because these bike paths go through several jurisdictions and also include the Flood Control Districts of both counties, there are many questions as to who is responsible for policing those areas ­ especially in light of bicyclists being mugged along the path.

I called a meeting of the local jurisdictions together that included: County of Los Angeles, Flood Control District, Cities of La Palma, Los Alamitos, Cypress, Seal Beach, Lakewood and Hawaiian Gardens (which did not attend). We also had representatives from Long Beach ­ Government Relations, Councilmember O’Donnell’s office and Police Department.

The focus of this “bike path safety group” is to determine how we can work together to keep the areas of the bike path and the neighborhoods adjacent free from crime and graffitti.

We will reconvene in February after all jurisdictions receive copies of the agreements for use of the bike paths which apparently were executed many years ago between the cities and the flood control district. Many cities were surprised to learn that the County did not have responsibility for policing the bike path and flood control areas.

This is a great chance to work together on a regional basis on a problem that is impacting many cities.


Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA
A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™




December 14, 2007

San Gabriel River Safety Problem

This Lakewood resident agrees with LAAG. Read our related post here.

http://www.presstelegram.com/ci_7618801
Monday's Letters
Article Launched: 12/02/2007 08:43:24 PM PST

Safety problem

How sad to report that Lakewood's sheriff's deputies do not care about our safety. For one month I have been trying to get them to clean out the riverbed located at Centralia and Bloomfield. The transients/felons have set up housekeeping in the holes in plain view of the street. They are drinking in public daily and more of them show up on a daily basis to start their own personal town.

Whenever I call the Lakewood Sheriff's Station I am either placed on hold until I go away, or after the tenth complaint was told that it was not their jurisdiction, but Cypress's. After contacting Cypress, they told me that without a doubt, it belongs to Lakewood.

Last night was the saddest night, as I had to tell them to please not dismiss my complaints, and disperse the dangerous element in the riverbed, because my brother was murdered in the riverbed 20 years ago. I can't wait to move out of Lakewood.

Lorene Diaz
Lakewood

Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA
A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™




October 13, 2007

sand buildup problems on the SGR trail


Date: Sat, 13 Oct 2007 13:38:51 -0700
To: "Diego Cadena, Dep. Dir." <DCadena@dpw.lacounty.gov>, "Afshari, Shari, Div Head" <SAfshari@dpw.lacounty.gov>, "Paul Maselbas, Principal Eng" <PMaselbas@dpw.lacounty.gov>, "El-Rabaa, Maged, Program Dev." <MElrabaa@dpw.lacounty.gov>, "Alma Fuentes, Bicycle Coord." <AFuentes@dpw.lacounty.gov>, "Connie Sziebl, Field Rep for Knabe" <CSziebl@lacbos.org>
From: Lakewood Accountability Action Group | LAAG <updates@LAAG.us>
Subject: sand buildup problems on the SGR trail


I have been pointing out (to the county) sand buildup problems on the trail for years. Usually the place where it collects is under bridges and 300 feet either side of the bridges or tunnel in approaches. (Where the path dips down close to the sand) This is just due to poor design for runoff and lack of simple maintenance. Better design however would result in lower maintenance costs. As a result right after each rain, no matter how slight all these section have to be swept. 1/4 inch of fine sand is treacherous for especially road bikes (or any bike really) and can easily lead to a loss of control at almost any speed, even going straight let alone turning. Also the pavement near these bridge sections is poor. That is also a problem. Sand is white and blends in with the concrete color. Also it may be hiding other dangers or road surface problems underneath.

We had rain last on 9/21/07-9/22/07. No sand was swept as of 10/11/07. And now this weekend more rain. So sweeping has to be redone at the problem areas

I think the problem on the trail maint. has a number of causes: (1) the people that do the work are not very conscientious and/or (2) there is either no inspection of their finished work or contractors are county employees are saying the work is done and its not (If thats the case taxpayer dollars are being wasted) (3) the people that think the work was done don't ride road bikes over it so they really don't understand the safety problem to begin with as they just ride in cars or trucks with huge tires; (4) there may be poor direction given (poor communication) or workers just dont understand what the issue is and why it needs to be cleaned up properly or what is "proper". Likely it is all of the foregoing.

I was also puzzled numerous times on the carson/wardlow section where some holes and cracks would get patched but not ones nearly identical right nearby. Made no sense at all. I would love to ask the workers what they were thinking but never get to see them at the site

There are section of the trial that are quite clean but then they never really get dirty. You need to focus on the problems sections.

December 3, 2006

Status of All requests for San Gabriel River bikeway repairs

South St. Entrance

11/25/05 LADPW (Los Angeles County Dept. of Public Works) notified by email:

1. The entrance to the river at south St. (south bound) has very badly broken pavement due to roots. The roots need to be cut out with the pavement and it needs to be repaved. The paving needs to be done so it is smooth for a 1/2 inch wide bike tire not a 3/4 ton pickup.

Status: Tree and roots removed and repaved entrance 10/06

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Problems between Carson and wardlow

3/7/05 LADPW notified by email:

Serious root incursions just south of the wal mart parking lot (about 1/2 way between Carson and wardlow). The roots need to be cut out with the pavement and it needs to be repaved. This entire section (between carson and wardlow) is going to
have to be rePAVED due to all the ruts and holes. There really are too many to patch properly. "slurry seal" will NOT fix it but only conceal all the grooves, divots and other bad sections like happened years before. It is almost impossible to ride that section with a skinny tire road bike (the majority of the bikes on the trail) as it rattles you so much. I am also concerned that someone will hit a dip/rut in that section wrong and will take a spill. The bumps are so bad they can knock the bars out of your hands.

Status: Roots fixed in 2006 but numerous cracks still exist. County fixes some and leave others. Section between Carson and Wardlow to be totally repaved in July 2007 per the county's email in Nov 06. We are working on the details of that paving now.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bridge at confluence of Coyote Creek and SG River

3/7/05 LADPW notified by email:
3. The bridge at the coyote creek confluence has a huge gap (6-8") on the west side and is rather bumpy on the east side. Over the years the west side gap has increased and the metal and rubber used to fill it have been torn or worn away. I bent a
wheel going over this gap. People are trying, unsuccessfully, to fill it with dirt and scraps of wood as they know it is a problem. As you have to make a 90 degree turn at either end of the bridge it is only a matter of time before someone (likely
an older person or child) is going to get their wheel sideways on these gaps and go down hard. What needs to be done is to remove the metal gap filler there now and replace it with a large piece of wood, flush with the concrete and bolted down. I
am sure your maintenance people can figure something out (or better yet get an engineer to look at it). The point is it needs to be sturdy and slip resistant as bikes have to turn as they go over it.


6/13/06 email to LADPW:
As for Item 3 they tried to fix the west side bridge transition but they did not bolt the board down and someone stole it within a day or two. Then they tamped some asphalt in the gap which was great for a few weeks but as they did not prep the
gap right (by removing the old tin) and as the gap flexes too much, the asphalt is now a bigger hazard as it is all broken up and we are right back where we started a year ago. They need to take out all the existing hardware (at both ends) and BOLT DOWN some new steel non skid transition plates on both ends of that bridge. That could last 50 years if done PROPERLY. The point is it needs to be sturdy and slip resistant as bikes have to turn as they go over it. Again when "skinny tired"
(contact patch of a tire is about the diameter of a nickel) road bikes have to turn at each end of that bridge these transitions are critical that the transition is smooth.

12/6/06 Status:
Not fixed. West side transition still bad due to very shoddy asphalt fill which lasted about 2 months

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

section between the 405 fwy and the 22 fwy

3/7/05 LADPW notified by email:
4. The section between the 405 and the 22 is horrible and the shoddy patching is making it worse. Again slurry seal will not fix it. It needs about a 2" think layer of pavement (after the potholed and ruts are filled). I don't think this has been
paved (not slurry sealed) in over 30 years. I have not seen a road in this area as bad as that section of bike path. And road bikes need much smoother pavement that cars to be ridden safely.

12/6/06 Status: Still no resolution as the county, Long Beach and Seal beach cannot agree on who must fix this section. No reply from Long Beach yet.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
bridges south of south street

3/7/05 LADPW notified by email:
5. At most bridges south of south street there are large areas of sand about 200 feet either side of these bridges. Or in the ares just north of del amo, large accumulations of pine needles which are very dangerous for bikes as they are slippery especially when negotiating that very dark and dangerous tunnel approach. The sand can be eliminated by bi-monthly sweeping or trenching or sandbagging the areas where the sand washes in from.

Status: Sand issues are better but trail still not being swept weekly; that is clear to see. Problem areas not being focused on. The pavement directly under the bridges at Wardlow and Spring are still very rough as of 12/06.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

under crossings at wardlow and spring

3/7/05 LADPW (Los Angeles County Dept. of Public Works) notified by email:

6. The under crossings at wardlow and spring are also very rough. Wardlow is also very sandy, especially after a rain. They need to be repaved between the sections of the new concrete path that was installed a few years ago on the approaches to these undercrossings. The worst is at the spring st under crossing. The entire portion under the bridge. The others are all bad (with sand) too Del Amo, carson, wardlow, willow. Now that the rain is gone I guess we dont have to worry about sandbagging the areas where the sand comes from I never could figure out why the county did not smooth out the pavement under the Wardlow, Spring and Willow undercrossings after making all those nice improvements to the trail (approaches) using concrete. (only of course after someone was killed at willow going north due to silly approach ramp). People that work for the county need to understand that 23mm bike tires
are not like car tires. Small pavement imperfections can be very dangerous, especially for all the old people that ride that trail. Just read the caltrans manual on class one bike path imperfections. The streets in this area are smoother than the bike path!!

Response by LADPW or work done:

Some sand swept. As of 11/06 no other improvements.

Status: No further response from county

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Del Amo Tunnel

6/13/06 LADPW notified by email:
Another safety area is that bridge under DelAmo. Very dark. Need warning signs for people to yell going in. Also lots of water, slippery sand buildup and horse waste in it. Needs to be cleaned once a week. Transitions and gate openings could be
better north and south bound. Also the pine tree at the north end should be take out as it drops tons over slippery pine needles. Again if swept weekly not a problems but there is no budget for that apparently. 1/4 inch of fine sand is treacherous for road bikes and can easily lead to a loss of control at almost any speed, even going straight let alone turning.

Status: County finished installing and hooking up lights in tunnel as of 1/15/07. Trees removed 11/26/06.

Now Looking at fixing approaches from north and south into the tunnel as of 11/06. The County has not given LAAG a date for when the drawings will be done, when it will go out to bid or when work will commence. We assume summer 2007 but not sure at this point as it took 6 months just to get some lights in.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Motorcycles Used on the Trail
LADPW notified by email 1/22/07

Last week two full sized motorcycles wizzed past me at very high speed on the trail (near the 405) and scared the hell out of me. I think they are using it for racing. This is about the 10th time this has happened and of course the LASD never catches anyone. You need to get those signs back up again that tell people essentially "no motorized devices" can be used on the trail. About a year ago there was just such a metal sign at the south st. entrance on a 9ft tall pole that was so tall you could not see it as you entered. Now I think the whole sign is gone. I have not seen others. They need to be posted on both sides of the truck entrance gates at all entrances. Attach them to the chain link fences so they are at user eye height.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bridges at 405 Fwy

Caltrans notified that fences down and homeless people living inside bridges (entering into earthquake retrofit access pannels on the underside of freeway bridges)

11/06 Status: Took about 4 months for Caltrans to find the problem even with pictures we sent them. Fixed the problem but not well like we told them to and yes once again the fence has been cut and vandals are back under the freeway 12/06.

General Maint. Issues:

I think the problem on the trail maint. is twofold: (1) the people that do the work are not very conscientious and/or (2) there is either no inspection of their finished work or the people that think the work was done don't ride road bikes over it so they really don't understand the safety problem to begin with as they just ride in cars or trucks with huge tires. Quite frankly the roadway pavement of the streets in that area are nicer to ride on than the bike path! But bikers don't like the street due to stop lights, dangerous divers (cell phone gabbers) and car exhaust fumes.