From Lot to Spot

We had our second Spaces of Blight project Saturday, June 13th in Inglewood, CA.
Students in the Spring semester at Environmental Charter High School chose this space to revitalize.

This area along the 105 Freeway Prairie Offramp has long been a problem area. Graffiti, garbage, illicit activities have long been plagued the space.

Over 50 community residents and youth came out to reclaim the space, to say: This is my neighborhood and change startes with me.

This was the first step. We are discussing strategies to redevelop the space long-term and create a welcoming environment for this important gateway to our communities.

We'd like to thank City of Inglewood Councilman Ralph Franklin and Public Works crew for their help in organizing this important community event.

Thank you to all who helped turn this space around.
It was a beautiful event - we hope this event will empower residents to keep this area clean, safe and open the door for surrounding cities and Caltrans to re-envision this space and many others like it that exist in communities of color in urban Los Angeles.

We will be engaging in our second Spaces of Blight project this Saturday, June 13th in Inglewood, CA.
Students in the Spring semester at Environmental Charter High School chose this space to revitalize.

This area along the 105 Freeway Prairie Offramp has long been a problem area. Graffiti, garbage, illicit activities have long been plagued the space. This space is the gateway for commuters, motorists and tourists who enter into Hawthorne and Inglewood. It is the kind of image does not inspire confidence in visitors, investors or prospective residents. We hope to turn that around.
We hope this event will empower residents to keep this area clean and open the door for the cities and Caltrans to take note to re-envision this space.

Community clean-ups are not only good for the environment, as they rid the streets of garbage that end up in storm drains, but they are important for community morale and identity. Taking back blighted spaces creates an opportunity for a community to redefine itself.

Together with the City of Inglewood, the SOB class and community members will be cleaning this space of debris and graffiti. This is just the first step. We are discussing strategies to redevelop the space long-term and create a welcoming environment for this important gateway to our communities.

Thank you to Councilman Ralph Franklin and Claudette Matthews for their help in organizing this important community event!

Saturday, June 13th, 10am-1pm
11203 S Prairie Ave, Inglewood, CA 90303
**Enter through 113th/Prairie**

FLTS Executive Director Viviana Franco was awarded VOICE’s 2009 Environmental Hero Award. The award goes to individuals who through their work and efforts are improving the environment. Specifically Ms. Franco was nominated for her work in FLTS’s Spaces of Blight Course, a highschool course that teaches students to to revitalize their communities by creating hands on, real-world solutions to blighted spaces.

Volunteers and Organizations Improving the Community’s Environment (VOICE) mission is to educate and motivate individuals and organizations to work cooperatively toward creating a sustainable world by thinking globally while acting locally.
To find out more about VOICE please visit www.greenervoice.org

FLTS will be there to promote environmental education and awareness in the South Bay!
Come and say hi!
Free to the public!

Saturday, May 30th, 2009
9am-3pm
ARTHUR JOHNSON MEMORIAL PARK
1200 West 170th Street
Gardena, CA

http://gardenawillows.org/enviro_festival_2009.htm

Once again, as part of the Spaces of Blight project, students were assigned to identify 3 spaces of blight , or SOBs, in their communities. Needless to say, they were not hard to find and some students went beyond the minimum requirements. Inner city-students often traverse these types of spaces while on their way to school or home. This is not an environment that is conducive to learning, to growing or even a healthy quality of life. We teach students that in order to change this reality, they must be part of the solution.

The following map documents the students SOBs in their communities for the Spring 2009 class. Students documented SOB's from neighborhoods in Athens, Hawthorne, to Gardena and Inglewood.

Click on placemarks to read descriptions of SOBs in their communities. (Note: you may need to zoom out to view all placemarks)

Based on criteria they have identified , students will vote on one space to revitalize and create a space of light or "SOL".

Stayed tuned for voting results in early June!

View Spaces of Blight - Digital Tracking Spring 2009 in a larger map