From Lot to Spot

What: Parking Day LA (http://parkingdayla.com/)
When: September 19, 2008, 9am – 3pm
Who: From Lot to Spot and Environmental Charter High School students, FLTS’s Spaces of Blight program will be creating an interactive, mobile mini-park
Where: Shopping Center on the corner of Rosecrans Ave and Isis Ave, City of Hawthorne, see map attached.
** our mini-park is mobile and we will change location if needed – due to sour Sam’s and Poopie Peter’s who want to rain on our parade –– please contact me -310-780-5461 and I will provide our location**

Why: To advocate the creation of more parkspace instead of concentrating on urban development that reinforces dependency on the vehicle. Citizens, community groups, artists and activist throughout the county will be creating mini-parks in parking space throughout the County of Los Angeles. A map of the Parking Day LA spaces is available at http://parkingdayla.com/.

We hope this County-wide event promotes critical awareness for creating walkable, livable communities that include more parks and opportunities for pedestrians to enjoy their communities again. We must question the “basic” assumptions about how we use our urban space. The time is now to create change in our built environment.
We need to move away from the “metal metropolis” mentality and shift to the “sustainable city” model. And creating more parkspace is a start.
Join us for the advocacy and just ol’ plain fun!

For more information on PARKING DAY LA and to view other projects visit http://www.parkingdayla.com/

Writer Scott Gold writes about Viviana, her life and the struggles of creating a park in a low-income, park-poor neighborhood in his column "Out There". Click on link below to view full story.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/politics/cal/la-me-outthere29-2008aug2...

"It doesn't seem like turning an abandoned lot in Hawthorne from a receptacle for trash, used condoms and a goat carcass into a badly needed neighborhood park should be quite this difficult."

Thank You Ms. Veronique de Turenne of the LA Times. (http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2008/08/good-morning-18.html.)

A week ago, FLTS went up to Sacramento to convince the California Transportation Commission (CTC) to extend a deadline to secure funds to purchase the property on 118th Street and Doty Ave in order to create a badly needed park. Unfortunately, the CTC saw no benefit in the extension, despite letters from Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Assemblymember Curren Price, Councilman Danny Juarez and a long list of people like you: community activists, parkspace equity advocates, tireless environmentalists, general good-hearted gente. The property was officially transferred to the highest bidder of the Caltrans April public auction, Ali Awad.

We lost the battle, but not the war.
As we stated before, we are committed to continuing this fight.
Why?
Because environmental injustice is never okay.
Because social injustice is never okay.
Because land-use inequity based on the socio-economic make-up of your community is never okay.

We are meeting with our advisory board to strategize next steps on how best to move on and continue to place the community’s needs in the forefront. We will keep you updated.

We would like to sincerely thank you for your support and efforts. Many of you signed letters, made calls, provided us with resources.
We have been amazed at the amount of support and thank you deeply, on behalf of this community.
So, with this, a heartfelt and sincere thank you to you.

Inspired and fueled by the work of people like you: community activists, parkspace equity advocates, tireless environmentalists, general good-hearted gente, who do not stop because things get difficult - we continue.

Thank you.

Last evening as I drove home, I witnessed a common summertime scene in this community: children taking action into their own hands.
It is always amazes me to see the innocent indifference in kids; they don’t care where they play, as long as they play.
It is something endearing but also something we as responsible adults should care enough to help change if there is something better. They deserve better.
See video below.

“Unfortunately, in some American cities, only one-third of all children live within walking distance of a public park or other open space. Instead of meadows and soccer fields, their playgrounds are streets, alleyways, and vacant lots.”
- Will Rogers, President Trust for Public Land (No Place to Play 2004)

Dear Friends,
To help paint the picture of the park space disparity and the need for this parkspace in the City of Hawthorne, we will be providing information and statistics regarding the importance of this proposed parkspace.

The document attached illustrates data on parkspace acreage in the City of Hawthorne, major US cities and local cities.
The Trust for Public Land (TPL) identifies the community of 118th Street and Doty Ave as a community with the greatest need for parks.
As the evidence shows, Hawthorne is well below the average and lower than neighboring cities.
We are attempting to ameliorate this gross inequity and contribute positively to this community by creating a parkspace in a community of need.

Time is running out. We are danger of losing this property, these resources and this opportunity to revitalize this community for our children forever if our elected officials do not act quickly.

We have called on Senator Diane Feinstein, Senator Barbara Boxer, Senator Edward Vincent, Supervisor Yvonne Burke, Congresswoman Maxine Waters and Assemblymember Curren Price to request the involvement of the Santa Monica, Rivers and Mountains, Coastal and the Baldwin Hills Conservancies in the acquisition of this property as the first step in the creation of a vibrant space for children to play in this low-income, park poor community.

Thank you all. We stand strong because of your support and encouragement, thank you. Si se puede!