Solis promotes U.S. park plan for 2 rivers

Legislation has 30 co-sponsors; would release $200,000 for feasibility study

By Fiona Williams
Staff Writer

SOUTH EL MONTE -- Using the San Gabriel River as her backdrop, Rep. Hilda Solis, D-El Monte, on Saturday promoted her plan to turn the San Gabriel and Lower Los Angeles rivers into a national park.

Solis introduced legislation Tuesday that would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to spend $200,000 to study the feasibility of forming the rivers and part of the San Gabriel Mountains into a national park system.

Already there are 30 co-sponsors for the bill, Solis said.

"This is one of the biggest efforts I will undertake this year," she said. "This would be one of the largest urban projects for the Park Service. What we're doing here is groundbreaking and it will set a precedent."

Mary Angle, executive director of the San Gabriel & Lower Los Angeles Rivers & Mountains Conservancy, along with representatives from local cities, Los Angeles County Supervisor Gloria Molina's office, Friends of the San Gabriel River, and the Sierra Club attended the conference to show their support for the bill.

Bringing the National Park Service into the mix would strengthen the effort to "green" the river, Angle said.

"I want cities to be successful and counties to be successful (in their efforts to create open space)," Angle said. "The National Park Service would bring expertise in management, safety, education and interpretation . . . It would only enhance the work we're doing."

The conservancy was created two years ago by Solis, while she was a state senator, and Assemblywoman Sally Havice, D-Cerritos.

The conservancy would work in partnership with the park service and help them get established, Angle said.

As cyclists and hikers passed by, Solis pointed out the area could draw people from all over the Southland. National park status would enhance the image of the area, would bring economic development and create sorely needed open space along the river.

There is an estimated 0.3 acre of open space per 1,000 residents in poor areas of Los Angeles, as compared to 1.5 acres in the more affluent areas of West Los Angeles, Solis added.

The San Gabriel River starts in the Azusa foothills and runs to Seal Beach, where it empties into the ocean near the mouth of the Los Angeles River.

"Some people say things are impossible, but I'm convinced when you have a dream and you have other people that share that dream, anything is possible," Solis said.

-- Fiona Williams can be reached at (562) 698-0955, Ext. 3021, or by e-mail at fiona.williams@sgvn.com.

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