A coalition of community groups advocating for more park space in Long Beach have filed legal action against the city to stop construction of a commercial project near the Los Angeles River until an adequate environmental review is conducted.
The Riverpark Coalition and the nonprofit Los Angeles Waterkeeper, which promotes efforts that benefit the region’s waterways, brought the petition Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court.
The privately-owned parcel of land in West Long Beach has ignited numerous debates over the past year. The industrially-zoned land lies in an area where residents have historically had low access to green space, increased rates of asthma due to freeway proximity and shorter lives.
The groups argue that the Long Beach City Council’s April 13 approval of the Pacific Place Project based on a mitigated negative declaration in place of an environmental impact report (EIR) was insufficient.
A mitigated negative declaration incorporates revisions into the project to mitigate environmental impacts. Pacific Place Project’s mitigation measures include collaboration with the Department of Toxic Substances Control to address high levels of toxins in the former oil rigging site and air quality sensors, among other mitigation measures.
An environmental impact report is a more holistic analysis of environmental impacts.
“This action marks the next step to preserve the LA River and add much-needed park space, for all Long Beach residents to enjoy, rather than for the corporate developers prioritized by Long Beach City Hall,” a statement by the Riverpark Coalition and LA Waterkeeper on Monday said.
Councilmember Roberto Uranga supported the Riverpark Coalition during the April 13 vote, noting that residents deserved a full environmental impact report before the start of any construction.
A representative for the Long Beach City Attorney’s Office could not be immediately reached for comment by City News Service.
The petition states that, due to historical development trends that favored industry with high levels of pollution, western Long Beach has a severe lack of parks and open space.
The privately-owned site is currently on track for mixed-use development by InSite Property Group.
The project site is separated into two areas called the Artesia and MacDonald parcels, the petition states. The project on the Artesia parcels will transform a former golf driving range into a three-story, 152,745-square-foot self-storage unit, a recreational vehicle storage area for 578 vehicles and a self-serve car wash with a waste disposal station, the petition says.
The project on the MacDonald parcels would include a 77,000-square-foot single-story warehouse and a 10-truck loading dock, according to the petition.
See Related Story: Pacific Place Project moves forward with council approval. Calls for environmental impact report denied
“This parcel has long been promised to the western Long Beach community as its future river park and nature preserve, not simply as an addition to the concrete commercialized wasteland characterizing so much of the river through western Long Beach,” the statement said.
The development would encompass nearly 20 acres of open space along the Los Angeles River which the petition states would “significantly reduce any possible relief and recreational opportunities in the area, whereas currently, the surrounding community would be able to use portions of this space and nearby areas for passive and active recreation.”
“Heightening the potential for adverse environmental impacts, there are 13 abandoned oil wells in the project area, surrounded by land that formerly stored toxic waste and sewage that is now buried,” according to the petition.
Both organizations seek an environmental impact report necessary to address significant environmental, biological, recreational and cultural impacts that the development would present and which would “help forestall this ill-conceived, anti-river revitalization project,” the statement said.
The project’s census tract in western Long Beach ranks worse than 85% of the rest of the state for pollution, which is attributable to contaminated sites, solid waste and hazardous vehicle emissions in the area, the petition alleges.
The area is mostly Latino and Asian, with 82% of the population being people of color, according to the petition, which says a high number of residents living in the vicinity have asthma.
“The proposed project not only exacerbates these critical health impacts but brings in a land-use that in no way serves this underserved community,” according to the petition.
City News Service contributed to this report.
