A total of 51 community participants filled out some important responses to the survey questions at the December 2nd Phase 3 workshop. Those comments are now available here or at projects & planning -> presentations & survery results. We thank everyone who participated.

click to enlarge The December 2nd Phase 3 workshop at the Silver Lake Rec Center attracted upwards of 100 people curious to see how the results of the survey and discussions from the September 16th workshop were translated into a plan for the Meadow and the Eucalyptus Grove. The display of presentation boards showed minimal changes to the areas, with new designs limited to a couple of paths and some benches that focus on water views within the natural surroundings, away from the noise of the traffic and urban activities. Attendees made use of the workshop to ask question and leave additional comments. The full text of those comments will be available here in the coming days. Due to great interest throughout the community in focusing on the reservoir property as a resource for wildlife awareness and native California habitats, Julie Van Wagner from the Environmental Management Division of the Bureau of Engineering (BOE) enlisted Wildlife Biologist Mark Blain from BonTerra Consulting to answer any questions or concerns about wildlife on the property. Elements of the MLA design highlight wildlife observation, protections and enhancements through the use of corridor passageways under any new fences. While the new landcaping intends to preserve the existing appearance of the Meadow, any additional features will primarily consist of native plant selections and a demonstration garden designed to attract various species of birds and other critters indigenous to the area.

click to enlarge The LADWP will be relining many of its aging water mains under our streets, causing traffic and noise impacts beginning late 2006 and continuing through the spring of 2007. In a process known as cement-lining, workers will excavate pits at intervals along the street, cut into water mains and send in a robotic device that chisels away corrosion and sprays a fresh coat of cement inside the pipe. See the DWP brochure on the process for more information. The entire project should take about four months, with each individual site requiring approximately four weeks from start to finish. Per LADOT recommendations, lane closures on Glendale Boulevard will be well-marked with orange signs, and the closures will be limited to between 9 AM and 3 PM daily. The streets on the map above that have bold lines will have the cement-lining process performed on their water mains. All residents and businesses in areas impacted by the project will receive notification by mail and some areas will also receive hand-delivered notices.

The September 16th, 2006 community workshop at Marshall High School was hosted by Eric Garcetti, Tom LaBonge, and Jon Kirk Mukri, General Manager of the Los Angeles Department of Recreation & Parks. Approximately 150 Silver Lake residents packed into the Teachers Cafeteria to share their opinions with the Mia Lehrer & Associates team in charge of the study of opening the Meadow and the Eucalyptus Grove for day use. CSSLR provided a survey for attendees to answer questions and give their feedback. The results are in and a .pdf can be found here. The survey consisted of multiple choice questions, but respondents were encouraged to offer comments and suggestions. Surveys of this sort help to guide CSSLR in its mission to represent the community on reservoir issues, not to render or imply a majority opinion. Tables were set up with aerial photos and markers to allow for direct input. The tables were moderated by landscape architects, Mia Lehrer & Associates, and allowed for lively debate regarding any impact access to the Meadow and the Eucalyptus Grove would have on the surrounding neighborhood and any wildlife habitats that may exist in or near those areas. Other tables were set up to get feedback about traffic concerns and additional future uses of the reservoir property.

Go check out our contact page and our water quality projects page. We've added a couple of intriguing photographs from ultra-talented local photographers, Will Campbell and Brett Fernau. Thanks to both of them for generously agreeing to allow us to use their images!

click to enlarge Join us on Saturday, December 2nd at the Silver Lake Rec Center, from 3-5 PM to see how Mia Lehrer and Associates uses the information you brought to the table on September 16th. Taking into account the results of the survey and the discussions at the tables, the consulting team will bring back some sketches for fine tuning designs of what may become a reality on the Meadow and the Eucalyptus Grove. We encourage you to make copies of the large version of the flyer and distribute them to all of your neighbors.

Thanks to the docents, our sponsors, co-chairs Lori Oddino and Dave Keitel, our ridiculously hardworking committee members, the Burchills of Silvertop, and especially Michael Locke for his energy, enthusiasm, gorgeous photographs, and tireless networking, the 2006 house tour was an resounding success, and boy are we glad it's over! Thanks to all of you who attended and made the event worth every bit of the effort.

We've just released our Summer 2006 Newsletter, and its loaded with information about the current projects at the reservoir complex, and some community events we'd like to see you all attend. The newsletter is published on an as-needed basis, and is delivered to over 14,000 homes in the Silver Lake/Atwater/Los Feliz area. If you have not received the newsletter, you can read a digital version on our current newsletter page. Be sure to also visit our newsletter archive page to find out more about the past threats to the reservoirs, and how we got to where we are today.

We've been working with the Shane Goldsmith at City Council District 13 (CD 13) to ensure that the Phase 2 Pedestrian Path will be a safe enjoyable environment for all who use it. Traffic is always a concern, as there is the danger of pedestrians crossing Silver Lake Blvd. to get to the new path, and the crosswalks are far and none between. Rusty Millar of the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council (SLNC) Transportation Committee will be discussing possible solutions to these concerns at the next monthly Committee Meeting on Monday, September 11, 6:00 PM, at the Silver Lake Community Church, on Hyperion Avenue just east of Rowena. Representatives from the Department of Traffic (DOT) and Eric Garcetti's office will be there to hear your concerns and suggestions. See the letter here.

chasque para agrandar click to enlarge

photo by Michael J. Locke We have two very important event coming up in September. On Saturday, September 16th, at 3:00 PM we will be co-hosting a community meeting in The Marshall High School Auditorium. This meeting will give stakeholders the opportunity to view proposals and speak out about their individual vision of the future of the reservoir property. Come share with the Greater Silver Lake community your views of how we all will use the Meadow and the Eucalyptus Grove, for generations to come. And finally, we are happy to announce the all new Silver Lake Modernism: Then and Now House Tour and Silvertop Gala Reception on September 30th. See our House Tours page for more information and to purchase your tickets online!

This coming week, the Bureau of Engineering will return to the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council with a presentation and drawings (preview the drawings here) of the new Silver Lake Boulevard Path. At long last people will finally be able to stroll all the way around the reservoirs without once having to step into the streets! Well except that short part on Tesla. What a concept!?! The path, if it moves forward as designed, would be built inside of where the fence is currently situated on Silver Lake Blvd. The fence would be moved in as close to the water as we're allowed at this time. The path would meander through the shade of the trees and provide a much needed respite from the busy streets. Come see the presentation and witness the Neighborhood Council in action as they deliberate the motion to support the project. The public (that's you) will have time to give their comments on the plan as well, so you'll have an opportunity to participate in this historic project. The presentation is scheduled early on the agenda with the motion coming a little later. When and where: The Silver Lake Neighborhood Council meets at the Micheltorena School, located at Micheltorena St. and Sunset Blvd. on the first Wednesday of every month, 7PM. Please join us this Wednesday, July 5th, at 7pm. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to attend!

click for full set A set of Presentation Boards based on the 5-31-2006 Preliminary Design of the Phase 2 Silver Lake Boulevard path are ready for review at next week's Silver Lake Neighborhood Council meeting (see 5.25 article below). A .pdf file of the Boards is available here as a preview. We encourage you to study the boards and bring any comments you may have to the Neighbor Council meeting.

Dear (name withheld for privacy), Thank you for joining in the debate regarding the design of the Silver Lake Blvd. path. Prior to beginning the impact survey, CSSLR held two community workshops to request feedback from the neighborhood. The workshops were advertised with large banners on the reservoir fence. I'm not sure if you were able to attend, but many of your neighbors came and we used the information they gave us before moving ahead with the designs. In addition to being placed in the regional libraries, as required by CEQA, The Negative Impact report was also advertised and posted on our CSSLRORG Yahoo! Group on May 11th. One of our committee, Lori Oddino asked you to join that group on May 1. We hope you will take the opportunity to join the group so that you will not be taken by surprise when future improvements to the reservoir are to occur. You can join by going to the "Contact" page here on the CSSLR website. We also post news on the "News & Events" page on a frequent basis. We appreciate your comments, and hope that you will send a letter to Lisa Dugas. Please understand that the current path design took a lot of imagination and negotiation to get to this point. None of us take the removal of any tree lightly. You should know that most of the trees to be removed are tagged because they are crowding other trees of greater value; notably the Deodar Cedars and the California Live Oaks. We have struggled with the narrow sections of the path for some time, and indeed, it will be almost as narrow as 3' in some sections, as you propose. We will actually be going around a number of trees, allowing trees to remain in the path, and building retaining walls around trees to prevent their removal. I hope this would be some indication that we have been working very hard to save all of the valuable trees. As far as going to the outside of the wall is concerned, the surveyed community agreed that for the path to be an enjoyable experience, it has to be off of the boulevard and inside the wall. At least one of the early proposals pushed the path outside of the wall at the narrowest points. Unfortunately, those two points also, coincidentally, are directly south of the intersections with Earl and Cove Streets. A number of residents correctly pointed out that southbound commuters often speed into the existing pedestrian and bike lanes around cars waiting to turn left onto those two streets. The potential for pedestrian fatalities is too high to risk building out onto the boulevard at these two particular spots. As always, we welcome your input, would be happy to walk the path route with you, and hope to see you at future workshops. Best regards, CSSLR

A review of the designs for the Phase 2 Silver Lake Boulevard pedestrian path will be held during the General Board Meeting of the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council, on June 7th at 7:00 PM in the Micheltorena School Auditorium. The public is encouraged to attend.

click to enlarge After three years on the drawing board, the DWP Board of Commissioners met Tuesday, May 16th to certify the Final Environmental Impact Review (FEIR) and approve the massive construction project. The aye votes were unanimous. Headworks, also known as Silver Lake Reservoir Complex Storage Replacement Project (SLRCSRP) will be located along the Los Angeles River adjacent to Griffith Park, Travel Town, Mt. Sinai Cemetery, and the 134 Freeway. The new buried tank reservoir will replace Silver Lake and Ivanhoe Reservoirs as drinking water storage facilities. Architect and LA River activist, Arthur Golding, spoke against the project at the DWP LA River Ad Hoc Committee meeting earlier in the day, expressing concerns that the Headworks Spreading Grounds should be used solely for LA River restoration. DWP Water Engineers stated their case at the later Board of Commissioners meeting that the 43 acre site is large enough for both purposes. They maintain that since DWP is putting funds forward to the LA River restoration project at that site, in addition to funding the LA River Master Plan, that the project is, considerably, a win-win. The Headworks Project also includes a small hydroelectric power generation plant to help the DWP meet their Green Energy goals for the future. The unanimous vote to approve the project clears the way for the engineers to move onto the next phase of design and receiving bids from contractors. Construction is scheduled in begin in January of 2007. The project likely will result in Silver Lake Reservoir being removed from service as early as 2009, with Ivanhoe following sometime between 2013 and 2015. The Board of Commissioners meetings are held on the second and fourth Tuesday of each month in the DWP John Ferraro Building, downtown at 111 No. Hope Street, in Room 1555-H. The meetings are open to the public.

The DWP has completed the Environmental Impact Review (EIR) of the Headworks Project. After three years on the drawing board, the DWP Board of Commissioners will convene at 1:30 PM on Tuesday, May 16th to certify the EIR. The meetings are held in the DWP John Ferraro Building, downtown at 111 No. Hope Street, in Room 1555-H. The fate of the project remains uncertain as the Headworks project site may face opposition from Los Angeles River advocates who wish to see the entire parcel of land restored for river use. The meetings are open to the public. Headworks, also known as Silver Lake Reservoir Complex Storage Replacement Project (SLRCSRP) is planned to be located along the Los Angeles River adjacent to Griffith Park, Travel Town, Mt. Sinai Cemetery, and the 134 Freeway. The new buried tank reservoir will replace Silver Lake and Ivanhoe Reservoirs as drinking water storage facilities. The project likely will result in Silver Lake Reservoir being removed from service as early as 2009, with Ivanhoe following in 2013.

The Great Blue Heron nests are currently active with hatchlings in the Eucalyptus Grove along West Silver Lake Drive. The following guidelines from LA Audubon may be helpful to understand these local residents: While nesting season in Silver Lake could run from February through July, Great Blue Herons are migratory and may be absent from the reservoir for long periods of time. Great Blue Herons and their nests are protected from human interference by federal, state and city laws. Heron nestlings hatch over a period of many days – the youngest, latest-hatching young very often do not survive. Great Blue Herons lay 3-4 eggs, and on average only about two young fledge per nest. All heron chicks leave the nest to face the world.  Whether the chick has been pushed out of the nest by another chick, fallen from a branch while trying its wings, or has left the nest from natural impulses, this is a natural stage of the process of growing up. An important part of this process is learning to survive on its own and avoid natural predators. Human interference will only complicate this process unless the bird is injured and needs rehabilitation. Food of the heron is varied, but includes gophers and other rodents, fish, frogs, and crayfish which they catch fresh. It is harmful to feed herons anything they do not catch themselves.

We are currently completing the design phase of building Phase 2, a new pedestrian path on the reservoir property along Silver Lake Boulevard. We expect that construction will begin in October of 2006 with the path opening in the Spring of 2007. The Notice of Intent and a Negative Declaration for the project have been prepared by the BOE. The community is urged to participate in the Public Comments process which runs from May 11th until May 31st, 2006. Please submit comments to Lisa Dugas at BOE. Her information is included in the document links above.

This exciting new website design is the spawn of Silver Lake's own graphic/web designer David Etzen of Redbar. Thanks to Andrew Sears for his long service in maintaing this site, and as of Oct 2007 to Kurt Rademaekers for assuming the job.