THE RIVER AND TRIBUTARIES WILL LINK OPEN SPACES TOGETHER LIKE A STRAND OF PEARLS.
M
acAdams is right: the scope of the project is enormous. But the effort to revive the river received a major boost last summer when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recommend- ed a management proposal called Alternative 20—the most
extensive of the options under review. The strategy outlines major restoration work on an 11-mile portion of the river north of downtown. In addition to wet- land habitat, it calls for more public access points, large-scale concrete removal, and the conversion of a 130-acre railyard into a new park space. Though there’s much to be done before that vision can be realized, the selec- tion of Alternative 20 opens up new possibilities for crucial federal funding— and represents a major shift in the Army Corps’ approach to managing urban waterways. Historically, the agency has viewed the Los Angeles River in terms of stormwater management: after major flooding in the 1930s, it spent decades paving over almost the entire river channel. Today, it’s beginning to take a more holistic view. “The mission of the Army Corps is mandated by Congress, and it has been
augmented to include ecosystem restoration,” says Omar Brownson. “The corps is now trying to better balance the needs of habitat with flood control.” Among the many organizations working to transform the river, there’s an unprecedented optimism that the Army Corps’ new position heralds a major investment of its capital and engineering might—as well as the recognition, Brownson says, that “urban rivers are unique, and need to also include recre- ational, economic, and cultural improvements.” As it winds its way through more than a dozen Los Angeles municipalities,
the river traces a common thread through public land and across the lines of race, culture, and status that often divide us. When I envision this concrete culvert restored to a thriving ecosystem, I see more than infrastructure to divert water from city streets and gutters—I see a river of shared purpose, bringing communities together. MacAdams, the poet, puts it this way: “Rivers don’t want to run in straight
lines, they want to bend. And we are the wend in the river. It’s about creating a space where people can gather, just like in the gospel hymn: Come down by the river, and the river will tell you what to do next.”
60 · LAND&PEOPLE · SPRING/SUMMER 2015
your donation at work: chattahoochee river We’re working with cities along the river to establish a blueway trail—including access points for the canoeists, paddleboarders, and kayakers whose business supports local economies.
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