Friends of the Whittier Narrows Natural Area
Links
Important documents
Audubon Society Los Angeles Flood Control Basins Important Bird Area, October 2008
"Very little of this area is even nominally managed for biodiversity, with the exceptions of tiny Bosque del
Rio Hondo Park and the nearby Whittier Narrows Wildlife Area. The other areas are extremely
vulnerable to a variety of habitat loss, including ongoing development for recreation uses."
Re-envisioning the San Gabriel River, December 6, 1999
A talk given by Mickey Long on riparian habitat restoration at Whittier Narrows. "The Whittier Narrows Recreation Area . . . supports a remarkable diversity of bird life especially when viewed in its setting of a heavily urbanized area." Mickey Long today is the director of the county's Natural Areas.
Significant Ecological Areas Technical Advisory Committee minutes, May 5, 2008
Meeting minutes recording the committee's concerns over a number of aspects of the discovery center (e.g., habitat destruction and the apparent failure to adequately consider alternative locations ) and its decision that the project is incompatible with the Whittier Narrows Significant Ecological Area.
Notice of Preparation of the Environmental Impact Report for the Discovery Center, September 26, 2006
Public notification required by the California Environmental Quality Act. The notice announces that the study and report will look only at the eight-acre discovery center project, although the Discovery Center Authority included the 34.6-acre Lario Creek project in other documents and presentations.
Discovery Center Schematic Design Report, 2006
The schematic design report includes discussion of potential development of 34.6 acres beyond the immediate discovery center project, even while the Discovery Center Authority promotes the first stage as a "stand-alone" project.
Government agencies and elected officials
San Gabriel River Discovery Center Authority
The joint powers authority in charge of the discovery center proposal. The governing board is made up of representatives of Rivers and Mountains Conservancy, Upper San Gabriel Municipal Water District, Central Basin Municipal Water District, Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation, and County Sanitation Districts of Los Angeles County.
Rivers and Mountains Conservancy
The RMC sits on the Discovery Center Authority board and is one of the major funders of this project that could destroy acres of open space and wildlife habitat, yet according to the RMC website, its mission is "to preserve open space and habitat in order to provide for low-impact recreation and educational uses, wildlife habitat restoration and protection, and watershed improvements within our jurisdiction."
Upper San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District
A member of the Discovery Center Authority board, the USGMWD provides wholesale water service to a large section of the eastern San Gabriel Valley.
Central Basin Municipal Water District
Another member of the Discovery Center Authority board, the CBMWD provides wholesale water service to southeast Los Angeles County.
Gloria Molina, Los Angeles County Supervisor, First District
County supervisor in whose district the Whittier Narrows Natural Area is located. The supervisor is a current supporter of the discovery center and the proposal to build it on the Natural Area.
Environmental, historical and cultural organizations
Audubon Society, Los Angeles Chapter
Audubon Society, Whittier Chapter
California Native Plant Society, San Gabriel Mountains Chapter
Sierra Club, Angeles Chapter, Conservation Committee
Friends of the Whittier Narrows Natural Area
P.O. Box 3522
South El Monte, CA 91733
(626) 286 3850
Click here for our contact page.
