Parks and open space
Database Identifies Every Public Open Space
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 25 February 2010 - 10:15amThe nonprofit organization GreenInfo Network has released a newly revised database that attempts to identify every publicly protected parcel of open land in California, ranging from national forest to urban pocket park. The database inventories 49 million acres of protected land composed of 51,500 separate holdings owned by 860 governmental agencies or nonprofit organizations. Downloadable for free, the information should be of use to planners, academics, government agencies, nonprofit organization, businesses and others, said Larry Orman, GreenInfo Network executive director.
Public Agencies Want OC Fairgrounds Property
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 14 December 2009 - 5:59pmWith concern rising that a private entity may attempt to purchase the Orange County Fairgrounds for development purposes, public officials are hurrying to put together bids of their own for the 150-acre site just west of the Costa Mesa Freeway.
Proposed Quarry Is Unwelcome Neighbor In Temecula
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 24 November 2009 - 11:01amResidents of the Riverside County city of Temecula, which has been among the state’s fastest growing cities for 20 years, have run into some growth they do not want. City leaders and local residents are opposing a proposed quarry located one mile south of the city limits near the San Diego County line.
Public Officials Win Attorney Fees For Suing Own Board
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 23 July 2009 - 11:29amTwo members of the board overseeing the Orange County Great Park who sued the public agency over access to executive recruitment information should have their attorney fees paid, the Fourth District Court of Appeal has ruled.
High Court Eases Regional Park District Property Disposal
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 27 May 2009 - 11:33amThe California Supreme Court has reversed an appellate court ruling that regional park and open-space districts said would have greatly diminished their ability to acquire and manage land. The court said that a regional park and open-space district can dispose of property if it has not officially declared – such as by adopting a resolution – that the property is “dedicated” for use as a park and open space.
Downtown L.A. Park is Naive, Yet Essential
Submitted by Robin Andersen on 1 October 2008 - 11:46amWe’ve all seen in recent weeks the cruelty of hurricanes uprooting houses as easily as trees, tossing cars into fields and reducing farms to rubbish heaps. Tropical storms go where they want, and anything less than monolithic masonry is a goner. Even with the damage they bring, however, hurricanes are kinder than freeways.
Only two exceptions are available to alter the impact of freeways: In the case of elevated roadways, we can take them down, as San Francisco did with the Embarcadero Freeway along the waterfront. And in the case of corridors located in trenches, we can build above them.
Park Districts Take Land Sale Ruling To State Supreme Court
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 21 March 2008 - 1:05pmThe California Supreme Court has accepted a case of considerable importance to regional park and open space districts. The court will review a decision by the Fourth District Court of Appeal, which ruled that the Riverside County Regional Park and Open Space District could not sell about 80 acres to a community college district without voter approval.
Park districts say the Fourth District ruling, if upheld, would require districts to conduct elections not only for the sale of land, but also for routine matters such as land transfers and boundary adjustments. One upshot would be a reluctance to acquire new parkland, the districts warn.
Large Open Space District Annexation Upheld
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 13 March 2008 - 10:50amA controversial 225-square-mile annexation of territory in San Mateo County by the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District has been upheld by the First District Court of Appeal. The court rejected annexation opponents’ arguments that the San Mateo County Local Agency Formation Commission’s approval of the annexation was flawed.
Sensitive Sites In 4 Counties Acquired For Conservation
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 21 November 2007 - 6:13pmEnvironmental groups and land trusts have completed four major land acquisitions in four different parts of the state. To varying degrees, the acquisitions were intended to prevent development and preserve or enhance natural resources. The acquisitions occured in Sonoma, Placer, Tehama and San Diego counties.
Plan Would Turn L.A. River Green
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 8 May 2007 - 1:11pmIt may not be the parting of the Red Sea, but the Los Angeles River Revitalization Master Plan is miracle enough. Sponsored by the Los Angeles River Committee of the Los Angeles City Council, the revitalization master plan may be the corner-turning event that actually kicks off the process of making a depressing culvert into a riparian green belt, studded with neighborhood parks, including several in the city’s poorest neighborhoods.
