Eagle Rock’s Progressive Planning

For the past five years I have heard and seen much of the ‘changing face’ of Eagle Rock. More and more our town is described as a desirable place to be. Featured in New York Times, LA Times, Pasadena Star, other newspapers, local news stations, radio, online news sites like Huffington Post… certainly a wide spectrum of publicity. One cannot explain how or why Eagle Rock is what it is today without mention 1992′s Colorado Specific Plan, a document which attempts to revitalize the community while preserving some of its more quaint qualities.

Today, Colorado Boulevard is our lifeline for activities and community gatherings. However, as many residents may already know, in the days of Route 66, Eagle Rock’s main street became just a cut-through for travelers going elsewhere and much of the frontages on our Boulevard reflected this. Auto repairs, service stations, and generally auto oriented businesses thrived in the neighborhood. 1992 saw Eagle Rock’s progressive specific plan for Colorado, set on changing the neighborhood from a cut-through to a rather livable town. Provisions in the CSP that make this possible are –
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Subarea I from Eagledale Avenue to Windermere Avenue
Subarea II from Windermere Avenue to Loleta Avenue
Subarea III From Loleta Avenue to Hollbrook Street/ Eagle Vista Drive

Section 3: PURPOSES
Colorado Boulevard within the Specific Plan area is a significant commercial area, particularly Subareas I and III. It is the purpose of this Specific Plan to insure that future development in the Specific Plan area occurs in a manner which is compatible with the surrounding residential community and with the capacity of the circulation system. The following general policies shall guide development within the Specific Plan area:

(3.B) Subarea II shall have a pedestrian orientation. In this subarea, low intensity development shall be encouraged to take place as well as the preservation of cultural resources.

(3.C) Pedestrian-oriented design and development shall be encouraged and the adverse environmental effects of development within the Specific Plan area shall be minimized

(3.L) This Specific Plan area is designed to address the problems in this Colorado Boulevard commercial strip, which is characterized by the concentration of auto-related businesses with no rear alleys in commercial zones, and with considerable traffic

Section 6: USES

(6.B) Limitations
1. The following uses shall not be permitted in Subarea II and III and shall be permitted within Subarea I only after the Area Planning Commission has approved the use as set forth in Paragraph 2 below.

a. Automobile service station and other automobile-related retail use.
b. Automobile repairing and painting
c. Storage yard (automobile, machinery, construction material)
d. Hospital and convalescent home
e. Fast food drive-through restaurant
f. Rental equipment center
g. Mini-shopping center
h. Any business which operate between the hours of 9pm and 7am
i. Motel and hotel and
j. Rescue mission
2. The above-listed uses may be permitted in Subarea 1 pursuant to be approval by the Area Planning Commission The Area Planning Commission shall have authority to approve any such use. The Area Planning Commission, in approving any of these uses, shall make the finding contained in L.A.M.C. Section 12.24E. Approval of uses through this procedure shall not be construed as exempting the Project from other applicable provisions of this Specific Plan

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Today, many auto oriented shops still exist though as gas becomes more expensive and the city is recognizing a need to focus on alternatives, auto shops may not be as ubiquitous in the future as they are now. While some may argue Eagle Rock is vibrant I can only agree to a certain extent. I would argue the town has so much more potential! Despite changes that have resulted from the CSP, we still dedicate much space to automobiles. I can only imagine what Eagle Rock looked like at its most Route 66 like state…

One area of Colorado has me particularly interested, the stretch between Shearin Avenue and Hermosa Avenue. Four auto-oriented businesses here, in prime location with The Oinkster, Coffee Table, Taco Spot, Jose Vera Fine Arts Antiques, Eagle Rock City Hall, Woman’s Twentieth Century Club, Colombo’s Italian Steakhouse all within close proximity. Actually, Shearin is where the popular portion of Colorado (it, of course, starts at Eagle Rock Boulevard) ends.

Lately I have been thinking “what if one, two three, or even all four of these auto businesses left and had to be converted under the CSP provisions?” If just one of these auto businesses left and turned into a place welcoming of all ages the overall area would look so much nicer and be more pedestrian friendly. One thing that has hurt the communities of Glassell Park and Cypress Park is the large amount of auto shops that prevent a community from coming to life, that make sidewalks less attractive to use for a variety of reasons ( too many driveways, destinations only used for people with car troubles, loud noise).

Naturally, auto-oriented businesses are necessary but what should be emphasized is that we shouldn’t dedicate so much of our most precious commerce space for cars. What do you like about traveling to towns and cities in Italy, Spain, Sweden, or France? What makes a desirable location? My personal answer is a community that places the highest importance on people, and the quality of life of the residents and I find this a difficult answer to argue against. Increasingly cities around the US and other parts of the world are seeing the light which makes Northern European countries the happiest countries in the world. In countries where people are giving way to cars the results haven’t been pretty.

So I write this post, in appreciation of Eagle Rock’s progressive planning decision in 1992. Eagle Rock has made strides on its way towards becoming a more livable place, but more can be done. Cars just aren’t the end all, be all that they used to be and Eagle Rock does not need to devote excessive space to cars in its downtown.

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Status of ‘Walk Eagle Rock’ for Next Few Months

Dear readers,

I have really enjoyed blogging about Eagle Rock this summer though unfortunately I will not be able to continue my regular stream of posting for a few reasons. Most namely, I will not be in Eagle Rock because I attend school in the Bay Area. As a result, I have little ‘ER related’ content to work with this Fall semester. Yes, I do have a bit of stuff saved on my computer so I might be able to put together a handful of more regular posts before the well goes empty. I also do not know how frequently I will be posting as I try to keep up with school work, however I will continue updating you all when I do post. That said, I would appreciate suggestions with what to do with this blog for the Fall.

Don’t consider the blog temporarily dead because I will continue posting. Also, for smaller pieces of information regarding ER, I have a twitter account twitter.com/walkeaglerock which I will try to keep updated, it’s not that I forget to check it but I lack a smartphone so I can only use it from my computer.

Thanks for reading and for further conversation, information, suggestions or anything,  drop a comment.

View of Eagle Rock Boulevard from Scholl Canyon hills

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Delrosa Walk

It’s no secret I like to walk around Eagle Rock, there are just so many little details to appreciate, so many hidden gems, and so much history, none of which can be captured to the same degree or even noticed when traveling by car or bike.

Which brings us to today’s look at the little known ‘Delrosa Walk’.

Delrosa Walk is a walkway  connecting Yosemite Drive to Addison Way with an official street sign. The pedestrian alley also accesses the side entrances to the four homes adjacent. Personally, I had never noticed this walkway since I moved to Eagle Rock in 2003 until about two years ago when a friend of mine showed me it. Since I had no practical reason to travel on Addison Way, I had always noticed this little gap between the homes from Yosemite but I always assumed it was part of someone’s property and didn’t think or care to see that it actually connects to Addison Way. I am very thankful my friend pointed out this walkway to me.

On one of my summer walks I decided to inspect and note everything I could about this unique alleyway. My first thought was “wow, this is a really convenient way to get from a home on Addison Way to the 181 bus stop on the other end of Delrosa Walk on Yosemite Drive.”

View from Yosemite

From my brief investigation of Delrosa Walk I did not come across anything particularly special, there wasn’t very much to see. I even took my search for some history or explanation of this walkway ‘a step’ further and asked Eric Warren, Eagle Rock Historical Society President, if he knew anything about it. Unfortunately Warren did not know any significance or history of the alley. I reminded Mr. Warren that the street adjacent to Addison Way beyond Delrosa Walk is “Delrosa Drive”, a unique street itself in the shape of a U. Mr. Warren did suggest perhaps the developer of the land named the streets and as long as the city had no opposition, that is how the name came to be.

After speaking with Mr. Warren, I looked at the 1937 map of Eagle Rock which shows both Delrosa Walk and Delrosa Drive so the street and walkway are relatively old, but as are many streets in Eagle Rock.

Here are some other pictures I snapped of the walkway

Wooden fences dominate the walkway on both sides

Brick with tagging on it, reducing the feeling of safety on this unique pedestrian only zone

Not even the ground itself is free of tagging

Vines combatting unwanted writing on wall

Inscription in the cement curb lining the walkway– looks like “YNEAL”.

Nice greenery along a brief portion of the walkway

“DARLINE” or “DARLENE”

View from Addison Way, looking East

Into Delrosa Walk from Addison Way

View Larger Map

In red is Delrosa Walk, while in blue I have marked Delrosa Drive.

 

If anyone knows anything about Delrosa Walk or has a personal account involving the walkway I would love to hear about it!

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Walk and Bike: 8-12-10

I enjoyed a good bit of walking and biking today though unfortunately did not have a camera on hand for the first half of my outings.
Today I walked from Oak Grove area to Delevan Drive area to meet the-soon-to-be-blogging-about-vegetarian-eating-and-fit-living hippierunner. About two miles. We then walked to the excellent restaurant Spitz via Yosemite Way/College View/Colorado for lunch with an old friend. The place was full of life as we arrived with the rest of the lunch crowd. The three of us enjoyed outdoor seating which still surprises me , due to the seven car traveling lanes adjacent. Actually, Spitz has THE BEST outdoor seating of any restaurant along Colorado Boulevard and let me explain why:  

• The outdoor seating is not on the sidewalk like it is at Taco Spot or The Coffee Table. It is on the property space like outdoor seating at The Oinkster.
• There is greenery providing separation from foot traffic but more importantly from the blight of a strip mall, and cars whizzing by. The flowers are much nicer to look at and smell than the exhaust coming from the cars on the street.
• Birds jump and chirp around by the planted  greenery. Today I saw a humming bird flying around this area as I ate my lunch- you just don’t get that anywhere else.
• There are no ashtrays so smoking is discouraged. Unfortunately, The Oinkster is more tolerant and accommodating to smokers.
• At night, the outdoor tables are candle lit. I did not know this until I went by recently when the sun was down.
• Plenty of shade is provided by the table umbrellas for the hot LA weather.
• This might be seen as a given, but the food is brought to you.
• Ambient music plays sometimes. I generally enjoy the selection of classic  rock and contemporary music. However, when music doesn’t suit your needs, you are able to ignore it as is consistently played at a volume which isn’t overpowering your ability to hold a conversation and hear yourself.

Spitz knows they are doing a lot of things right, and I am glad they’re in our town. Now I can officially grant them the title of having the best outdoor seating on Colorado Boulevard in Eagle Rock in all of Eagle Rock! Now the only thing that would make Spitz better is some bike parking in the patio area.  

The food was excellent, the company was excellent, and the atmosphere was, as you’d expect, excellent. All this might explain why hippierunner, and myself stayed there for about three hours with our friend.  

When it was time to part we all walked to Colorado Boulevard/Eagle Rock Boulevard. Our friend went on ER BLVD as hippierunner and I continued on Colorado until we reached Townsend Avenue, at this point I took Townsend to Oak Grove to get my camera and my bike. I apologize for not having it on me earlier in today’s adventure, I could have had some great pictures!  

As you may or may not know, the Eagle Rock/Highland Park DASH route is experiencing a shortening as part of citywide transit budget cuts. No longer will the Eagle Rock portion run on the eastside of town, this includes: Colorado boulevard east of Townsend Avenue, Yosemite Drive, and the bit along North Figueroa.  

A few days ago LADOT was out, re-routing, making the trip shorter. The new route cuts the eastside and instead runs along Townsend before turning left, westbound on Colorado. Here are pictures of the new stops  

Townsend/Oak Grove

Stop on Townsend/Yosemite still there, though it is on Townsend instead of Yosemite

Only the Metro 181 bus will stop here now

Townsend/Grandola

 The new route will no doubt impact many ERHS students once the fall session starts up again. From a personal standpoint,  the new route actually works favorably for me so let’s hope while the change will disservice many, that it can bring a new crowd some good. Unfortunately while we see a re-routing, Highland Park sees simply a cut by San Pascual area.  

After I went along the Townsend route, I joined hippierunner and an other friend at Pete’s for some chit-chat. I didn’t stay terribly long as I was antsy to take more pictures and explore. The first find, which taunted me from the window at Pete’s was this:  

ipod earphones

And a close up

I didn’t get to try the earphones out, so it’s unknown whether or not they work and I’m not sure if I would feel all that comfortable putting these in my ears. If I needed earphones, and if they worked, I would probably take them. You might say ‘they were tossed, they probably don’t work’. To that, I say: the other day I found an alarm clock by Delevan Drive in the middle of the street. I put a couple AAA batteries in and now I have a new alarm clock! Just goes to show, you never know why you find something on the streets and you can never assume whether or not your found item still functions.  

Since it had been a while since I had been on a bike ride for pure fun, I decided to just bike around. First I went up and down Colorado, then I moved to Chickasaw Avenue. I spotted some old classmates here, they were heading to Yosemite Park for some tennis though broke my heart going there by car. I continued my leisure bike ride along what I have determined is my favorite ‘short walk/bike ride’ in town. From Chickasaw I went South onto Argus Drive then wiggled along the short stretches of street around there, like this:  

View Larger Map

  

I can’t fully explain why I am so fond of this little area but I’ll try: The area is very peaceful, a quiet place but not nearly as eerie or isolated as walking along parks of Hill Drive can be at times. There’s little car traffic around here. The walk may not capture a complete image of Eagle Rock but I feel it encapsulates much of the warm atmosphere, tranquility and timelessness that can be found here. My feelings of this area may change over time, but in the six or seven years I have lived here this Argus walk has remained dear to me, always making me glad to live in our community and always making me feel happy and at peace. Here are just a few pictures from the brief ride: 

 

A speed limit I can stand behind. Why aren't all residential streets 15mph?

 

 

 

Surely longtime residents have seen this badboy before

When finished my Argus area meditation, I spotted my former classmates parking by the park and suggested they skip the car next time. From there I biked up and down Yosemite in similar fashion to how I had done on Colorado earlier. I tried the filming feature on the camera to get park of my ride recorded but I accidentally deleted the video so my directing debut will have to wait. 

I then biked over to hippierunner and our friend on their walk from Pete’s to the Delevan area. Shortly afterwards I biked home to Oak Grove and was satisfied with all the biking I got to enjoy. 

Reason #5 to walk Eagle Rock: Truly appreciate outdoor seating at Spitz while catching up with an old friend. Discover a change in bus route, and ipod earphones. Realize how lucky you are to live in Eagle Rock. Say ’hi’ to some old classmates,  and advocate they do the above mentioned or find their own reasons to walk Eagle Rock.

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Alleys Rock! Blast From the Past 80′s Style

There’s a bit of an 80′s invasion in today’s installment of ‘Alleys Rock!’ but perhaps I have already said too much, too early, let’s zoom out…

View of the alley from Glacier Drive. The left corner is where a more popular alley is.

Today’s alley is nestled between Glacier Drive, Oak Grove Drive, and Ruth Avenue. It’s one of the shorter alleys, only spanning about 145 feet. Obscuring it, and likely making it more neglected than most alleys is not only the short length, but also its location: adjacent to a ‘Not a Through Street’ (better known as NATS!) part of Ruth Avenue and a curved section of Glacier Drive, and parallel to Yosemite Drive. This alley is even eclipsed by a neighboring alley which is far more visible!

During my cross country days at Eagle Rock High School, I became aware of this alley when some of our long training runs would pass the area. I also noticed the alley when my friends and I turned practice into leisure walks, giving my eyes time to process the whole area with more detail. Outside of cross country and track practice there was no reason for me to notice this alley.  I only recently found the joys found in walking around our town, discovering and appreciating little details along the way.

I don’t know why I have such low expectations, but I didn’t think there would be anything interesting about this alley– I was wrong.

The first obvious observation of this alley is that there is a fair bit of vines growing, especially along the South side, but random vines are not exactly an unusual sight in Eagle Rock. On the North side, however, there’s a specific type of vine which we are less accustomed to seeing around The Rock– grape vines!

The grape vines taking over the metal barrier. Visible on the left is the former red of the barrier and an "AVES" tagging.

I saw a bunch of grapes hanging, wondered how long they had been growing there. For the sake of exploration and my readers’ interest, I tried one. Thankfully, but perhaps with little surprise, the grape was fine. It didn’t taste different from any other white grape I have had but I decided not to try anymore.

Low hanging fruit

The grapes are growing on a metal barrier which appears to be protecting the home below from any reckless driver who may accidental go head-on towards the house rather than any of the two neighboring alleys. The barrier was at some point painted red but now exists in white with a tag from The Avenues.

After eating the grape I walked along and discovered there is actually a garage here too.

The garage does not appear to be used frequently and is in poor condition, with another Avenues tag.

Beside the garage, underneath all the vines, I spotted arroyo stone wall. This discovery called to mind a thought I get frequently when exploring alleys: How did this alley come to be? Was this alley ever popular? Has the appearance changed much? And for this alley in particular, what did it look like before the vines took over?

After seeing all that is in my regular line of vision, I looked down at the ground. Some alleys are nothing but dangerous cracks though this one remains in good condition. Along the North side of the alley, I see some scribbles in the cement. Taking a closer look, it becomes clear that someone took the opportunity to become part of urban streetscape history. Somebody wrote a year in the cement. Perhaps this was done when the concrete block wall was put up to protect the privacy of the adjacent homes. Then I noticed there are actually quite a few signatures and years in the cement, all from the 80′s!

"1982"

"III 5-82"

"4-15-83 TONY JR"

 

"LUPI Y TONY 6-8-83"

"3-15-86"

Look at the alley from Ruth Avenue

I don’t think I have ever seen a car go through this alley but somehow I suspect it may still be used by people who park at the end of Ruth Avenue. Now I won’t advocate playing in this alley at night, but it seems like kids can have fun playing catch, soccer, hop scotch, and riding scooter, bikes, or roller skates  in this alley in conjunction with the cul-de-sac of Ruth Avenue in the mornings and throughout the day. Am I the only one who wants to see more kids playing on the streets rather than indoors? Eagle Rock is privileged with three parks, and there are plenty properties with nice yards, but the streets are available to all of us and as long as Eagle Rock is primarily residential, there’s no reason why most of the streets shouldn’t have slow traffic with kiddies playing about.

Reason #4 to walk Eagle Rock: Travel to the past, and have a grape contemplating the history of what goes on in some of Eagle Rock’s secret alleys.

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A More Pedestrian and Bike Friendly Yosemite Drive: Part 1

I hope to add a part two, perhaps part three in this series of ‘How to improve Yosemite Drive’.

Just a Note: In my posts where I re-imagine streets explaining the current situation always sounds similar, LA has long favored private car transportation over any other kind of travel and to no surprise, the streets reflect this car love. What we are constantly faced with day in and day out are streets that more resemble race tracks and anyone daring to cross a street or just get close better be careful. I know it can take a lot to change habits and standards,  but these kind of posts are fun ways to imagine “what if”. This isn’t quite escapism, I just want to show how there are several ways we can reconfigure our otherwise “one size fits all” way of making streets. Having said that…. enjoy!

Dear Readers,
I have recently been interested in obsessed with re-imagining our streets as a better place to walk and bike, but can you blame me? One would think that will so much packed into The Rock we wouldn’t have such a massive reliance on cars but we do! The furthest distance anyone needs to travel in our town, from end to end, is about 3.5 miles (this is the approximate distance from Delevan Elementary to Eagle Rock Park). This is the absolute longest distance any single one-way trip can be in Eagle Rock taking a direct route. Why are the majority of trips still made by car?

The easy answer to why more people don’t walk or bike in Eagle Rock can be observed on any of the outings we make on a daily basis. Our portion of North Figueroa is just a sea of cars on a bumpy road. Colorado Boulevard and Eagle Rock Boulevard the story is much the same with perhaps less bumps and more ‘waves’ of cars. All these streets have more car lanes than necessary as much of the traffic is local and therefore could should be substituted with a bike ride or walk.

Eagle Rock also has a pretty impressive transit service as well to further encourage less private auto travel with a 81, 180, 181, 780, and a Dash line on all the streets that are heavily used. These busses accommodate the streets I mentioned, but also  one more street which I did not note: Yosemite Drive. This is of course where the 181 bus runs.

Yosemite Drive is frequently used by residents to bypass part of Colorado Boulevard by residents living on the lower eastside of Eagle Rock on the way to Glendale or Target. It is a shortcut connecting Eagle Rock Boulevard and North Figueroa  Street. Yosemite is utilized in junction with Townsend Avenue to get from Eagle Rock to Highland Park. The street is also used to go to the library and Super A Foods by the residents living between  Yosemite Drive and Colorado Boulevard (roughly). These are by no means criminal uses of the street, it is rather convenient to any ‘insiders’ who are aware of the street. These uses, however, when all combined with additional transportation uses of the street I did not mention like just leaving the area makes for constant use of the street throughout the day. This again is not a big problem or a crime on paper. However, the sheer amount of traffic coupled with expectations that the street will be a speedy connection makes for a less friendly street for uses not in private automobiles, and this is wherein the so-called ‘crime’ is. And this really is a shame because the street services many could be trips by walking or bicycling: two schools (ERHS and Rockdale Elementary so all ages of children are represented), two churches, two corner stores, Eagle’s Landing Cafe, the Rock Teen Center, and Yosemite Park. If these constituents don’t scream “I should be walked/biked to” I don’t know places do.

I regularly bike Yosemite Drive (contrary to what the street name may want me to do) and just the other day I was honked at by somebody who then swerved around me. This is the kind of interaction I expect on Colorado or Figueroa. Both of those streets I have been honked at by somebody seemingly incapable of switching lanes to go around me. Yosemite, however, is primarily a residential street and should be treated as such. I do not bike on the edges of Oak Grove Drive or Maywood Avenue, I take the lane because cars are not in a hurry and can pass peaceably. I feel the constant use of this street as an alternative to Colorado has raised speeds and given drivers a sense of entitlement which places their time at greater importance than the safety of any local residents not in cars. This should not be and this is where I would like to propose one potential change, among a few others, to Yosemite Drive.

While traffic calming devices can be complicated on streets like Yosemite that are about 40 feet wide and serviced by buses, there is a solution I see possible to apply here which is practiced in the Netherlands in a similar manner.

Make a section of Yosemite Drive “Not Through” to private cars but allow bikes, metro, and school buses to go through. I strategically picked the section of Yosemite between the two parts of La Roda to place traffic diverters and signage indicating only buses, bikes, and emergency vehicles allowed through. I have seen similar treatment like this in Berkeley where cars must turn while bikes and emergency vehicles may go through.

View Larger Map

Proposed changes in drawing: Diverters between two sections of La Roda Ave allowing only buses and bikes to go through. Yield pavement markings. Zebra Crossing. Removal of street signal. Signage indicating only buses and bikes may travel through on Yosemite Drive.

Stopping through traffic in Berkeley "Do Not Enter. Emergency Vehicles And Bicycles Excepted. Minimum Fine $75."

Installing diverters will no longer require the stop light which is used to control the current situation, something I’m sure the homes immediately adjacent to this section will appreciate. No more green glare in the home at night. Diverting private automobiles will also obviously reduce through traffic, a benefit to the residents and anyone wishing to bike or walk to the many walkable destinations along Yosemite Drive. Such a change could also likely reduce car speeds. The current speed limit is 35mph which I find unbelievable, the same speed limit as Colorado Boulevard. I have been in a car on Yosemite before, the person that drives me on occasion unconsciously almost reaches 40mph! Anyway, speeds will likely be reduced because cars will not be racing through Yosemite, they simply won’t have enough time to be speeding since they will be diverted part-way through the street and if they are on Yosemite they must have some kind of business there and will be driving more carefully.

This map shows all the ways someone can exit/enter Yosemite on each side of my proposed diverters. Also, if absolutely necessary, cars heading East can go left on Rosemary Drive, right of Fair Park Avenue, right on La Roda Avenue, and then left to get back onto Yosemite Drive and bypass the diverters. Reverse the directions heading West.

View Larger Map

Needless to say, I highly promote diverting traffic on this street as it is unnecessary for the Yosemite Drive to be through to anyone but those walking, biking and 181 or school buses. Colorado Boulevard is available for through traffic.

An other interesting piece of information: Before ERHS was rebuilt in the 70s Oak Grove Drive connected to La Roda Avenue instead of the front and back cul-de-sacs the school has now. I wonder how the two streets, particularly Oak Grove, would be utilized today if Oak Grove still ran the full length it did ‘back in the day’. Looking at the old photo, there appears to be no value to Oak Grove, likely part of the reason why it was cut off. That, plus the boy’s gym was built across the street, so safety became an issue, yadda yadda yadda.

The old ERHS campus, Oak Grove is seen rounding the back of the school and connecting to La Roda. Credit: LA Public Library

What are you thoughts, reader, on how Yosemite Drive could better accommodate walking and biking? Or should the street be changed at all?

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