A plan for the Ballona Wetlands Ecological Reserve

Beattie checks out the Ballona Wetlands. Details of a development plan for the area are still evolving, but key elements would include educational programs and exhibits about wetlands, human-wildlife interactions and the history of Native Americans in the area.   (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Culver Boulevard runs through the Ballona Wetlands. A decade ago, the state paid $139 million in voter-approved bond money to buy what was left of the wetlands, the last sizable coastal marsh in Los Angeles County.  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

A runner uses the path alongside Ballona Creek that is fenced off from the wetlands.  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Chris Beattie, scientific aide for California Department of Fish and Wildlife, reads a notice prohibiting a homeless encampment in the Ballona Wetlands.  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Pedestrians and a cyclist take advantage of the path that runs along Ballona Creek.  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)