South Bay : WEEPING WILLOWS
Environmentalists are grieving over the Willows Wetlands in Gardena after a Los Angeles Superior Court judge last week ruled that the city can allow the construction of a supermarket next to the historic marshland.
Judge Robert H. O’Brien sided with the city, which had approved plans for Smith’s grocery store chain to build a 54,000-square-foot store next to the wetlands.
“I think the people who challenged this project had the environment at heart,” said Gardena City Atty. Lisa Kranitz. “But I never thought they had all the facts.”
The supermarket will be built on an eight-acre parcel next to the historic Willows Wetlands, named for the willow trees that populate the 15-acre area.
Kranitz said an environmental impact report showed that the shopping center would not damage the wetlands.
The Los Angeles Recreation and Open Space Assn. plans to appeal O’Brien’s decision, co-founder Sherry Roberts said.
“We feel the city did not really look at the needs and wants of the people of Gardena,” she said.
Roberts said the wetlands is a fragile area that will be severely harmed by traffic and runoff from parking lots.
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