Playa Vista Development
The Times’ coverage on Ballona Wetlands is disappointing, considering this small remnant of the former Ballona Estuary is still one of the last large coastal wetlands in Southern California, where a significant opportunity exists to help recover former wetlands. While “Keeping Their Dream Development on Track” (May 25) interestingly noted that Playa Vista developers still do not have any tenants signed, this is hardly news. Besides the missing tenants, missing from your article was any mention of the 86 groups that oppose Playa Vista and that are working to place this land in public ownership.
Missing also is any mention of the tremendous community opposition to bringing 200,000 additional vehicle trips and 10 new tons of air pollution each day to the L.A. airport area. Another missing item is that there are two federal lawsuits currently in court, including one brought on behalf of endangered species that will be displaced to make a home for Steven Spielberg’s movie studio. Meanwhile, environmentalists have achieved a victory through one of their legal actions, forcing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to reevalute its Phase I permit and have another look at the “no effect” determination it made in regard to some of the species that need this special place for their continued survival.
MARCIA HANSCOM, Chair
Wetlands Committee
Sierra Club California
Los Angeles
*
* Surely DreamWorks can find a more suitable place to build its high-tech studio than the Ballona Wetlands ecosystem. According to the developer’s own studies, this marsh area is liquefiable soil (the same type of soil where Ballona Creek crosses the Santa Monica Freeway, causing its collapse in 1994), the east end has a spreading toxic plume underground, a delineated wetland would be destroyed as well as the “food web” for the wildlife and a Native American burial site disturbed.
Citizens would be better off saving the tax subsidy to DreamWorks to build on Ballona and using it toward purchasing the site to restore our marine resources and the Pacific Flyway, as well as much-needed open space.
KATHY KNIGHT
Executive Committee
Ballona Ecosystem Education
Project, Westchester
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