Winners Along LA River

HERE'S MY SNAPSHOT of cyclists rolling north along the Los Angeles River bike path, gratefully receiving impromptu applause from the group of walkers touring Glassell Park and Atwater Village. (Tour led by LA's "stair master," Bob Inman.) As seen on The Source blog of LA County's Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and my Flickr stream.

They Meet Again for the First Time

NANCY RIGG, who lived on Valleybrink Road in Atwater Village in 1980, meets James Ventrillo 30 years later on the Sunnynook footbridge over the Los Angeles River in this photo from SCPR. Nancy's fiancé, Earl Higgins, died rescuing James from the river on this spot 30 years ago. Listen to the amazing story on today's Madeleine Brand Show.

New Pedestrian Bridge Over Untroubled Waters?

ALTHOUGH ITS precise location has yet to be planned, and its precise cost could range from $2 million to $30 million, depending on designs, Glendale City Council wants to connect its city with LA's Griffith Park by building a new pedestrian bridge over I-5. LA Times reports:

Residents from Glendale, Burbank and Atwater Village — especially local equestrians and bicyclists — have also expressed support for the proposed bridge.

The bridge is planned as a future third phase of the Glendale Narrows Riverwalk along the Los Angeles River. (With any luck, it'll connect the industrial east bank with the well-tread bike path across the river.) The riverwalk's first phase breaks ground this summer, upstream from Atwater Village, just past Flower Street, behind ABC-7 and Dreamworks studios.

Download Glendale's 33-page riverwalk presentation, with photos and detailed plans.

Baum Bridge is LA's 6th Busiest Bike Intersection

Alex Baum Bicycle Bridge, originally uploaded by councildistrictfour.

IN STUDIES conducted last September, LA Bike Count tracked bicyclists at 50 intersections around Los Angeles, including the Alex Baum Bicycle Bridge over Los Feliz Blvd., here in Atwater Village. The study lists Baum Bridge as the sixth busiest location in the study, just behind Sunset and Hyperion. (Complete PDF here.) Volunteers noted 369 cyclists over the course of 13 hours on Sept. 22, 23 and 26, 2009. The breakdown:

• Weekday AM: 110 cyclists (12 female, 98 male; 79% helmet use)
• Weekday PM: 164 cyclists (17 female, 147 male; 65% helmet use)
• Midday Weekend: 95 cyclists (15 female, 80 male; 64% helmet use)

Also interesting: only 105 pedestrians crossed Baum Bridge in the same timeframes. More analysis at The Eastsider LA.

Project Kickoff: Glendale Narrows Riverwalk

A NEW RIVER project just around the bend from North Atwater Village kicks off tonight with a community meeting.

LA River: Glendale Narrows Riverwalk
Community Meeting
Thursday, Feb. 18, 7:00pm
Pacific Community Center
501 S. Pacific Ave., Glendale

Design of Phase I of the Riverwalk is underway, with construction scheduled to begin late 2010. Highlights of Phase I include:

• Half-mile recreational trail for pedestrians and bicyclists.
• Half-acre pocket park at the west entry of the LA River at Paula Avenue and Garden
• Street with parking for 6 cars
• Equestrian staging area open to the neighborhood
• Equestrian ramp that will provide access from the parking area to the trail
• Staging area in the park for pedestrians and bicyclists
• Picnic and recreational area east of the I-5 crossing
• Entry trail head at Flower Street

Between Storms: LA River Rises Through Village

Between Storms, originally uploaded by Atwater Village Newbie.

Again! Second River Rescue on This Rainy Day

JUST A BIT upstream this time, around 4:00pm in the LA River as it flows (rather torrentially today) through Atwater Village, another rescue from the LAFD: 3207 W. Los Feliz Blvd., one victim needing help on land in the center of the river; not the water at this time.

UPDATE: CBS2 reports that the victim "rebuffed initial attempts at rescue because he allegedly said he didn't 'want to leave his bicycle behind.'".

River Rescue in Atwater Village

HELICOPTERS OVER Atwater Village this afternoon. At about 12:30pm, from the Los Angeles Fire Department: River rescue, 3398 W. Riverside Dr., one victim needing help in the storm drain; not the water at this time.

UPDATE: More details and video of the rescue on CBS2.

Scrubbed Wednesday, Tagged Again Saturday

ON SEPT. 16, I used the new City of LA graffiti website to report layers of colorful spray paint on the Glendale Blvd. bridge in Atwater Village.

On Sept. 23, I got an email saying the graffiti was removed.

On Sept. 26, I walked up the LA River to check it out. Indeed, the old graffiti was painted over, bright white on beige concrete. But now outlined in black was a giant TRS. That's The Rascals (or Thee Rascals) for those of you following your gang turf wars at home.

New Website: Request Graffiti Removal in City of LA

TONIGHT I'M requesting graffiti removal via the new "self help" website from the City of Los Angeles, anti-graffiti.lacity.org.

I'm reporting huge, multiple scrawls on columns and walls on the northwest wall of the Glendale Blvd. bridge (Google map), the wall facing the LA River. They're likely only visible from river trails in Atwater Village, but still. It's a historic damn bridge! Show some pride! And let's see how long it takes the City to clean it up. Next, maybe Sunnynook Footbridge?

UPDATE: Already got this: "Your report has been assigned the following Service Request Number: 310893. You will be notified via e-mail when the contractor reports they have completed this request."

Tomorrow: Neighborhood Cleanup at Red Car River Park

THE NEXT Atwater Village neighborhood cleanup project is at Red Car River Park (Ferncroft Rd. and Glendale Blvd.) on Saturday Aug. 22, 9:30am to noon. Friends of Atwater Village and USC Student Volunteers are pitching in and seeking volunteers to spruce up this access point to the Los Angeles River.

Illegal to Fish in the LA River? Don't Let That Stop You

People Really Do Fish Here, originally uploaded by Atwater Village Newbie.

Weekend Beheaded Goat Report from LA River

THIS MIGHT be a good time to ask kids (pun intended) to step away from the screen. From a reader: "Yesterday, Sunday morning, while walking my dog at the river near the corner of Dover and Legion, I discovered a headless white goat near the walking path. "I initially thought it was a dog ... and reported it as such to the police. They told me they'd investigate. "This morning it was gone, and another neighbor who'd also seen it told me it was a goat. I'm for freedom of religion and all, but jeez, it's 2009, people."

Next LA River Cleanup: Saturday May 9

THE NEXT LA River cleanup in Atwater Village is Saturday, May 9, 9:00am to noon in the Glendale Narrows area of the river north of Los Feliz Blvd., brought to you by Friends of the Los Angeles River and Hyperion Volunteer Corps.

LAist has some great photos of last week's cleanup. And see FOLAR's well-drawn flier.

Ceci N'est Pas Ma Photo

THIS IS WHERE "select" images from the Flickr group The Water: A California Story are displayed, in a randomly ordered slideshow, at the San Diego Museum of Natural History. My photograph of the LA River in Atwater Village was "select" but in 40 minutes of sitting and watching on opening weekend, I didn't see it. Maybe someone else will; the Water exhibit is up till November. Or you can see it right here:

Atwater Chatter: Summer Recreation Edition

THE INTERNETS ARE full of recreational news from in and around our little canoe-shaped LA neighborhood of Atwater Village: How Much to Play the Los Feliz Par-3 Golf Course: Non-resident weekday play is now $8.50, up from $4.25, and replays are now $6.00 instead of $2.50. [Tropico Station] How Far Can Someone Boat Down the LA River: Los Angeles River Expedition, Day 2, July 26, 5:30 pm. Atwater Village, Yoga Park, Los Feliz Blvd. at LA River, 100 feet downriver on east side of river at Dover St. A speaker will address the crew and anyone else who wants to show up as supporters. [CJ's Blog] How Much to Rent the Back Room at The Griffin: To rent the back bar/room (really nice, BTW) you'll need to have a $500 minimum bar tab, including 20% (or more) gratuity on a Saturday, and the space is yours from 8 until 11pm. [Caroline on Crack] How to Get a Good Pair of Clogs: I asked Corina Weibel, chef-owner of Canele in Atwater Village - and inveterate clog-wearer - where to go shoe-shopping. She sent me to a little shop in Larchmont, where I found perhaps the coolest clogs ever. [LA Times Daily Dish]

Ride While It Lasts: New Bike Lane on Fletcher

Fletcher Drive DIY 'Bike Lane' Map

UNSEEN, UNOFFICIAL POWERS have drawn a bike lane across Fletcher Drive's bridge over the Los Angeles River in South Atwater Village. Metroblogging LA has pictures. Were the city to see it, like it and officially designate it with paint or something, this do-it-yourself lane could make a great connector to the LA River bike path. Then again, who needs the city? Some DIY projects stay up for years.

'Heron, Geese, Ducks ... and Shopping Carts'

LA CITY COUNCIL president Eric Garcetti brings nature back in a 44-second video tour of the Los Angeles River, as it flows through Atwater Village, during last weekend's cleanup.

Acronyms Pouring Into LA River This Weekend

FROM THE Newbie inbox: Heal the Bay, along with several other diverse groups such as the NAACP, PAVA and ANAHUAK will be cleaning the soft-bottomed Glendale Narrows section of the LA River this Saturday morning. At least 2,000 people are expected and all community members are invited! No experience is required. Tell everyone not to worry about the arundo.

And, Isn't the LA River Depressing Enough As Is?

SOME QUESTIONS FOR those responsible for this week's island clear-cutting in the LA River, right here in Atwater Village, arguably the greenest, friendliest portion of what is primarily a concrete storm drain. How will LA River clear-cutting affect wildlife and wildlife migration? How will clear-cutting impact the ecosystem with neighboring Griffith Park? What will it do to the local microclimate? Will Atwater Village feel hotter when there's nothing to filter sunlight reflection off the concrete and water? Why couldn't the same resources be spent on just cleaning up the trash? Will the river dwellers need more sunscreen? Neighbors are talking about it on the Atwater Village Neighborhood Council forum.