Plans for major overhaul of Whittier Narrows nature preserve stir passions
Foes say the proposed interpretive center is too big and would require destruction of too many trees. Backers see a way to introduce working-class families to nature.
Even those who love the Whittier Narrows wildlife sanctuary concede that it suffers from a down-at-the-heels look. Invasive plants have elbowed out native species and, as one county official observed, the interpretive center resembles a Depression-era shack.
But does the sanctuary along the San Gabriel River need sprucing up or a makeover? That's the question dividing defenders of the nature preserve flanked by two freeways and a string of industrial parks in eastern Los Angeles County.
A torrent of opposition to a planned $30-million interpretive center has some advocates worried that the controversy will scare off funders and derail a project intended to enhance understanding of the greater San Gabriel River watershed.
Now, just weeks away from release of a draft environmental impact report on the proposal, project leaders are ratcheting up efforts to promote the center and a massive overhaul of the existing 416-acre wetlands. The project, they say, will create a gateway to an "emerald necklace" -- a 17-mile stretch of parks and "greenways" connecting 10 cities along the Rio Hondo and the San Gabriel River.
Supporters say as many as 24,000 students a year could be bused to the center -- a "discovery center" designed to showcase green technology -- to view state-of-the-art interactive exhibits and displays, including a 7,000-square-foot model of the San Gabriel River featuring flowing water.
Outside, they would learn about the rhythms of life in riparian habitats in an artificial wetlands to be built next to the real thing. Also planned is a replica of a Native American settlement, an outdoor sunken amphitheater, picnic area and improved trail systems.
"If the controversy impacts our funding sources, we'll have to reevaluate the proposal's financial feasibility," said Sam Pedroza, environmental planner for the Los Angeles County Sanitation Districts and a key member of the center's stakeholders committee. "That would be a shame. It's not like we're trying to build a shopping mall in Yosemite Valley."
Critics, however, decry the size of the project, which would mark about 40 acres for immediate and future development. In the first phase, dozens of mature trees, and foraging grounds for migrating raptors would be removed.
The sanctuary's existing center -- a cramped wood-frame house filled with terrariums and stuffed animals -- would be replaced by the 18,500-square-foot center, an auditorium, administrative offices and a parking lot for 150 vehicles.
