CityWatchLA - Bike Path to Blight Path … and No One to Blame

CityWatch, Apr 28, 2009
Vol 7 Issue 34

The Orange Line Bike Path is 14 miles of bureaucratic "no-man's land"  and a jurisdictional "hot-potato" that has departments and agencies  scrambling for cover as the City's Transportation Committee asks "Hey! How did the Bike Path turn into a homeless encampment?"

Critics long ago warned that building a bike path with a fence on one   side, a wall on the other and surrounding it with bushes and trees   that grow up and out would result in an environment that is unsafe   for pedestrians and cyclists but hospitable to those who favor seclusion and a place to hide.

Those warnings were ignored and the predictions came true. The Orange Line Bike Path is now so overgrown that in some areas such as Van  Nuys, it is populated with homeless encampments. Making things worse is the close proximity of a recycling center and two liquor stores.  All very convenient for the campers but at the expense of the pedestrians, the cyclists and the local residents.

Two months ago, the Van Nuys Neighborhood Council convened a meeting   to address the situation, a meeting so well attended by agency and department reps that it seemed certain that the Bike Path was to be  cleaned up and reclaimed. Such was not the case.

This past week, the Transportation Committee jumped into the fray and convened a meeting to determine what went wrong and who is going to   fix it. The LADOT took the hot seat and explained the difficulty in supervising maintenance contracts and of working with the Metro and Rec & Parks and how the abundant overgrown landscaping wasn't their fault.

The LAPD was represented, Councilman Cardenas was represented and the Neighborhood Prosecutor, Tamar Galatzan also  appeared but nobody could explain who was in charge, who had authority and who had a plan.

Councilman Alarcon cut to the chase at one point in the "Who's  responsible?" debate and said simply "If it's LA's Bike Path then we  should take care of it!"

That should have been the point at which everybody stepped up but  instead we were treated to another round of "Yes, We Can't!"

Unfortunately, the Groupthink that prevents agencies and departments   from being "negative" and just calling it as they see it is still in   play and the LADOT, the Metro, the LAPD, the LASD, the Neighborhood   Prosecutor, the BOSS, LAHSA, the Councilmembers and anyone else with   a piece of the Bike Path are still having polite meetings where they dance about and explain why they're not responsible.

The Orange Line Bike Path has been around for a little over three  years. It was designed and built by the Metro and the LADOT Bikeways Department was there through the entire process. In fact the LADOT is so proud of the Orange Line that they have a presentation they take  to conferences taking credit for its success. Somewhere along the way, the responsibility for the Orange Line was formally transferred  to the LADOT which, based on results, dropped the ball.

Perhaps it's time to call in the DWP and have them cut down the  forest, relandscape with drought tolerant plants and create a 14 mile long demonstration garden on water conservation. Maybe we could plow it all under and plant a 14 mile long Victory  
Garden and use the wide stretches for a Farmer's Market.

Whatever we do, it is imperative that the LADOT stop paying its contractors until they execute their contracts.

It is also imperative that the LAPD clarify with dispatch and the  patrol officers that the Orange Line Bike Path is not the  responsibility of the Sheriff but is the responsibility of the LAPD.

If the Van Nuys area is to be cleaned up, it would also be wise to have the Neighborhood Prosecutor work with the ABC to address the two  liquor stores that cater to the "campers" and who are a blight on the  community.

As long as blight is on the radar, the recycling center has had a negative impact on the area and yet it continues to operate. It's time for us to work together to make our abatement programs work for  the neighborhood.

Most of all, we've got to get over our fear of raising the standards and offending other departments. We've got to evaluate performance  based on results, not on bureaucratic endurance. We've got to stop   settling for mediocrity and we've got to reach for greatness.

The Orange Line Bike Path is either a monument to our mediocrity or   it’s an opportunity to demonstrate our greatness. Either way, it's our   call. (Stephen Box is a transportation and cyclist advocate and writes for CityWatch. He can be reached at Stephen@ThirdEyeCreative.net)

Glossary:

LADOT - The Los Angeles Department of Transportation. Within the  LADOT is the Bikeways Division, responsible for the Orange Line and  other bikeways facilities.   http://www.ladot.lacity.org

Metro - The Countywide Metropolitan Transit Authority. They are the  major operator of bus and rail service in Los Angeles County. http://www.metro.net/index.asp 

LAPD - The Los Angeles Police Department . They are responsible for the Bike Path. When calling 911 from a cell phone remember that it goes to the CHP. Program 213-928-8206 or 213-928-8208 into your cell phone so that you can get to LAPD dispatch quickly.http://www.lapdonline.org

LASD - The Los Angeles Sheriff's Department. They are a County Agency under contract to provide services to the Metro. They patrol the Metro Stations, they are responsible for the busway and they respond if there is an incident on a bus. They are not responsible for the Bike Path. http://www.lasd.org

BOSS - LA's Bureau of Street Services. They are responsible for the 6500 miles of streets within Los Angeles. They pick up the abandoned furniture and they factor into this scenario on the Orange Line because of the homeless encampments and the amount of furniture that must sometimes be removed. You can reach them by calling 311. http://www.lacity.org/BOSS 

LAHSA - The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority is a joint powers authority representing both the City of LA and the County of LA. You can access social services by calling 211. http://www.lahsa.org

Rec & Parks - The Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks is sometimes mentioned when discussing bike paths because bike paths are often considered recreational facilities. In fact the LADOT fought all the way to the State Supreme Court to have bike paths declared recreational facilities so that the City would not be liable for injuries resulting from design or maintenance negligence. (Prokop vs. City of Los Angeles) LA prevailed and bike paths are now funded with transportation funding but then declared recreationa facilities. Meanwhile, Rec & Parks has little to do with bikeway facilities except when Bikeways was looking for someone to handle the Orange Line maintenance. http://www.laparks.org

ABC - The California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control issues and regulates liquor licenses. If the two liquor stores along the Orange Line Bike Path in Van Nuys are contributing to the problems, it must be documented and the ABC will consider this when evaluating the licenses. If the LAPD and the Neighborhood Prosecutor aren't documenting the incidents and their relation to the liquor stores, the ABC can't do its job. The local ABC agent must be involved in the Orange Line Task Force. http://www.abc.ca.gov

VNNC - The Van Nuys Neighborhood Council meets every month and on May 13, the full Board will convene to address the issues of the  community. Expect to see reps from the offices of Padilla and Cardenas and Villaraigosa as well as Bikeways, the LAPD, the Metro, the City Attorney's office and anyone else with a piece of the Orange Line Bike Path. http://vnnc.org

Orange Line Camp Grounds

LA City Council's Transportation Committee meets today to review the Orange Line Bike Path, also known as the Orange Line Campgrounds.

The Bike Path has long been a popular homeless encampment, especially in the Van Nuys area where the overgrown bushes, the liquor stores at each end and the recycling center all work together to create the perfect environment.

Things came to a head a couple of months ago and everybody who had a piece of the jurisdictional Gordian Knot visited the Van Nuys Neighborhood Council to assure the community that they were "All over it!"

It turns out that the LADOT had a contractor who was responsible for maintenance on the Bike Path but that the contractor had been remiss. The contractor got busy, put an edge line on some of the bushes leaving behind a well trimmed and trash free homeless encampment that was soon occupied by happy campers.

Since then...

We rode the Orange Line this past Saturday and this is what we found:

1) a car missed the turn (wb just west of Sepulveda) and drove onto the bike path, taking out the signs which are still on the ground. The shopping cart survived the incident.

2) the path has a dirt edge line that creeps well into the path indicating that it has not been cleaned in ages.

3) the large bushes that provide the homeless shelter have NEVER been cut back. The Orange Line Campground is occupied. The recent maintenance work resulted in a neatly trimmed Campground with an edge line along the bike path, completely missing the point. The bushes, the liquor stores and the recycling center make this a very popular Campground.

4) the lights don't come on until 8pm

5) the broken sprinkler control with the open cage and leaking water doesn't speak well for any supervision.

6) the body on the bike path (passed out) and the difficulty in calling in the incident on the Orange Line Bike Path indicates a need to clarify AGAIN the jurisdictional issues for the Bike Path. LAPD dispatch can't take the call quickly without an address, dispatch wants to give the call to the Sheriff, the LAPD Sgt. that I flagged down said the LAPD doesn't have jurisdiction until 50' from the Orange Line. Capt Jordan of the LASD says that the Bike Path is City, the Busway is Metro.

CityWatchLA - The Orange Line Bike Path Buck Stops…Where?

CityWatch, Feb 13, 2009
Vol 7 Issue 13

The mystery of the blighted Orange Line Bikeway was solved when Paul Meshkin of the LADOT's Bikeways Division revealed that the contractor responsible for maintenance had "overlooked" the section from Hazeltine to Sepulveda and that the person responsible for supervising the contractor had "overlooked" the failure to perform but that all parties somehow remembered to cash their checks. All's well that ends well!

The contractor, Sunscape Landscaping, was paid $160,000 for a six month contract which required them to sweep the path twice a week and trim the brush. The contract expired this past Saturday.

Sunscape has been busy executing their landscaping contract with the Metro in the same area but on the busway portion of the Orange Line. Somehow in all of the confusion over which bush belongs to whom, the contractor simply forgot to maintain the bikeway which is the LADOT's area of responsibility.

The rapid deterioration of the bikeway drew the attention of the CityWatch, Daily News and LAist all of which motivated the Metro, the LAPD, the Sheriff's Department, the Council office and the Van Nuys Neighborhood Council to action and that's when the LADOT was discovered to be asleep at the handlebars.

The response from all parties was swift and a multi-disciplinary committee is in place to address the larger issue of environmental design, security, homelessness, crime, graffiti and the basic maintenance and supervision of the bikeway and busway facility.

Sunscape was gracious enough to move through the area, clearing trash, trimming bushes and putting an edgeline on the Van Nuys jungle. This one shot fulfillment of the six-month contract seems to have taken them off the hook to the city and they now stand in line to pick up an extension of the contract, this time for 3-5 years. Apparently, no failure-to-perform goes unrewarded!

By midweek the bikeway had been cleared of trash, the bushes had been trimmed back and the richly landscaped and overgrown bikeway now has a lovely edgeline, all of which must make the bikeway residents feel much prouder of their accommodations.

It's fair to say that the bikeway is now a well maintained campground, free of trash but still an attractive refuge for those who seek shelter or a place to hide. It still has the bush "caves" and a trail through the brush that parallels the bikeway.

LADOT staff turned up at the Van Nuys Neighborhood Council in response to concerns over the deterioration of the bikeway and the resulting negative impact on the community.

A concerned board member gave a list of problems that included burned out landscaping, plywood shelters, concertina wire, bottles, trash, and loitering men dropped off by the housing authority. When she pointed out that that very day she had been accosted by a drunk as she made her way down the bike path, the LADOT Coordinator graciously responded with a discussion on the difference between a bikeway and a sidewalk.

Perhaps if the LADOT spent less time debating the limits on their responsibilities and more time on multi-departmental solutions, valuable facilities such as the Orange Line Bikeway wouldn't deteriorate as if in a bureaucratic no-man's land.

Perhaps if the LADOT spent more time biking or walking the bikeways of Los Angeles, they would be able to spend less time in the Neighborhood Councils explaining the many limitations on their ability to supervise their areas of responsibility.

Perhaps if the LADOT dropped the "Yes, We Can't" approach to problem solving we could spend less time on discussions of the difference between a sound wall and the side of a building and more time on the lack of supervision that makes the Orange Line such a great place for graffiti, trash, crime, and all of the other symptoms of an unsupervised, overgrown, isolatated, ill-landscaped and poorly maintained environment, book-ended by two liquor stores which provide the tenants of the bikeway with fuel for the decline.

LA deserves better. There are too any departments involved for something as significant as a 14 mile long bikeway to simply fall between the cracks.

The cyclists who ride this path knew what was going on, the pedestrians and joggers who use the path were aware, the commuters who frequent the area knew of the problems, the local residents knew of the problems, and yet …

The LAPD, the Sheriff’s Department, the Metro, the City Attorney, the Council Office, Street Services and the LADOT all stand by with a look of jurisdictional confusion on their collective faces and watch as the Bikeway deteriorates to the point of absurdity while the contractor stands in line at the bank.

(Stephen Box is a transportation and cyclist activist and writes for CityWatch. He can be reached at Stephen@ThirdEyeCreative.net)

Daily News - Cleanup Work Completed Along Orange Line Bikeway

Daily News, by Dana Bartholomew, Staff Writer

VAN NUYS - Final cleanup took place Tuesday on a San Fernando Valley bikeway that had become home to transients and trash, city transportation officials reported.

A contractor for the L.A. Department of Transportation removed the last of the trash Tuesday on a 1-1/2-mile stretch of Orange Line bikeway between between Sepulveda Boulevard and Hazeltine Avenue.

The bike path had become blighted with trash, homeless encampments, drinking spots and overgrown weeds along the route.

"It's done. It's all cleaned up," said Paul Meshkin, an LADOT transportation engineer in charge of the 14-mile bikeway. "Today, it looks really nice. Every tree is trimmed. Trash has been removed. We just have to make sure the contractor stays on top of it."

Meshkin said Sunscape landscaping was hired last summer on a six-month contract to maintain the bikeway. Negotiations are under way to renew the contract, which expires this month.

Los Angeles police and Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies had periodically picked up trash along the route.

"I'd like to see a requirement for how often they (the contractor) must do maintenance," said Glenn Bailey of Encino, chairman of the city's Bicycle Advisory Committee. The bikeway "needs to be clean and maintained. And the users and the residents need to know exactly how often the work will be done - and that it be done."

dana.bartholomew@dailynews.com
818-713-3730

CityWatchLA - Season Opens at the Orange Line Campgrounds

Zach Behrens wrote of the Orange Line Bikeway on LAist and keyed in on the homelessness issue and the encampments. Dana Bartholomew of the Daily News then wrote of the Bikeway and the blight and contrasted it with the Metro's commitment to bike facilities at the stations. CityWatchLA then ran this piece focusing on the lack of maintenance, security and oversight along with the engineered isolation and unfortunate landscaping choices that work together to create an unsafe environment.

CityWatch, Feb 3, 2009
Vol 7 Issue 10

Orange Line Bike Path a Bumpy Ride
By Stephen Box

The Orange Line … an express bus service that runs across the south Valley … is a classic example of the axiom "Success has many parents but failure is an orphan."

When it comes to ridership, LA County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, Metro CEO Roger Snoble and LA City Council Transportation Chair Wendy Greuel all speak glowingly of the popularity of the Orange Line and point at the near capacity numbers as evidence of their wisdom.

When it comes to the bikeway that runs alongside the Metro Orange Line, all of a sudden the crickets chirp and there's nobody left at the podium taking credit or responsibility for the maintenance issues, the homeless encampments, the graffiti, the crime, and the general decline of the bikeway.

Calls to the Metro are forwarded to the Sheriff's Department with an explanation that the Sheriff has a contract to provide security and law enforcement for the Orange Line. Calls to the Sheriff's Department yield an explanation that their contract is for the transitway, not the bikeway and that it’s an LAPD problem. Calls to the LAPD yield a series of referrals to the gang detail, the homelessness detail, the bike patrol and the Senior Lead Officers, all of whom seem to be missing in action, based on recent experience.

At the end of the day, it turns out that the LADOT has a Bikeways Division that has a contract with a contractor who is then responsible for the maintenance of the Orange Line bikeway, 14 miles of bike path, separated in many areas with a sound wall on one side and a chain link fence on the other, heavily landscaped, overgrown and littered with campsites.

The Orange Line opened in 2005 with a celebration that included a bike ride for supporters. Bike Activists reveled in the attention but grimaced at some of the engineering and design choices that indicated a lack of empathy for the cycling population and a sensitivity to the basic needs of a cyclist.

Cyclists compiled a report of the bikeway and provided recommendations on the intersection conflict points, the lack of cyclist oriented signalization, the poor landscaping choices and the isolation that results from putting up chain link fence and sound walls on either side of the path.

The Orange Line Bikeway was developed in conjunction with the LADOT Bikeways division and somewhere along the way the responsibility for the Orange Line Bikeway shifted from the Metro to the City of Los Angeles.

The City of LA took over like a proud parent, producing a PowerPoint show entitled "Orange Line Bike Path: Integrating a Bikeway within a Bus Rapid Transit Corridor" that they take on the road to transportation conferences.

The unfortunate reality is simple. The Orange Line Bike Path is no-man's land. It is isolated. The entrances are littered with shopping carts. The abundant trash and the overgrown landscaping give witness to the lack of supervision. The paths worn through the bushes bear indicate heavy off-path foot traffic.

This past Saturday, Nate Kapin of Sherman Oaks interrupted his Orange Line bike ride to comment. He says he's a regular, having lived in the Valley since May of 1940 "when you could hunt rabbits here." He says he's seen it all and that he rides the Orange Line every day. "This could be a real park. Put in some benches so people could sit and socialize, clear some of the brush back, put in a water fountain, some bathrooms, people would flock to this path. But not now! Look at it! It's trashed! I see people in the bushes, I see it all!"

It's too late to redesign the Orange Line bike path, but it's not too late to hold the contractor responsible for fulfilling his obligations for maintenance. It's not too late to get the Sheriff's Department and the LAPD to agree on who has jurisdiction and to get law enforcement to patrol the bike path. It's not too late to get the LADOT Bikeways Division to put the PowerPoint aside and to spend some time on the Orange Line bikeway.

Perhaps it's even time for a Bike Ride. After all, the Sheriff's Department has a bike patrol team. The LAPD has a bike patrol team. The Park Rangers even have a bike patrol team and by the overgrown look of things, perhaps they're the ones we should start calling

(Stephen Box is a transportation and cyclist advocate and writes for CityWatch. He can be reached at Stephen@ThirdEyeCreative.net)

Missed Connection...The Mythology of the Transit Hub

These are exciting times for Urban Planners. Planning, Land Use and Mobility issues are hot topics in communities throughout the City. Neighborhood Councils debate the causes of traffic and the merits of more vs. less parking and the impact of density on their lives and on the walkability and ridability and livability of their streets. Urban Planners are the new rock star!

Through it all, New Urbanist and Smart Growth proponents pour Kool-Aid for the converts while Shoupistas proudly carry "The High Cost of Free Parking" under their arm as they engage in the great debate over parking, parking revenue and community revitalization.

Through it all, the Metro touts its development as a catalyst for rebirth, regeneration, revival, all the result of the connectivity and activity that is generated when people get out of the single occupant vehicle and frequent transit hubs that subsequently attract businesses that cater to the large numbers of pedestrians, all of whom have quotidian needs that represent a huge economic opportunity.

Examples of this vibrant street life surrounding busy transit hubs abound around the world. Budapest, Munich, London, Berlin, Paris, Amsterdam, Barcelona, New York, Tokyo, Chicago, San Francisco and...

How about Van Nuys?

It's got the numbers. The Orange Line is busy beyond projections and expectations. Van Nuys Boulevard is a heavy transit route. If there is a connection between mass transit and transit hubs and loads of human activity and economic development and mixed use development...surely after the last couple of years, Van Nuys would show some impact!

There's definitely evidence of mixed use...

Domestic Automobiles vs. Imported Automobiles!











New Automobiles vs. Used Automobiles!











Large scale used car dealers vs. Smaller used car dealers!











Auto repairs, Auto accessories...











Seat Covers in English and in Spanish!











Healthy Competition! Good for the Consumer!











Healthy Competition! Good for the Departed!











Healthy Competition! Good for the Incarcerated!











Healthy Competition! Pedestrians against traffic, unsupported by crosswalks...good for the heart rate!













A business on the rise next to a business on the decline...













A business that caters to Winners next to a business that caters to Losers...











Porno and Lingerie at one end of the street, Liquor and Food at the other...











Parking for those who are about to enter into a lease, both short term and permanent.













A vibrant street life supported by a law office and complemented by the hustle bustle inside the State's fortress.











Prime Real Estate lovingly fortified and put to use by the DWP as...another fortress, complete with security perimeter!











More abundant Prime Real Estate, used to store excess Car Dealer inventory! Go Metro!













A big ass parking lot with loads of free parking for the public and a place for bikes to go when they die.











Rustic accommodations for the worker and the more luxurious accommodations for the tourist! "Van Nuys is the place to go!"











Orange Line Buses in such quantity that they tailgate, Rapids and Locals offering North/South connectivity...











Loads of pedestrian activity, all of it motivated by a desire to find the same thing, an escape route, a way out, because, ultimately, for all of the investment and all of the activity and all of the mass transit...there's little reason to be here...unless, of course, you want to buy a car, rent a car, park a car, accessorize a car, tune a car, get bail, get legal representation, get drunk, get hot-and-bothered or just get buried.

Seriously, if the Transit Oriented Development concept is to be put to the test, how about right here, in the center of the Valley, just south of the Civic Center, complete with its Federal, State, County and City facilities. This should be a showcase for development, a place for our City's economic development department to show their stuff, a place for the Metro to turn their "we're good for the neighborhood" powerpoint presentation into a "Wow! This is a great neighborhood!" demonstration.