This just arrived in my Inbox:

From: mtwhomeownersalliance@gmail.com
Subject: ACTION ALERT! Stand Up For Griffith Park And The SW Museum!
Date: October 13, 2008 12:12:07 PM PDT
To: mtwhomeownersalliance@gmail.com

ACTION ALERT! Stand Up For Griffith Park And The SW Museum!


The Saving Los Angeles Project (see www.RonKayeLA.com) and some
activists supporting the nomination of Griffith Park for
Cultural-Historical Monument status have called upon people from all
over Los Angeles to STAND UP to protect Griffith Park from
inappropriate commercialization and urban intrusions at the hands of
City Hall politicians.

What: City Council Public Comment Period (Between 9:45 am and 10:45 am)
Place: City Hall Council Chambers, 200 N. Spr ing Street 3rd floor
(Enter on Main Street)
Date: This WEDNESDAY, October 15, 2008
Time: Arrive at City Hall chambers no later than 9:45 a.m.
Who: City Council to Listen to testimony demanding Griffith Park be
designated a Cultural Historical Monument of the City of Los Angeles

BACKGROUND

Why is this important? In 2007, an updated version of the Griffith
Park Master Plan was released by the Recreation and Parks Department.
The last time the Master Plan was revised was in the late 1970s. The
2007 Draft Master Plan for Griffith Park was met with immediate
condemnation from all quarters of the City. In the report, it was
proposed to add Disneyland-like trams over the Santa Monica Mountains,
a culinary school, an amusement park "pleasure pier" over the Los
Angeles River, and parking structures. Also in late 2007, the Autry
Museum, which leases 11 acres of Griffith Park from the City for the
bargain price of $1 per year, announced its intention to expand the
Autry Museum building. This doubling of the Autry is so large that it
would enable the Autry to move the entire Southwest Museum's storage
and exhibition spaces from private land owned by the Autry in the
Arroyo Seco onto public land owned by the taxpayers. The Autry is
proposing a parking structure and supergraphics signs facing the I-5
freeway.

Griffith Park was a gift of Griffith J. Griffith to the City of Los
Angeles. Over the years, additional parcels of land owned b y the
Griffith family or others have been added to the Park. The City
Council holds Griffith Park in trust for the people of the City.
Griffith's gift specifies that no admission fee can be charged for
entry into Griffith Park and it was intended as largely an open space
passive recreation park where people could escape the hustle and
bustle of urbanized Los Angeles to get a little closer to nature and
wildlife.

Mr. Griffith's grandson, Griffith Van Griffith, became alarmed at the
Draft Griffith Park Master Plan issued in 2007 which proposed a
massive increase in commercialization of his grandfather's park given
to the City. The Griffith Family Trust contracted with Jones & Stokes
to prepare a 200 page detailed study and impressive nomination of
Griffith Park as a Cultural-Historical Monument of the City. The
designation of monument status to the Park would help protect it
because any future proposals to commercialize the park would require
cultural resource analysis under the California Environmental Quality
Act.

The City's Cultural Heritage Commission decides whether to approve
nominations for Cultural-Historical Monuments of Los Angeles. The
process has three steps: (1) a determination of the Commission whether
to consider the nomination, (2) a commission tour of the proposed
monument location, and (3) a hearing to determine whether or not to
approve the monument nomination. Early this fall, the Commission
conducted a hearing to determine whether or not to consider the
nomination. More than 100 persons appeared in support of the
nomination because community organizations all over the City are
alarmed that someone at City Hall is trying to sell Griffith Park to
big commercial interests that will invade the Park with expansions of
amusement park type projects, hotels, parking structures, trams, etc.
Only three commissioners attended the meeting and Glenn Dake, a
landscape architect, almost voted down the proposal TO EVEN CONSIDER
THE MONUMENT NOMINATION. In the end, however, he was convinced to at
least consider the monument nomination.

Even more suspicious that some kind of "Chinatown"deal is underway is
the fact that various City Department heads showed up at the
Commission meeting and testified against the monument status based
upon claims that it will be "difficult" to care for and upgrade water,
sewer, power, and other utility infrastructure in the Park if it is
designated as a monument. Latham & Watkins attorney, Bill Delvac,
showed up and argued that only the original grant (and none of the
later land additions to the Park) should be considered for monument
status. Delvac is working with other lobbyists to get the Autry
Museum permits to expand in Griffith Park free and clear of any
condition that Autry must continue to use the Southwest Museum (on
Autry's private land). It is suspected the Delvac and the Autry was
willing to please someone at City Hall by making this argument against
the monument.

The City has numerous parks that have been designated Cul
tural-Historical Monuments. They include Echo Park, Westlake Park,
Silverlake Reservoir, and other parks. Never before have Department
Heads of the City objected to Cultural-Historical Monument status of
any other park. It appears that someone at City Hall wants to inject
such commercialization into Griffith Park that walking in the Park is
at risk of becoming like walking outside the Park. If we allow
urbanization and commercialization of the Park, there will be little
difference to walking inside or outside the Park.

WHY COME TO PUBLIC COMMENT AT CITY COUNCIL NOW?

The Cultural Heritage Commission may be under political pressure by
Council members. It may be that our Commissioners are having their
arms twisted in the hope that the Commission will quietly kill the
Griffith Family Trust's mon ument nomination at the Commission level.
If the nomination is killed at the Commission meeting on October 30,
2008, the proposal will be dead AND CITY COUNCIL WILL NOT EVER HEAR
THE MATTER. Therefore, because Griffith Park is loved by the
thousands of people who regularly visit the Park for hiking and quiet
contemplation, the Saving Los Angeles Project and Griffith Park
activists are calling upon Los Angeles residents to come in force to
the City Council chambers for about an hour on Wednesday, October 15,
2008. IT IS NOT NECESSARY THAT YOU TESTIFY, ONLY THAT YOU STAND WHEN
CALLED UPON. YOU SHOULD ALSO TURN IN A COMMENT CARD TO SHOW YOUR
SUPPORT. ACTIVISTS WILL TESTIFY TO COUNCIL.

The Los Angeles Conservancy is also ringing the alarm regarding the
potential negative impacts on Griffith Park if the monument is turned
down. You can learn more about the history and importance of this
issue by going to the Conservancy's website at:

www.laconservancy.org/issues/...ark.php4

At the Conservancy's website, you can learn more about writing a
letter to preserve Griffith Park. Because you are a supporter of
continued use of the Southwest Museum at its nationally historic site,
your letter to the City should include opposition to unnecessary
commercialization of Griffith Park by the Autry's massive expansion.
The principle reason for the Autry's desire to expand is to take the
Southwest's $1 billion collection over to the Autry and begin
marketing it as the Autry's own collection. Why should our parkland
be unnecessarily consumed by Autry for this purpose when studies by
experts told the Autry that the Southwest Museum can be rehabilitated
and continue proud service to the people of Los Angeles – on private
land, with its own rail transit station, and without more public
subsidy?

HELP SAVE GRIFFITH PARK FROM COMMERCIALIZATION

To help the cause, please please post this message on local electronic
bulletin boards, email lists, and pass along to persons in your
personal address book. The commitment of time will be small compared
to going to the Commission's final hearing on October 30, 2008.
Public comment this Wednesday at City Hall is not expected to take
much longer than an hour.

SEE YOU AT CITY HALL AT 9:45 A.M. THIS WEDNESDAY! ALLOW TIME TO GO
THROUGH SECURITY. THANKS!