1942: Councilwoman Solves 'Vexing' Issue
In 1942, Councilwoman Bernice Venable offered a solution to the torn up streets left by the departure of the Pacific Electric Railway.
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A Redondo Beach city councilwoman solved one of the city's "most vexing problems" in 1942—ugly, abandoned right-of-ways left by the defunct Pacific Electric Railway—with flowers, the Los Angeles Times reported on Jan. 4 of the same year.
In a post published Wednesday on his Daily Mirror blog, Larry Harnisch reproduces an article titled "Woman Solves Problem of Redondo Landscaping."
"One of the community's most vexing problems has been solved by a woman," the article says. "When the Pacific Electric abandoned its right of way the removal of the rails left broad stretches of unsightly, broken ground centering some of the city's most scenic boulevards.
"City Councilmen wrestled with paving and landscaping cost estimates found them prohibitive and tossed the problem squarely into the lap of their only woman member, Mrs. Bernice Venable, City Councilwoman from the First Ward."
Venable suggested planting community flower gardens along the right of ways, and the Times reported that 20 civic organizations were involved in the beautification.
According to information posted on the Redondo Beach city website, the Pacific Electric Railway "Red Cars" were retired in 1940. Redondo was the "cornerstone" of the system, and "a person could ride from Redondo Beach to downtown Los Angeles in less than one hour."
Jim Light
2:52 pm on Friday, January 6, 2012
It is unfortunate and very telling that Redondo's last remaining vestige of the railway right-of-way was turned into mini-storage and tech center while our neighboring cities turned it into the "Green Belt". The difference in how the cities value public open space is very apparent in what the cities did with this open space. Manhattan and Hermosa turned it into a linear park that promotes exercise, while Redondo turned it over to a well-connected developer.
aka6161
1:18 pm on Saturday, January 7, 2012
Your interpretation and point of view makes me sad and ashamed to be a resident. It sure would be nice to see a master plan for our future, as it is never too late.
Jim Light
4:54 pm on Saturday, January 7, 2012
I agree - we can't change the past but we can improve the future. We have a once in a lifetime chance to rid our waterfront of the power plant and provide a mix of parkland that reestablishes some of the open space and environment we've built over and some high quality commercial/institutional development. That's a start in the right direction, but there is much more we can do over time. It just takes leadership and vision. We can do it, other communities have.
Jim Light
12:49 pm on Monday, January 9, 2012
Yes, it is unforunate and the lack of foresight and vision saddens me as well. Hermosa and Manhattan Beach saw it as a way to increase public open space. From Nicole's article on Hermosa Beach Patch:
"Hermosa Beach Historical Society archives show that former Hermosa Beach Councilman and Mayor Jack Belasco planted trees along railway paths, developing what later became known as the greenbelt, a small community nature trail that extends through Hermosa Beach and Manhattan Beach."
Despite its limited size, Hermosa has 60 acres of public open space per square mile. Redondo has a dismal 25 acres of public open space per square mile. We are the lowest parkland per resident and parkland per square mile of all our neighboring cities. By state standards, Redondo is "park poor" and "critically underserved" by public parkland and open space.