BILL NUMBER: AB 315 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 19, 2010
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 21, 2010
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 1, 2009
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 6, 2009
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 14, 2009
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member De Leon
FEBRUARY 18, 2009
An act to add Section 33217 to the Public Resources Code,
relating to public resources. An act relating to
public resources, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect
immediately.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 315, as amended, De Leon. Public resources: Santa Monica
Mountains Conservancy: Los Angeles River parkway projects.
Existing law establishes the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy in
the Natural Resources Agency and specifies the authority and
purposes of the conservancy.
This bill would require the conservancy to develop a feasibility
study on or before June 30, 2011, for the creation of Los Angeles
River Parkway projects in the Los Angeles State Historic Park and Rio
de Los Angeles State Park (Bowtie Parcel). The bill would require
the conservancy to use existing budget resources and voluntary
private and nonprofit resources when preparing the study, and to
request voluntary cooperation of other governmental authorities with
jurisdiction over the Los Angeles State Historic Park and Bowtie
Parcel. The bill would require the study to provide for, among other
things, the acquisition of real property in and abutting the Los
Angeles State Historic Park and the Bowtie Parcel, and the subsequent
lease, rental, sale, or other transfer of that property for park
purposes.
This bill would require the conservancy to develop a feasibility
study on or before June 30, 2012, for the creation of Los Angeles
River parkway projects in, and adjacent to, the Los Angeles State
Historic Park and Rio de Los Angeles State Park (Bowtie Parcel). The
bill would require the study to include, among other things,
objectives for extending regional wildlife linkages and exploring
river recreational activities. The bill would require the conservancy
to develop the study with community input and to request voluntary
cooperation of other governmental authorities with jurisdiction in
the parks. The bill would also require the conservancy to use
existing budget resources, and authorize the conservancy to use funds
received from private and nonprofit sources in preparing the study.
This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as
an urgency statute.
Vote: majority 2/3 . Appropriation:
no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. (a) For purposes of this section, the
following terms have the following meanings:
(1) "Conservancy" means the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy.
(2) "Los Angeles State Historic Park" means the 32 acres of open
space directly adjacent to Chinatown and east of Elysian Park in the
City of Los Angeles.
(3) "Rio de Los Angeles State Park (Bowtie Parcel)" means the 18.6
acres of undeveloped land directly adjacent to one of the few
remaining soft-bottomed stretches of the Los Angeles River Channel
and located within the 58-acre park along the Los Angeles River,
north of downtown in the City of Los Angeles.
(b) On or before June 30, 2012, the conservancy shall complete a
feasibility study for the creation of Los Angeles River parkway
projects in and adjacent to the Los Angeles State Historic Park and
Rio de Los Angeles State Park (Bowtie Parcel). The study shall
include, at a minimum, all of the following:
(1) Objectives for extending regional wildlife linkages and
exploring river recreational activities.
(2) Objectives for riparian habitat conservation, water quality
improvements, and in-channel reconfiguration.
(3) An analysis of the potential of connecting Central High School
#13, which is expected to open in the Fall of 2011, to the Bowtie
Parcel.
(4) An analysis of the potential of linking the network of parks
and local schools within the study's geographical boundaries through
trails, bikeways, nature kiosks, and user access points.
(5) Identification of real property in and abutting the Los
Angeles State Historic Park and the Bowtie Parcel that show potential
for development for recreational and habitat purposes.
(c) The conservancy shall develop the feasibility study with
community input and shall request voluntary cooperation of other
governmental authorities with jurisdiction over the Los Angeles State
Historic Park and Bowtie Parcel.
(d) In preparing the study required by subdivision (b), the
conservancy shall use existing budget resources. The conservancy may
also use funds received from private and nonprofit sources for this
purpose.
SEC. 2. This act is an urgency statute necessary
for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety
within the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go
into immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:
In order to determine as soon as possible the feasibility of
creating park projects in the Los Angeles State Historic Park and Rio
de Los Angeles State Park, thereby better protecting the surrounding
environment from flooding, it is necessary that this act take effect
immediately.
SECTION 1. Section 33217 is added to the Public
Resources Code, to read:
33217. (a) On or before June 30, 2011, the conservancy shall
develop a feasibility study for the creation of Los Angeles River
parkway projects in the Los Angeles State Historic Park and Rio de
Los Angeles State Park (Bowtie Parcel). The study shall include, but
not be limited to, all of the following:
(1) Establish objectives for extending regional wildlife linkages
and exploring river recreational activities.
(2) Establish objectives for riparian habitat conservation, water
quality improvements, and in-channel reconfiguration.
(3) Analyze the potential of connecting Central High School #13,
which is expected to open in the Fall of 2011, to the Bowtie Parcel.
(4) Analyze the potential of linking the network of parks and
local schools through trails, bikeways, nature kiosks, and user
access points.
(b) In preparing the study required by subdivision (a), the
conservancy shall use existing budget resources and voluntary private
and nonprofit local resources, and request voluntary cooperation of
the other governmental authorities with jurisdiction over the Los
Angeles State Historic Park and the Bowtie Parcel.
(c) The study required by subdivision (a) shall provide for both
of the following:
(1) Acquisition of real property in and abutting the Los Angeles
State Historic Park and the Bowtie Parcel, and the subsequent lease,
rental, sale, or other transfer of that property for park purposes.
(2) A means by which to apply for grants or loans to purchase or
restore park, recreation, conservation, or open-space opportunities
in the Los Angeles State Historic Park and the Bowtie Parcel.
(d) The Legislature intends that at the beginning of its new
charge to prepare a study pursuant to subdivision (a), the
conservancy do so within its existing budgetary resources. As
opportunities become available, the Legislature intends that the
conservancy apply for grants described in paragraph (2) of
subdivision (c). In instances when it cannot apply for grants due to
ineligibility, the Legislature encourages the conservancy to partner
with community-based organizations with an interest in seeing the
establishment of the Los Angeles River parkway projects in the Los
Angeles State Historic Park and the Bowtie Parcel.
(e) For purposes of this section, the following terms have the
following meanings:
(1) "Los Angeles State Historic Park" means the 32 acres of open
space directly adjacent to Chinatown and east of Elysian Park.
(2) "Rio de Los Angeles State Park (Bowtie Parcel)" means the 18.6
acres of undeveloped land directly adjacent to one of the few
remaining soft-bottomed stretches of the Los Angeles River Channel
and located within the 58-acre park along the Los Angeles River,
north of downtown Los Angeles.