A hundred Little Tokyo stakeholders gathered last Wednesday evening (8/5) to once again listen to Metro staffers explain why they shouldn’t be too concerned about the impact of the proposed connector that could run through the community, take out an entire block, jam up streets and land-lock business for four years during construction.
The Metro Regional Connector--that would provide “seamless train travel” from Long Beach to Pasadena; Culver City to East Los Angeles--is chugging its way through the environmental impact process and has stakeholders in the 125-year-old community getting angrier with each new Metro presentation. (the MTA analysis update is here in PDF.)
Diego Cardosa, Metro bigwig, told the group that Little Tokyo needs to be a part of this 21st Century train system that will make Los Angeles a 21st Century City.
OK. So we lose an entire block—one of only seven remaining in one of only three remaining J-Towns left in the U.S. Never mind that you can’t rebuild a 125-year-old community once it is destroyed. Because it takes another 125 years.
The community has been chipped away by the World War 2 evacuation and incarceration; but we came back. Then the expansion of the Civic Center in the 1960s taking an entire block to build the LAPD Parker Center and Central Jail; still we hung tough. Then “redevelopment” in the 1970s that destroyed 1,000 units of affordable low-income housing, displaced many family-owned businesses and replaced it w/fancy businesses aimed at tourists from Japan who eventually quit coming to Little Tokyo; and the businesses who accepted the biggest offer, sold their properties and snuck out of town; but we’re still here.
And here we are today, being asked to take yet another “one for the team,” so some hypothetical riders in the future can travel from Long Beach to Pasadena and not have to pay a transfer fare of $1.25 or have to transfer from one train to another--something millions of people do in public transit-oriented cities throughout the world every day. Or, as someone at the meeting pointed out, is Little Tokyo being asked to sacrifice in order to “fix” a gap in Metro’s original vision of “seamless travel “ that ineptitude or lack of foresight created?
One entire block and maybe 20-30 family-owned businesses, who are already hanging on by a fingernail thanks to the current economy. So people don’t have to transfer trains? Buy a transfer ticket? To fix something that shouldn’t have been broken in the first place?
Please.
13 comments:
I'm sorry but I couldn't disagree with you more. The downtown connector is one of the most important rail links for the region. It's not just an issue of transfers, it's an issue of regional mobility. Also, the addition of the downtown connector will make Little Tokyo a hub that will attract more visitors and business to an ever growing community. I believe that Little Tokyo stakeholders must work closely with the MTA to ensure that the integrity of Little Tokyo is maintained, however this project is only good for the area and all of L.A. To view it as detrimental is short sighted.
ummm..... I think you need to take a closer look at that PDF.
The alternative that I prefer - the alternative that most transit fans prefer - is the mostly underground option. Little Tokyo should support underground because it would be less disruptive than at-grade during construction and faster than at-grade when up and running.
Under the underground option, the block that they are talking about "taking out" is the Office Depot block. Where are the 20-30 family owned businesses that you are talking about?
The Office Depot block is hardly integral to the success of Little Tokyo.
However, the Regional Connector will make getting to Little Tokyo easier, and that is one reason why I support it.
Taking one block that is currently being bastardized with a Starbucks and Quizno's.
A block that doesn't hold much value now. And with the transit will create a vibrant hub that residents in the Savoy will realize becomes an asset and increases the value of the property because of this access.
Sorry to say it, but tourists and visitors play a huge role in the survival and continued flourishing of Little Tokyo. My family and I support your community every time we come into your neighborhood for dinner or shopping. I believe isolationism will only hurt your community. Other downtown communities can only wish they were getting a new subway stop.
Your community will survive the construction. It has survived much worse.
You are right on!! Making residents and businesses in Little Tokyo sacrifice AGAIN for the good of the rest of the city is simply wrong. Evacuation in 1942, Parker Center in 1950, North San Pedro street widening in 1961, redevelopment throughout the 1970s and early 80s (which did have some upsides for the neighborhood but MANY serious downsides, especially in the early years), and then the proposed jail less than ten years ago - that's more than 60 years of overriding local wishes in favor of unjust destruction, while places like Beverly Hills and Brentwood get total control over land use policies in their areas because of their money and influence. And all of this has happened to one ten-block area that should rightfully be considered one of the city's great treasures - a National Historic Landmark District and a Preserve America neighborhood (meaning plenty of potential delays and problems for this plan anyway). Pick a different and better site, preferably not one that's been screwed over repeatedly by the city already. I don't care how pretty the renderings are or how good everyone's intentions are - it was the same story in 1970 and redevelopment STILL almost killed Little Tokyo. And Darren, it's not just the one block being "bastardized" by Office Depot and Starbucks (you'd prefer a teahouse with some girls in kimonos, perhaps?), it's the many surrounding blocks that will be completely disrupted by the several years of construction. If you take a look at the big picture, this is a VERY bad idea on all counts - and that's not isolationism, ME23, it's self-defense. Learn a little something about the history before you start throwing insults around.
LT Historian, it wasn't redevelopment that nearly killed Little Tokyo, it was all of the Japanese Americans moving out to Torrance, Gardena, Monterey Park, Culver City, etc.
Frankly, I don't blame them. Suburbia can be very tempting, and Little Tokyo has only recently built up nice apartments and condos.
So where does that leave the Japanese American community? Driving into downtown if they want to visit the historic neighborhood, or maybe taking the train if they can.
Come to think of it, when I visit LT, where do I go? Weller Court for Curry House and Kinokuniya, Japanese Village Plaza for shopping, the Japanese American National Museum for art, and the JACCC.... hmmm.
None of those are particularly old and historic, but they are all definitely Japanese!
Little Tokyo will survive. Hollywood survived and is thriving. East Los Angeles will survive the Eastside line construction and I predict it will improve once the line opens.
Don't believe the NIMBY hype!
Um, Little Tokyo, why not take a look at Big Tokyo?
Tokyo is a livable city because of its many interconnected subway lines. People do NOT drive anywhere, and a property near a subway station creates MAJOR business.
Little Tokyo will only benefit from having better connectivity.
If you keep pursuing the car-centric layout that you have now, you won't have Little Tokyo, you'll just have Little Los Angeles, and places with a subway will be more like Tokyo than you are.
it was all of the Japanese Americans moving out to Torrance, Gardena, Monterey Park, Culver City, etc.
Exactly!
I'm always both amused and irritated when people who want to sound like martyrs or victims in framing their arguments against changes to Little Tokyo sidestep that fundamental part of the community's history.
What has been causing the atrophy of J-Town far, far, far more than (dreaded!) redevelopment, or the (horrible!) MTA, or the influx of (greedy!) non-Japanese, Japanese-national or Korean investors is people of Japanese background (native or foreign-born) being drawn to other neighborhoods dozens of miles away from downtown Los Angeles.
I think the biggest crock is when people imply that the city's efforts to upgrade Little Tokyo (through the CRA in particular) didn't work because the area continued to go downhill, or that by supposedly chasing out JAs, urban renewal actually made the situation worse. That's a crock because much of Little Tokyo remained a mostly unattractive, sad or deteriorated environment until well after the 1980s, and, in some crucial ways, until after the early 1990s.
The biggest factor in that can be traced to nicer-quality housing beyond a token amount not being added to Little Tokyo until just the past 5 years. So that and the fact that what was once on the land where new housing has sprouted up originally was blighted or dingy (or vacant or asphalted-over auto parking) makes it fortunate that even more Japanese didn't abandon J-Town for other communities.
I don't think people in Little Tokyo are opposed to mass transit. In fact, most people WANT more subways because it will be easier to get around.
However, picture in your mind a hole in the ground immediately across the street from where you live. Now imagine a light rail train coming at the rate of one every 2.5 minutes in either direction, to and from the hole in the ground to what was once your next door neighbor's house.
How would that affect you walking across the street? How would that affect you driving to the market or to work because Metro doesn't go to your workplace?
All of you are right in your opinions. But what this boils down to is a gaping hole in the ground and a track that runs from it through one of the busiest intersections in all of Los Angeles -- and diagonally I might add -- to join another rail line running ABOVE GROUND.
This is a piecemeal, poorly planned solution that does not befit a major metropolis like Los Angeles. While some may argue the survivability of Little Tokyo, one begs to ask - is this proposal worth even going there?
I say it's a no-brainer. Metro, come up with a better solution.
I say the solution is to tear out all the tracks have everything rebuilt again underground. So that more of the community will be up in arms for the longer disruption.
So that this will not only have more impacts in the short term it will have more impacts in the long term because Alameda will still be a virtual highway that will disconnect the rest of the neighborhood.
I have to admit, I'm on the outside looking in. On the one hand, I wouldn't want to finish obliterating my community, but on the other hand, traffic is only going to get worse, if nothing is done. So here's my solution: construct a rail line from East L.A. to Downtown L.A. on Olympic Bl./9th St. and see how that effects the Garment District first. If the area cleans up, foot traffic increases, businesses spring up, and housing becomes available, Lil Tokyo could then follow suit. But will funding be available for Lil Tokyo then?
M. Higashida: I can think of a couple of problems with your solution, M. Higashida:
1) The Garment District isn't anything like Little Tokyo; never was and likely never will be. The comparison is invalid because Little Tokyo has a leg up on development.
2) The Regional Connector will bring many communities together, from Pasadena to Culver City to Long Beach and East Los Angeles.
=
Jeff Liu, that "gaping hole" will be temporary. The traffic, however, will be permanent if we don't find a solution now. I would love to have that gaping hole next door to my apartment if I knew that it would bring a better, safer, faster way to get around.
How about if that gaping hole included a bridge over the busy intersection? How about if that gaping hole included new open space for the neighborhood?
LT Historian,
I support your position 100%!!!
This is our J-TOWN and let all the others go to HELL. We've turned our cheek too many Mutha F ing times and for what?
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