Prototype Issue
Immigrants are transforming the urban landscape of Los Angeles, and its dense
By Belinda Arredando
(page 1 of 1)What do garages and graveyards have in common in East Los Angeles? “Reusable dead space, that’s what,” says James Rojas, Founder of the Latino Urban Forum, an organization that advocates for the improvement and protection of Latino communities.
For many residents in Los Angeles, sustainable infrastructures are perceived as complex, expensive and non-feasible developments; yet Latino communities have long been constructing simple sustainable projects such as transforming vacant properties into affordable housing units and abandoned industrial sites into recreational space.
“Latinos are the next generation of environmental stewards for the city,” says Rojas, “It will be Latino immigrants in L.A. who will transform the city.”
Taking notice of the demographic shifts occurring in Los Angeles, the Latino Urban Forum campaigns for the re-appropriation of urban space to accommodate a new population majority. According to LUF, immigrants bring new approaches to the use of public space and the creation of a community that are reflective of their hometowns, cities, and countries. Walk through any immigrant neighborhood in Los Angeles, from Chinatown to Thai Town to East Los Angeles, and you can observe how streets serve as multifunctional spaces. Rather than leaving streets as a traffic corridor for cars, residents transform streets into playgrounds, barren corners into street vending and sidewalks and fences into social spaces.
This, according to James Rojas, makes immigrants one of the most sustainable communities but also one of the most vulnerable to traffic accidents. Consequently Latinos have the highest number of pedestrian accidents in the city, a factor that speaks volumes for the population that utilizes and creates public space. Yet rather than merely protesting outside the streets of city hall, members of the Latino Urban Forum work within city hall, or with influential agencies to improve and protect immigrant communities.
“So much of the city is behind the scenes, and with the growing number of professional Latinos working in positions of governance and policy, we have unique opportunity to shape the city of Los Angeles. We might not be able to design a project yet, but we can be sure to provide input.”
And providing input they have. The Latino Urban Forum has been a vital component in transforming the abandoned industrial Taylor Yards and downtown cornfields into active parks. One of the most recent projects consulted by the Latino Urban Forum, was the Evergreen Jogging path in Boyle Heights. Due to the lack of park space, residents in Boyle Heights were using the crumbling sidewalk surrounding the Evergreen Cemetery as a jogging path. While members of the Evergreen Jogging Path Coalition demanded the city to repair the only space available for residents to jog, LUF saw a unique opportunity for a multifunctional urban space and eventually convinced the city council to rubberize the sidewalk around the cemetery for an efficient jogging path.
A sustainable and smart solution, which may surprise some mainstream environmental, advocates who too often exclude low-income and minority communities from dialogues on urban greenery and sustainable practices. One of the most common misperceptions in the mainstream environmental movement is that environmental justice communities lack the education, time and desire utilize sustainable practices, simply because we don’t understand its importance and we are too occupied in survival mode. Yet while some environmentalists practice sustainability with solar panels and organic produce, low-income and minority communities develop creative alternatives.
“Its not a lifestyle choice for us” comments LUF’s Board member Hilda Delgado, “We always find creative ways to survive because we can’t afford to be heavy consumers. We learn to live within our means.”
The Latino Urban Forum strives to tap into these creative ways and adapt them into the larger urban landscape. With the high cost of housing in Los Angeles, lots of folks, including Latinos search creative ways to make their mortgage payments every month. More commonly, many Latinos have found one solution by converting their garages into homes and providing affordable housing for other residents. While many residents transform their garages illegally the Latino Urban Forum, hopes to work with city officials to make the process of obtaining a city permit for housing conversions, more feasible for immigrant communities. This, according to James Rojas, is one of the most sustainable practices known for a city that cannot build up in sprawled suburban neighborhoods.
“Converting garages into houses is definitely sustainable. Think about it, you’re not building anything new, not using new energy to use something, and it provides a denser space which results in a higher demand for transportation.”
Yet residents living in the neighborhoods of East Los Angeles, argue that they are not seeing a preservation of their community, but rather the influx of middle class groups taking advantage of cheap housing. Many residents experiencing the gentrification of their neighborhoods witness generations of families being evicted from their homes as the result of the rising cost of housing and rent.
LUF’s Public Representative and Board Member, Hilda Delgado, argues that gentrification is simply an issue of an issue of poor planning codes. According to Delgado, the most common difference between Eastside and Westside communities are the zoning codes. While the Westside sees 150 zoning codes protecting housing developments and private businesses, Eastside communities have only 8 zoning codes available, leaving communities venerable to larger housing developments and outside businesses that push residents out of their own communities.
“We must use the same planning principals we would use on the Westside on the Eastside. The Latino Urban Forum is not against development, but when there’s a potential development project, we want to ensure that developers consider the cultural infrastructure and the needs of the community. We advocate for what’s feasible, to create a safe haven for our community.”
Yet critics of the recent “Manhattanization” in Los Angeles aren’t convinced that a city that banks its reputation on having space is prepared to go dense. What is more, sustainable practices such as garage conversions, and converting cemetery sidewalks into jogging paths are non-traditional and low budget urban planning developments, something that many residents in Los Angeles associate with a low-quality living. However, LUF cites that given the growing population of the city of Los Angeles, density is coming and will be here to stay. The city of Los Angeles will see a major change in the way communities and individuals interact with each other as they live in closer proximity to one another.
“This is Los Angeles, and people are never going to stop coming. You can only be so exclusive,” says Delagado, “We need to create something that is going to work for everyone. We need to figure out ways we can coexist with each other. We need to be inclusive in our communities, figure out what works for all of us.”
Discussion