I oppose tearing down the 90…

But a park sounds so nice.

They say if you are going to reject a plan, to come up with a better one. So here’s an alternate plan.

A Better “Marina Central Park”

This 6 acre swath of land (highlighted in green / bounded in red) is currently an RV storage lot. It also happens to be right smack in between the neighborhoods of Del Rey and Marina Del Rey, and at the western terminus of the 90 FWY. Anyone that has lived and worked in this area knows that getting from Glencoe to the other side of Lincoln (to access the Marina Proper, Waterside shopping center, Fisherman’s Village, the new Trader Joes and REI, Cedars Hospital, doctors offices, and the green belt to Venice) is a treacherous crossing.

What if a park could serve as a bridge — but without demolishing a much used and needed freeway?

A green space for all and a connection between this two neighborhoods...

Yes it’s a pipe dream, but the point is that we could create usable greenspace WITHOUT all the downsides of the “Streets for All” proposal.

What would it look like? Well we don’t have the budget for a fancy firm to do renderings for us, in exchange for promises of future work, but here’s a back-of-the-envelope sketch:

A better plan.

Benefits of this plan:

• Bridges two areas where people could actually use a bike, or walk instead of driving

• Bridges two communities that are actually divided by a highway (Del Rey and Marina Del Rey)

• Cost, even with land acquisition, would be much lower than demolishing 90 freeway

• Doesn’t eliminate a needed and used freeway

• No increase in traffic

• No additional cars added to area

• No reduced access to Cedars Sinai Hospital

• No impact to tsunami evacuation routes or Sheriff’s routes

• No environmental damage

• Creates bicycle path across Lincoln Blvd. to connect with Marina Del Rey greenbelt

Downsides of this plan: None

So wait, why wouldn’t a “grassroots” group like “Streets for All” push for a plan like this?

Probably because it wouldn’t make developers happy.