The Revolution WILL Be Televised

Here's what NBC News had to say about our fight to protect the Wildlife Corridor.

Within the piece, Laurel Canyon Association President Cassandra Barreres says:

"This is our central park.  This is our area to protect, because it's a valuable part of our city's structure and the beauty of our city.  So, we aren't talking about one specific little road, we are talking about a connective pathway for our migratory animals to survive."

"A Duty to the Local Wildlife"

The Canyon News is now documenting the fight to save the Wildlife Corridor, as well as our duty and responsibility to respect all the creatures -- human and non-human -- that call Laurel Canyon home.  Unfortunately, the developers who come into the Canyon from elsewhere generally don't realize what's at stake:

It’s not unusual for developers to come into the hillsides trying to make a fast buck. They plunk down money without doing their homework.  They look at the land and focus exclusively on how to maximize the dollar return, without any consideration for other local interests. They’re speculators. In this instance, the community is fighting to have the buildings’ square footage give way to a Wildlife Corridor which has been in place for years. The community feels that city administrators should side with the SMMC Wildlife Corridor, which bisects the property. They claim that an interrupted corridor effectively extinguishes the value of the entire corridor.

For more press coverage, check out the articles from The LA Times and Curbed LA.

The Message Spreads

Following the lead of the LA Times, the influential website Curbed LA is also spreading the word about our cause.

The Curbed article also includes a link to the latest "Canyon Defender" video, which you can check out below:

If a 10 year old can grasp the magnitude of this issue, then so should city officials, and in particular Linn Wyatt.

The Fight Reaches The LA Times

The Los Angeles Times recently published a story on the fight to save the Stanley Hills Wildlife Corridor.  Concerned Resident Tom Hulce summed it up perfectly:

“The implications of what is going on are serious,” he said. “For example, retaining walls and fences put up around the construction site 10 months ago are blocking migration patterns of deer, bobcat and coyotes that have existed for centuries.”

There Are Many Ways to Help

We depend on the generosity and commitment of our friends and neighbors.  If you are able to help us in our efforts, it is always greatly appreciated.  We are grateful for all the support!

Please your contribution as a "gift" by email to treasurer Lynn with your PAYPAL:  lpitoun@gmail.com

The Concerned Residents (and Animals!) of Stanley Hills Drive thank you.

Press Release 8/10/12

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Laurel Canyon Residents File Lawsuit to Protect Ancient Wildlife Corridor

Laurel Canyon community residents filed a lawsuit on Tuesday to compel the City of Los Angeles to enforce conditions it set on a multi-home project. These conditions required the developer to dedicate part of the project to protect an ancient wildlife corridor, one of the last open corridors for animal migration, running through the Hollywood hills. (Superior Court of California Case #BS138819)

As stated in the case, the City approved the development on the condition that the developer dedicate an easement, as requested by the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy (SMMC) and neighbors, and that it be recorded in perpetuity. According to court documents, the Laurel Canyon residents later uncovered that the City allowed the developer to proceed with development without the wildlife corridor easement -- the latest in a series of errors over the years at this site favoring the developer.

SMMC Deputy Director of Natural Resources and Planning said, “The narrow wildlife corridor to Stanley Hills Drive approved by the Central Area Planning Commission represents the minimum scientifically supportable corridor width possible in the context of that site -- which includes a new 30-foot-tall house right on the corridor boundary.”

Added Edelman, “The City Departments have now thrown egg in the face of Planning Commission and community by blessing developer house plans that conveniently shrink the most critical section of the wildlife corridor.”

The lawsuit asks that the Court compel the City to follow its own conditions of project approval as well as require the developer to honor its written agreement with the residents.

Screen actor and theater producer Tom Hulce, one of the plaintiffs in the case and a neighbor, said, “It is disheartening that the City has a history of helping this developer and ignoring its own laws to the detriment of the community.”

The lawsuit drew praise from the Laurel Canyon Association, which has been active in protecting the Laurel Canyon area. “Laurel Canyon is a unique oasis of nature that is under attack from spec developers and illegal construction,” said President Cassandra Barrere of the Laurel Canyon Association. http://laurelcanyonassoc.com.

Alison Simard, spokesperson for Concerned Residents of Stanley Hills Drive, which filed the suit, expressed the frustration of scores of neighborhood residents. “It is unbelievable that taxpaying residents have to hire an attorney to sue the City to get the City to follow its own conditions of approval for a development project.”

Rob Glushon, the residents’ attorney, who has previously served on a City commission that decided zoning appeals, said, “This is the most egregious example of the City’s failure to follow its own conditions of project approvals that I have seen in more than thirty years of working inside and outside of City Hall.”

Concerned Residents of Stanley Hills Drive, a California unincorporated nonprofit association, is fighting to preserve our Laurel Canyon animals, our environment and our neighborhood. Concerned Residents of Stanley Hills Drive was initially created for the express purpose of saving the Stanley Hills Wildlife Corridor.

Contact:
Alison Simard (323) 445-8402, alisimard(at)gmail(dot)com
Rob Glushon (818) 970-9014 rglushon(at)lunaglushon(dot)com