LOS ANGELES — Supply chain problems led to what some consider an issue of environmental justice, but now the community is celebrating progress.

What You Need To Know

  • Spectrum News continues to report on the effects of an executive order aimed at easing supply chain congestion

  • One of the resulting pop-up truck yards in West Athens is gone

  • Keeping the land vacant could bring its own set of issues

  • Residents led by the West Athens Westmont Community Task Force are trying to act fast to develop the land while Caltrans is receptive to the right buyer

At a recent meeting of the West Athens Westmont Community Task Force, homeowner Yolanda Mims shared an important update.

“The containers are gone! We went through a lot, I’m telling you,” Mims told the group.

She’s talking about a truck yard that popped up right next to homes and apartments due to an executive order by the governor aimed at easing supply chain congestion. A public records request to Caltrans revealed there are several more such lots in Los Angeles County.

Today, the one closest to Mims’s home is empty. The person running the operation decided to leave the lease early because of the complaints.

Mims takes this as a sign that something good came out of organizing.

“Getting involved helped me to see the more positive perspective because even though I was dealing with the noise, the shaking of our homes, and all of that, it was frustrating, but I still used the energy to do something positive to make a difference,” Mims said.

However, the work is far from over. Task force treasurer Lynda Anderson feels keeping the land vacant could have its own consequences.

“I wish there were a way that we could say that the homeless are not scoping that area out and even those who have the RVs, so we have to move with some urgency,” Anderson said.

Next, they hope to have the parcel transformed into something beautiful and beneficial for this community made up of many longtime homeowners of color.

“It’s very important that we get out here and stand up for what is right because if we don’t, who is going to do it for us?” Mims said.

Thinking like that is how big change happens.

The piece of land near S. Western Avenue and W. 120th Street was once a dump site many years ago with a history of hazardous waste as tracked by the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC). This, plus all the cargo and truck activity lately, means contamination is a concern for the residents. A Caltrans spokesman says the agency conducts annual soil, gas and groundwater monitoring and five-year reviews. He also said the land could be sold, but the buyer would have to keep up this monitoring, work with DTSC, and get approval for any major changes.