SOUTH GATE, Calif. – In South Gate, next to the 710 freeway and the lower portion of the L.A. River, is a seven-acre plot of land about to become the Urban Orchard Project.

A multi-agency project headed up by the Trust for Public Land and the City of South Gate, it's part of a national project to create more green spaces that are easily accessible to under-served and disadvantaged communities.

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“We worked with a local non-profit called From Lot to Spot, and did some community engagement with the local residents to really just take their temperature what is it that folks wanted to see happen here, and we got an overwhelming response of excitement,” explained The Trust for Public Land project manager, Robin Mark.

The project will include a constructed wetland habitat that will use reclaimed water from the L.A. River. Also included will be a large orchard with hundreds of tree species, a playground, walking paths, community center, and educational gardens, all planned with extensive input from the surrounding communities.

“There are also opportunities here, because of our adjacency to the 710 Freeway and the Los Angeles River, to really deal with issues of climate change that we know are happening,” added Mark. “They're currently happening and we know they're going to get worse. So, this really provides an opportunity to mitigate those impacts at this site.”

South Gate resident Diana Diaz says she's pleased at the high level of community engagement the project has shown but at the same time, she remains cautious of issues of gentrification that often come along with development.

“We come from a from a community that's been forgotten for so long,” said Diaz. “On the plus side, you have these kinds of things coming into our city, but you're also worried about what kind of adverse effects they would have.”

Mark says the Urban Orchard Project also fits into a larger movement to reconnect Angelenos to their waterways.

“I think cleaning up this storm water and then being able to reuse it and apply it,” said Mark. “That we are going to grow fruit trees that people can then eat the fruit from, I mean that's a huge message.”

The project is on a fast track for completion phase one is slated to be ready in late 2021. 

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