WHITTIER NARROWS RECREATION AREA

NOTICE OF PREPARATION OF A PROGRAM ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT AND NOTICE OF SCOPING MEETING
     The Watershed Conservation Authority (WCA) is the Lead Agency for the Whittier Narrows Recreation Area (WNRA) Master Development Plan Input (proposed project), and will prepare a Program Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the project.
     In compliance with Section 15082 of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines, the WCA has sent the Notice of Preparation (NOP) and Scoping Meeting Announcement to each responsible agency and federal agency that may be involved in approving the project, and to trustee agencies responsible for natural resources that may be affected by the project. The WCA needs to learn of responsible/federal/trustee agency requests with respect to the scope and content of the environmental information presented and analyzed in the Program EIR. The NOP and Scoping Meeting Announcement was also sent to interested parties that have requested to receive such notices about the proposed project.
     Click here to download the the Notice of Preparation (NOP) and Scoping Meeting Announcement (10-page PDF file).
     The NOP review and comment period is from Monday, November 30, 2009 through Wednesday, December 30, 2009. Please send your response at the earliest possible date, but not later than December 30, 2009. Please send all written comments to the mailing or email address below and include the name of a contact person in your agency.
     The WCA will conduct a public Scoping Meeting on Wednesday, December 16, 2009 to solicit comments from public agencies and the general public about their concerns and interests to be addressed in the Program EIR for the proposed project. The meeting will be held from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the following address:

City of Pico Rivera Parks and Recreation Department
Community Room
6767 Passons Boulevard
Pico Rivera, California 91007

Please direct all NOP comments to:
jbeesley@rmc.ca.gov
or
Ms. Jane Beesley
Watershed Conservation Authority
100 N. Old San Gabriel Canyon Road
Azusa, CA 91702

Phone: (626) 815-1019
FAX: (626) 815-1269

MORE INFORMATION
     More information can be found at the following website which was created for the planning effort: http://www.visioningwhittiernarrows.org/. The following topics can be found there: About the Whitter Narrows, Visoning Process, Who's Involved, Get Involved, and Maps.

BACKGROUND
     Whittier Narrows Recreation Area serves many purposes: its primary function - flood protection - as well as water conservation and public recreation. The area is under the jurisdiction of the Army Corps of Engineers, which leases approximately 1,200 acres to Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation and the City of Pico Rivera for recreation, and approximately 100 acres to other entities for non-recreational uses. The Recreation Area is one of the most popular regional parks in Los Angeles County, with an estimated 2 million visitors per year.
     A master plan was completed for the Area in 1974 and updated in 1999. Population growth, increased demand for recreation services, and changing recreation preferences have prompted a series of agency partners to seek input for possible improvements to the Area. Opportunities for improving water quality and enhancing habitat are also being sought.
     A series of public meetings and workshops were held in which the community was invited to help create a vision for Whittier Narrows Recreation Area. Based on this vision, specific proposals for improvements were developed. The NOP and Scoping Meeting Announcement described at the top of this page are the next steps in this process.