Bending the River Back into the City

The "Bending the River Back into the City" project proposes a water wheel near the Los Angeles River at 1796 N. Baker Street. The property, which is currently owned by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro), is located approximately 0.4 mile west of the Golden State Freeway and approximately 0.8 mile east of Dodger Stadium. The project area is approximately 2 miles north of downtown Los Angeles. The purpose of the project is to physically divert water from the LA River and create an aesthetic and educational statement, showing that the LA River can be used as a source of water. Additional purposes include enhancing connections between the surrounding community and the LA River; and providing a viable long-term non-potable irrigation water source for the State Park and other local demands. A 10-foot by 80-foot pit would be excavated for the water wheel. The water wheel would be a maximum of 70 feet in diameter and its hub would be at the existing ground level. Some of the water will be lifted by the wheel, filtered, disinfected and used for irrigation. The remainder of the water will be returned to the LA River downstream from the water wheel.

An Initial Study has been prepared to assess the potential environmental impacts of this project. Mitigation measures have been incorporated into the project to ensure that any impacts are reduced to a less than significant level. As such, the City adopted a Mitigated Negative Declaration on 3/5/2014. The Initial Study is available for review at the Los Angeles Public Library, 630 W. 5th Street, the Los Angeles Chinatown Branch Library, 639 N. Hill Street, and online below.

If you have any questions, please contact Chris Adams at (213)485-5910 or via e-mail at christopher.adams@lacity.org.

• Appendix B: Air Quality & Climate Change
• Appendix C: Biology & Habitat
• Appendix D: Jurisdictional Delineation
• Appendix E: Geotechnical Investigation
• Appendix F: Environmental Data Report
• Appendix G: Hydrology
• Appendix H: Cultural Resources
• Appendix I: Paleontology