Go Green: Promote Open Space in Pasadena: Sat. 2/28

Pasadena Open Space Community Fair
Saturday, February 28, 2009
9:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Pasadena City Hall Courtyard

Pasadena's 2/28 OS Fair was a huge success replete with city support of grassroots efforts by neighbors and environmentalists committed to making Pasadena more green. The city prepared several interactive stations with large charts and maps of all open space proposals, both approved and pending.

The "Hillsides Promontory" was listed on the city's charts as Proposal C, pending and not yet protected.

The keynote speaker, Will Rogers (President/CEO of the Trust for Public Lands), was very inspirational.

My Video of the Fair

Untitled from Joan Dooley on Vimeo.

More Info
http://cityofpasadena.net/planning/deptorg/commplng/OpenSpace/openspace.asp

Historic Hill: Then & Now

The Church of the Angels (foundation in left photo), one of the most historic churches in all of Southern California, is near the base of the hill. The Church was constructed in memory of Mr. Campbell-Johnson who owned and operated the 2-thousand acre Rancho San Rafael. The hill and church, once part of the Rancho property, were later donated by the Campbell-Johnson family to the Episcopal Church who runs the Hillsides Home for Children at the base of the hill.

Videos - A Hill With A View - 360 Degrees and Counting

Open Space Proposal: Hillsides Promontory, SW Pasadena from Joan Dooley on Vimeo.

Open Space Proposal: Hilltop Behind Hillsides School For Children

History ... Beauty ... Rarity … Spectacular 360-Degree Views

This highly prominent 17-acre hill is the only remaining undeveloped SW tract of the historic San Rafael Ranch. In the 1800s that 2-thousand acre ranch populated most of West Pasadena.

The hill is accessible from a dirt footpath that links Church St. to the top of the promontory where there are gorgeous 360-degree views of far off mountain ranges, downtown LA and even the ocean on clear days.

This chaparral hilltop is home to a large array of native plants and animals, including hundreds of bird species, white tail rabbits, coyote, bobcat, plus endangered species like red-tailed hawks, to name just a few.

Recently it took hundreds of neighbors two years to battle an AT&T 25-ft cellular installation proposed for the hilltop crest. That grassroots struggle saved this sylvan spot (at least temporarily) from development that would have jeopardized its native habitat. The hilltop tower would have required substantial construction, much of it underground cutting into the hill, threatening its delicate chaparral ecosystem.

Open Space status would help protect this most treasured hill from future development.

What is "Open Space"? What is Pasadena's "Open Space" plan?

Open Space is "an urban area of protected or conserved land on which development is indefinitly set aside."

Pasadena, as part of it's city master plan, has committed to increasing the city's open/green space by:

1) Acquiring additional open spaces and parks, especially in identified "gap areas," with the goal of providing a such a space within 1/2 mile of every resident by 2015

2) Improving connectivity of trails

3) Increasing green space by better cooperation and joint use of school properties

For more info see:
Pasadena's Open Space Committee Website