The owner of the Palisades Garden Café wants the public to know that safety is the first priority he had in mind when embracing the idea for a “parklet” streetscape structure to occupy one parking space in front of his business at the intersection of La Cruz and Alma Real Drive.
James Kwon wants to hear the community’s thoughts on the project and is inviting the public to a meeting at the café, tentatively set for 7 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 7.
Kwon told the Post that “something different and out of the ordinary” is what intrigued him most about the idea for the proposal, one of many coming from Mayor Eric Garcetti and the Los Angeles Department of Transportation’s People Street Program. Anyone can come by the café to give feedback, he added.
Rolling through the stop signs at the T-intersection with two crosswalks is commonplace, and teenagers and crowds are ubiquitous near Kwon’s café, which has prompted some public outcry against the project.
Kwon said he believes that once the parklet is installed, vehicles will travel more slowly and will be less likely to roll through the intersection.
Kwon admitted he did not expect the parklet to get the amount of attention it’s received in recent weeks. He added that giving up one parking space is a huge deal for his business, as some customers look to use that parking spot to come to the cafe or they move on.
“Parklets work best in locations with existing pedestrian activity, where the sidewalks are wide enough to accommodate the current pedestrian volumes,” Kwon said. “It’s a great hangout for people walking by with strollers, and it’s another place for bicyclists to park their bike. And there will be some greenery.”
The parklet would add about eight seats to the café’s outdoor dining area.
Elliot Zorensky, co-founder of UDO Real Estate, which manages Kwon’s property, told the Post he’s in full support of the parklet.
“I’ve seen it in other cities,” he said. “I think the little parklets are very neat.”
Geoff Sheldon, president of the local non-profit PRIDE, and Don Scott, parklet project leader, say they were responding to a call from City Councilmember Mike Bonin’s office to bring the People Street program to his district when they proposed the Palisades Garden Café endeavor. Like Kwon, they noted that studies on “street-calming” measures, such as parklets, show drops in accidents and increases in business activity.
Scott told the Post that a lot of people have concerns about the site until they study it.
PRIDE hopes to install the parklet by the end of 2014. The organization is responsible for the installation and maintenance costs and will have to raise $50,000 to move forward with the parklet.
Local architect Rich Wilken aided in the parklet design, according to PRIDE. Scott said that PRIDE will work with Wilken this week on the design so it does not look like a “machine gunnery nest,” which is how someone humorously described it during the July 16 Village Design Review Board meeting.
Three DRB members showed interest and support for the parklet; two members showed concern and opposition. DRB chairman Rick Mills said the concept is welcomed, but the location may not be the best in the Palisades.
The majority of the Pacific Palisades Community Council has expressed opposition to the parklet. Scott noted that he recently had a positive meeting with PPCC leadership on the issue. The PPCC plans to hold a parklet forum on Thursday, Sept. 11 at the Palisades Branch Library.
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