By SARAH SHMERLING | Editor-in-Chief
The Board of Recreation and Park Commissioners of the city of Los Angeles voted during a virtual meeting on May 20 to approve awarding the Potrero Canyon Park landscaping contract to Ford Engineering & Construction, Inc.
Ford EC—the “lowest responsive and responsible bidder,” according to a board report—had submitted a bid of $8,892,394. The expected duration of the work is 10 months.
“As the board may recall, back in January of this year … the board approved final plans and specifications for this project, and the call for bids,” RAP Superintendent of Planning, Maintenance and Construction Branch Darryl Ford explained.
The proposed scope of work for the project bid includes clearing and grubbing, reconstruction of the Palisades Recreation Center parking lot (including paving, striping of parking stalls, installation of Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant signage and paths, and planting of trees and shrubs in the center parking lot island), and minor grading.
Other facets will be the installation of irrigation systems throughout the canyon, installation of landscaping (including plants, decorative boulders and informational signs), construction of a prefabricated restroom at the top of the canyon, and construction of fencing around the entire canyon.
“A total of 530 trees will be planted as part of the project,” the board report stated. “At the time of construction completion, the new trees would provide approximately 2,098 square feet of canopy coverage. At five years after construction completion, it is anticipated that those trees will provide approximately 114,260 square feet of canopy coverage.”
The project went to bid on January 21, and on March 11, the board reported that it received seven bids. Ford EC’s bid was 5.8% lower than the City Engineer’s construction cost estimate, which was noted as $9,435,183.
When complete, the 46-acre passive park—which has been decades in the making and developed by the city—will feature picnic areas and provide a pathway from Palisades Recreation Center down to Pacific Coast Highway. There will be riparian landscaping, scenic ocean views, further access to nearby hiking trails, as well as fences and gates to ensure adherence to park hours.
The City of Los Angeles Board of Recreation and Park Commissioners voted during a virtual meeting on Thursday, January 21, to approve the naming of the forthcoming Potrero Canyon Park in honor of late community member and activist George Wolfberg.
Wolfberg, who died in February 2020, was chair of the Potrero Canyon Community Advisory Committee, which was formed to help the city manage the design of the project.
“This is truly an example of making lemonade out of lemons,” RAP Commissioner Joe Halper, a Palisadian and associate of Wolfberg’s, explained of the park during the January meeting. “There was a landslide in this area where a number of houses fell into the canyon and the city took over these properties. The funds from the sale of the residential properties on this rim of the canyon are being used to fund this project.”
During the public comment portion of the May 20 meeting, Potrero Canyon Community Advisory Committee Vice Chair David Card shared they are “very happy that this 30-year program of fill and grading and now landscape contact is coming to fruition.”
Card encouraged Recreation and Parks to seek funding from the state and federal government to cover the cost of a bridge connecting the park to the beach.
“Right now, it’s a dead end and … people are going to jaywalk, and it’s not going to be safe,” Card explained. “The first priority of our advisory committee was a safe crossing between the beach and the mile-long park.”
Following public comment, the Board of Recreation and Park Commissioners voted unanimously to approve the board report.
This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.
