
The club is located at the Western boarder of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power Right-of-Way and adjacent to Jones Chemical, a legacy chlorine transfer station. The whole area has been completely underserved for decades: lacking in places for educational or recreational opportunities. Our area is plagued by horrible gangs and territory disputes are met with deadly force including community bystanders caught in the crossfire. Cheryl Green was such a victim. Neighborhoods should not be the collateral damage to poor planning vision. The Club should be embraced as an important community asset and relocated to focus area #6; once it is rezoned and remediated of the contaminants that entered the property via the “Historical Stormwater Pathway” from Montrose Chemical. We need to protect all the resources we have but we cannot turn a blind eye when spaces for our children are carelessly placed in toxic locations. In this case on un-remediated land adjacent to facilities like Jones Chemical that have a “worst case scenario” of a chlorine gas release that would completely suffocate any living thing in the cloud of gas that would be carried in the direction of the prevailing wind. Since our work began on this vision plan we understand the response to our inquiries about the safety of this club has been to defund it, once again leaving the area void of resources community members can access. When residents must travel outside their service areas for children’s after school educational programs or recreational activities their acceptance into programs are determined if there is any room left over and often at a higher cost.