City working to finalize Riverwalk

CITY HALL — The City Council on Tuesday will consider allocating grant funds to create more plans for the long-awaited walkway along the Los Angeles River, even as ongoing negotiations with DreamWorks hold up the first phase of the project.

Project officials hope to break ground on the Glendale Narrows Riverwalk project this summer, but protracted negotiations on a 15-foot strip of land on the DreamWorks Animation campus necessary for the river walkway remain ongoing.

The two sides reached an agreement more than six months ago, and city officials have maintained for months that the negotiations would soon end. But the proposed easement has been in a holding pattern as attorneys continue to review the agreement.

DreamWorks representatives could not be reached for comment.

On Friday, Parks, Recreation and Community Services Director George Chapjian said an apparent change of ownership of the land in question has resulted in more legal review. He said all the city can do is wait for completion of the legal review.

“Hopefully we’re there, but we are in the hands of the attorneys right now,” he said. “We’re confident it’s going to be out soon.”

In the meantime, city officials are trying to move the first project forward to prevent additional delays. The $1.1 million in grant funding for the first phase of the project has been unfrozen by the state, and design is underway.

“I’m really looking forward to starting this thing,” Chapjian said. “We’ve laid the groundwork; it’s just a matter of finalizing this easement. We’re good to go with it. But it is a little frustrating that the easement is taking this amount of time.”

Phase I of the Glendale Narrows project would introduce a 12-foot-wide paved path along the Los Angeles River channel and revamp landscaping to include interpretive signs and better access for walkers and bicyclists.

On Tuesday, the council will consider a proposed $81,351 contract with AECOM Technical Services. The company would conduct community outreach and prepare master plan documents for Phase II and III of the project. The funds would be reimbursed through a grant from Los Angeles County.

The proposed contract would help pave the way for the later phases of the project — which would extend the trail to the east and south and provide a bridge connecting the walkway to Griffith Park — so they are ready to go if additional grant funding becomes available, Chapjian said.

Mayor Frank Quintero on Friday urged DreamWorks to stop stalling the project. He cited the city’s YEAR approval of an expansion on the DreamWorks campus.

“I’m very disappointed that DreamWorks continues to hold up the process,” he said. “We need to move forward and make this recreational opportunity available to Glendale residents. It’s really too bad this didn’t come up when we were approving their expansion.”