Griffith Park Aerial Tramway Routes Revealed

The Griffith Park Aerial Tramway (aka the Griffith Park Gondola) is shifting ahead on its feasibility examine course of, and new photos of the potential tramway routes made it to the web this week.

The Fb Web page for Amir’s Backyard posted an replace with info from one in every of their readers named George Grace. Grace compiled some info from members of the Sierra Membership and Pals of Griffith Park, and shared a picture from a type of conferences that portrayed a few of the potential routes of the proposed Griffith Park Aerial Tramway:

Supply: Fb

Some to notice concerning the proposed Griffith Park Aerial Tramway routes

The next factors are all quotes taken from George Grace’s message to the Amir’s Backyard web page:

The black dots on the map point out the location of towers for the tramway. All of those towers must be constructed. There are 19 towers alongside on Route four, which additionally appears to be like like it will be constructed straight over the Eileen Getty Ridge Path between Cahuenga Peak and Mount Lee.
Route 1 originates at Journey City. Route 2 originates on the Zoo Parking Lot. Route three originates on the Zoo Magnet College. Route four originates at Warner Brothers.
Routes 1, 2, and three would terminate at a viewing platform at Tyrolian Tank close to the Deronda Drive Gate. Route four would terminate on the Hollywood Signal with a viewing platform in entrance of it.
Routes 1, 2, and three all appear to be they’d require heavy development within the comparatively quiet portion of the park between Mounts Chapel and Mount Bell. It appears to be like just like the “Angle Station” can be constructed straight on high of the height often known as Child Bell and have an effect on a number of climbing routes close by.
Routes 2 and three seem to require development inside Amir’s Backyard and the Griffith Park Boys Camp.
The Tyrolian Tank/Deronda Drive viewing platform can be fully fenced. Tram vacationers can be allowed on and off the tram, however there can be no entry to any trails, and no entry from trails or the Deronda Drive gate to the viewing platform. There could also be a spot to get water and go to the toilet, however nothing past that’s deliberate.
For Route 1, the Martinez Horse Area can be become a parking zone. The tram would cross underneath the electrical tower on that route.
The tram on Route 2 would cross underneath the DWP energy strains however straight over the Zoo.
Route three would require the DWP to lift the facility strains so the tram might go underneath them.
Gondolas would maintain Eight-10 individuals at a time.
The tramway will accommodate between 20-95 rides an hour (for a complete of 160-950 individuals per hour)
The rumored value of the trip shall be $three/particular person.
A full powerpoint presentation with this info must be out there on the Griffith Park Aerial Transit challenge web site. As of Monday, March 9, the presentation shouldn’t be there.
No monetary planning or environmental impression reporting was talked about on the assembly.

Reaching Out concerning the Aerial Tramway

In his feedback, Grace additionally talked about that Stantec, the corporate presenting these potential routes, has already met with numerous stakeholders on this challenge. They offered the data to the Los Feliz Neighborhood Council and Pals of Griffith Park. The Los Feliz Enchancment Affiliation is scheduled to have a gathering this week and the Sierra Membership’s assembly is about for March 23. Stantec can also be holding a “City Corridor” model assembly at Friendship Auditorium inside Griffith Park on Saturday, March 28th from 10:30AM-12:30PM. It isn’t clear whether or not or not that assembly is open to the general public.

Criticism from the Griffith J. Griffith Charitable Belief

Two scans of a proper response from the Griffith J. Griffith Charitable Belief have been additionally included within the Fb Submit. The letter is dated July 31, 2019 and element the group’s opposition to the aerial tramway challenge on the whole. The Belief makes numerous stable arguments however rightfully leans on Griffith J. Griffith’s personal needs for the land he donated particularly as a metropolis park — that it’s vital that portion of the park stay as undeveloped and undisturbed as potential.

The letter is price studying in its entirety, however this quote specifically sums it up properly:

Common park customers who take part in crew sports activities, climbing and using the park’s quite a few trails come right here to re-charge their batteries after work. They give the impression of being upon the parks as the place to flee the hustle and bustle of busy Los Angeles. The extra interference brought on by constructed constructions with the noise and exercise they carry, the much less the park maintains its bucolic ambiance and the much less park customers will look upon it as a welcome respite from on a regular basis stresses.

What Occurs Subsequent with the Griffith Park Gondola?

The proposed Griffith Park Aerial Tramway continues to be in its planning phases. The routes we see proposed listed here are solely preliminary routes decided by the feasibility examine. As soon as the data is offered to stakeholders — and to the general public — then a number of of the proposals will get an environmental impression report carried out.

I’ve already written about how the sooner proposed route (at the moment Route four right here) was a foul concept that might endlessly alter the park. Among the alternate concepts I wrote about in that piece have come to fruition — Griffith Park’s web site did get a pleasant facelift and the newly-launched Parkline Shuttle is an incredible step in the correct course.

To me this entire tramway nonetheless looks like an answer searching for an issue. Initially the tram was pitched as a technique to cut back vacationer visitors in Hollywoodland. This proposal now drops all of that foot visitors off inside eye and earshot of those self same houses, whereas destroying the (comparatively) undisturbed wilderness of the park, ruining eye-lines to the signal from the town beneath, and requiring development of recent constructions on climbing and equestrian trails all through the park.

Now the challenge appears to be justifying itself as a visitors resolution for the park as a substitute. However I don’t know if there’s a severe visitors drawback inside Griffith Park and I don’t assume the town or the park must be encouraging individuals to deal with the park as a commuting route within the first place. We already ruined Elysian Park and MacArthur Park by constructing enormous multi-lane thoroughfares in the course of them, and the truth that Griffith’s freeway can be within the sky doesn’t make it any much less intrusive.

If we’re on the lookout for methods to maneuver individuals across the park with out vehicles (and we must be), we should always as a substitute give attention to increasing the Parkline Shuttle. Increase the route by way of Fern Dell on the very least (the place a Metro B Line connection is a 10 minute stroll away), and take into account re-routing the road to straight hook up with the B Line at both Hollywood/Western and/or Sundown/Vermont so customers don’t must switch from the DASH to make use of it. I’ve additionally heard individuals pitch extending the Parkline within the north to the North Hollywood or Common Metropolis B Line subway stations, which I feel is a superb concept. That connects nearly all of the park and doesn’t require development within the park’s backcountry. (I’d additionally like to see the Parkline hook up with Brush Canyon and the Lake Hollywood Reservoir, however that may seemingly be a number of years down the street).

how might we presumably get individuals across the park with out an aerial tram?

Whose Park Is Griffith Park?

Numerous the complaints concerning the park through the years appear to fall right into a sure sort of class. The individuals seen as inflicting the issues are sometimes solid as guests and vacationers — people coming from all around the world to snap a selfie with the Hollywood Signal, even when they must crawl over residential neighborhoods and leap fences to do it. It’s fascinating that with a purpose to “remedy” that subject and shield Griffith Park for Angelenos, our main resolution includes destroying the aesthetics and wilderness qualities of the park we’re ostensibly making an attempt to guard.

If we’re making an attempt to protect views of the Hollywood Signal, why are we placing a tram line and customer viewing stations in entrance of it? If we’re making an attempt to unravel visitors points across the park (which is a stretch), why are we not higher using the Parkline shuttle service or or the heavy rail stations which might be already near the park? If we don’t need guests all crowding the identical few Hollywood Signal viewpoints, why aren’t we doing a greater job of publicizing the various, many alternates?

What You Can Do

It’s nonetheless comparatively early on this course of, but it surely’s not too early to become involved to assist shield Griffith Park from this pointless improvement.