Flores Gives Wilmington Residents Some Hope for Access to Waterfront

In her first “State of the City” address to Wilmington residents, Los Angeles Councilwoman Joan Milke Flores hinted Thursday that she has reached a compromise with the Port of Los Angeles for community access to the waterfront.

She also announced that she is initiating a city-sponsored marketing study to help revitalize the downtown business district.

Flores, who has been trying--with some difficulty--to persuade port officials to clear some industrial land at the foot of Avalon Boulevard for public use, reported that “the Harbor Department in the last week or so has been much more cooperative than they’ve ever been in the past, and I believe that we’re getting ready . . . to make a joint announcement.”

Details Still to Be Polished

She would not elaborate after the speech, saying details have not been worked out.

Sid Robinson, port director of planning and research, said Flores and port officials discussed the waterfront access issue at a Harbor Department retreat in Ojai last weekend. However, Robinson also would not provide details.

“I think we’re making good progress and once we get finished we’ll share it with everybody,” he said.

Flores told the audience of about 150 at a breakfast sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce that Wilmington is on the verge of a transformation, and has never before been the focus of such intense planning and activity.

“A new, solid foundation has been started for this community,” she said.

Community leaders said the fact that Flores gave the address reflects growing interest among Wilmington residents in local affairs. In addition, the talk helped improve her image with some who have criticized her.

“It’s nice,” said Joann Wysocki, vice president of the Wilmington Home Owners group and one of Flores’ harshest critics in the past. “She has changed somewhat. She’s certainly working with the community groups, and I have never felt that in the past this was true.”

Another community leader, Simie Seaman, said after the speech, “It’s a start.”

Wilmington residents have long contended that Flores pays more attention to San Pedro than to their community. Some felt slighted because the councilwoman has given a “State of the City” address annually to San Pedro residents since taking office in 1981, but had never given one in Wilmington. “That’s a little grumble,” Wysocki said. “This takes care of it.”

In her speech, Flores said she has “been wanting to have a forum like this for a long time.” She said in an interview that she has offered to give a Wilmington “State of the City” address in the past, but the Wilmington Chamber of Commerce did not offer to sponsor such an event. (The San Pedro chamber sponsors the breakfast when the address is given there.)

Sausage-and-Egg Speech

Flores delivered Thursday’s speech over sausage and eggs at the new Wilmington Boys and Girls Club, which has not officially opened. The councilwoman’s first announcement was that the City Council will consider a $200,000 matching grant for the club.

In talking about Wilmington’s relationship with industry, Flores said residents might long for the time a century ago when Wilmington was a picturesque town. However, she said, “the fact of the matter is that since its foundation, Wilmington has been a necessary part of our port community, supporting it with industry.”

She cited her successful efforts to ban open storage of dusty petroleum coke near residential neighborhoods, to persuade oil companies to beautify their well sites and to require that heavy equipment and machinery be stored in enclosed areas.

Flores said she does not want these efforts construed as an attempt to discourage industrial development in Wilmington. However, she said she wants to let industry know that it needs to be a good neighbor.

‘Clean Up Your Own Room’

She said she was reminded of a sign she saw recently. “It said: ‘Your mother does not work here. Clean up your own room.’ And I guess, in a way, that’s what we’re telling industry. . . . We invite you to be a part of this community but we want you cleaning up your own messes, and we don’t want you messing up the community and then expecting us to live here.”

She also talked about her efforts to improve Wilmington’s business climate. She said the Wilmington Industrial Park is flourishing and noted that the city is pushing ahead with a plan to designate Wilmington a state enterprise zone, which would entitle businesses to certain tax credits and low-interest loans.

She also said that more than $100,000 has been set aside for the marketing study. The study, which will focus on Avalon Boulevard, Wilmington’s main commercial thoroughfare, will be conducted jointly by the city’s Community Redevelopment Agency and the Community Development Department.

Flores also promised residents that the long-awaited Wilmington-Harbor City Community Plan will be completed by the end of this year. “The plan involves a new direction, a new emphasis and a new environment for the community,” Flores said. “It will help the industrial community and it will help them be compatible with the residential community and at the same time it will improve both.”