ECHO PARK: There was a big press conference today at Echo Park Lake to celebrate the fact that Echo Park was just named one of the country's 10 great neighborhoods by the American Planning Association. Nice work, Echo Park! Local officials who showed up: Mayor Villaraigosa, Council President Eric Garcetti, Planning Director Gail Goldberg, and Vince Bertoni, California President of the American Planning Association. But the most interesting part of the event was when we talked to Garcetti and a resident/local fisherman named Ray about the tradition of fishing at the lake. For anyone else who was also curious: The city stocks the lake with catfish during the summer and trout during the winter. There are also bass, which apparently are breeding just fine on their own so the city doesn't need to re-stock them. There's a rumor that there are perch in there, too. And according to Garcetti, the fish are safe to eat---there are no three-headed Simpsons fish swimming around in there. (We think.)
Great Neighborhoods
Baltimore, Maryland--Charles Village
Salem, Massachusetts--Downtown Salem
Sheridan, Wyoming---Downtown Sheridan
Los Angeles, California--Echo Park
Denver, Colorado--Greater Park Hill
Syracuse, New York--Greater University Hill
Boise, Idaho--North End
Wichita, Kansas--Old Town
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania--Society Hill
Mariemont, Ohio--Village of Mariemont
And here's the full list of all the neighborhoods and areas honored.
S Echo Park named one of top 10 "Great Neighborhoods in America" [CD 13]For more stories from Curbed LA, go to la.curbed.com.
