Lincoln Heights Gate Watch: Just be happy Gardner Compton isn't…

Just be happy Gardner Compton isn't your neighbor. The 76-year-old Lincoln Heights resident erected a gate across Forest Park Drive last week, a move which forces residents to walk to their homes (in at least once case, it's a quarter of a mile), according to the Los Angeles Times' Bob Pool. A TV producer, Compton is claiming he owns the road (he also owns 23 lots in this pocket of Lincoln Heights). The city is trying to determine what to do with the road and the barricade (Councilman Ed Reyes believes the residents may win), but for now, it appears the only resident who is allowed to have a key to the gate is a new mom with a baby (the baby was born prematurely and made need to be taken quickly back to the hospital). But this is just one part of the battle: Compton's neighbors have filed 112 complaints against him in the last year, he says. [LA Times]For more stories from Curbed LA, go to la.curbed.com.