About Us: Critical Issues
Housing
The SGVCOG''s 2005 San Gabriel Valley Subregional Housing Production Action Strategy report found the Valley had 556,000 housing units in 2003. Of these, 475,800 (86%) were located inside the 31 incorporated cities and 80,100 (14%) were located in unincorporated areas. Almost 60% of all dwellings are located in the Southeast, Southwest, and Central subregions of the Valley. Pasadena is the only city in the northern portion of the Valley with a large number of dwellings. Seventy percent (70%) of the Valley''s housing stock is single family detached units, emphasizing the relatively lower residential density of this subregion. In addition to the overall housing supply, affordability continues to be an issue of major concern in the San Gabriel Valley, as housing costs continue to soar.
With developable land in the Valley currently 99% built out, finding available raw land for a new housing unit is very difficult. Providing adequate and affordable housing is a significant challenge for the San Gabriel Valley on a regional level, as it involves 31 different general plans that deal with housing as well as those that address housing issues for County areas. Although such localized land use planning enhances local control, it lacks strong coordination of efforts among adjoining communities. In total, the current city general plans in the San Gabriel Valley identify capacity for only 52,000 units, while the projected demand or need by 2030 is between 79,000 to 176,000 additional housing units. This future demand is a projected as a function of population and job growth during that period.
Housing production is a complex process involving public and private players who must work together on a variety of tasks to bring new housing projects to fruition. For the San Gabriel Valley, implementing a subregional housing production strategy is crucial for its future development. But to do so, Valley stakeholders must deal with a myriad of political, economic and geographical realities that require communities to confront difficult tradeoffs in producing housing, particularly the tradeoff between quality and density. Furthermore, there must be policy change and collective motivation for the San Gabriel Valley as a whole to work together and to match sites, funding and best practices.
Employment
In the Valley, there are approximately 66,000 business employers with more than 750,000 employees or 17% of all of Los Angeles Countys jobs. In the 1990''s, when the nation was facing significant job losses, 2 out of every 3 new jobs created in Los Angeles County were in the San Gabriel Valley. Employment in the San Gabriel Valley continues to rise, having increased by 10% in the past 5 years and 30% since 1991. The San Gabriel Valley has two major employment centers for Southern California in the cities of Pasadena and Industry. In fact, the City of Pasadena had a total of 5,539 business establishments in 2003, whereas the City of Industry (combined with Hacienda Heights, La Puente and Rowland Heights) had 4,601 businesses. The following is a list of Valley cities in descending order by number of businesses: Arcadia, Pomona, Alhambra, South El Monte, Monterey Park, Covina, West Covina, and Walnut. A recent study by the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation found that the San Gabriel Valley is the top location in Los Angeles County for the retail trade and financial services industries.
Transportation
The San Gabriel Valley is unique in that it is the only area in Southern California that has six major freeways that cut through its geographic boundaries. These freeways have reached their capacity at peak hours. Better solutions for carrying San Gabriel Valley residents to their jobs and employees to their homes need to be found. Moreover, there is a strong need to develop affordable housing opportunities that locate people closer to their jobs, develop more convenient transit options, and reduce traffic congestion.
The Valley''s transit needs are served by various agencies from the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Agency (Metro), Metrolink, Foothill Transit, and Montebello Transit. The Metro is the statutory designated agency responsible for planning and operating public transportation in Los Angeles County. Metro is led by a thirteen-member board that includes the five members of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, the Mayor of Los Angeles, and three appointees, and four representatives from the 87 other incorporated cities in L. A. County. Metro is responsible for five designated transit sectors (San Gabriel Valley, Gateway Cities, South Bay/Westside, and North County, which includes San Fernando Valley and the high desert). This public transportation system includes bus, subway and light rail services. San Gabriel Valley cities are represented on the Metro Board by John Fasana, Duarte City Councilmember and Chair of the COG''s Transportation Committee.
San Gabriel Valley is unique in Los Angeles County since 22 of the 31 cities are provided public bus transportation services under a joint powers agreement with Foothill Transit Agency. Eight remaining cities, primarily in West San Gabriel Valley, are provided public bus transportation services by MTA. Finally, in addition, City of Montebello provides public bus transportation serves to its residents and other San Gabriel Valley residents as well. Metro provides light rail services from Los Angeles to Pasadena.
Solid Waste
In 1984, the San Gabriel Valley was home to six of Los Angeles County''s landfills, making the Valley the largest assemblage of the Countys landfill system. Over the last 10 years, many have been shut down, with two remaining in the subregion: Puente Hills Landfill and Nu-Way Live Oak Landfill. However, the San Gabriel Valley continues to handle much of Los Angeles Countys solid waste though the Puente Hills Landfill. With the impending closure of the Puente Hills Landfill as well as a few others in Los Angeles County, new programs to divert solid waste away from landfills must be found.
Currently, Waste By Rail is being developed to transport the County''s landfill to a desert in Imperial County. Other programs include developing Material Recycling Facilities (MRF) to separate and remove the recyclables before the waste is transported to landfills. There is also discussion about developing new technologies, called "conversion technologies," to convert waste into a useful product. Since solid waste is a highly legislated and regulated industry, it is in the best interest of the San Gabriel Valley that stakeholders work together to see that future waste stream does not increase or at least does not increase as the population grows.
Open Space
When open space and habitat is at risk, the personal wellness, economic stability, environmental health, and social strength of communities are also at risk. Parks bring economic benefits by way of increased property values, economic revitalization, and tourism. The link between physical inactivity and obesity is also universally accepted. Access to parks is documented to increase frequency of exercise, and exposure to nature and greenery makes people healthier. Furthermore, parks relieve the environmental and social stresses that are inherent in city life, and, as a developing urban environment, the San Gabriel Valley faces many of these challenges.
Located in a valley just below the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, the San Gabriel Valley land is 50% zoned for institutional and open space use. However, most of that open space is included as part of the Angeles National Forest. The rest of the San Gabriel Valley is already 99% built out, leaving little room for new parks. With a state standard of 5 acres of open space for every 1,000 people, a doubling of the park acreage is required to meet this standard. It is imperative that communities in the San Gabriel Valley work together to focus on accommodating open space needs in a built-out urban environment. The San Gabriel & Lower Los Angeles Rivers and Mountains Conservancy (RMC), which the SGVCOG played a key role in helping to create, has worked with our local communities for open space and habitat preservation and development. In fact, since the COG worked with then State Senator Hilda Solis to create the RMC, almost $50 million in RMC funding over the last five years have gone to SGVCOG member cities to support various open space and habitat projects.
Air Quality
As the agency for air quality in Southern California, the South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD) develops plans and regulations designed to achieve public health standards by reducing emissions from business and industry. AQMD''s Governing Board adopts plans and regulations for the region and then submits them to the California Air Resources Board and the Federal EPA for approval. By law, AQMD has jurisdiction over businesses and other stationary sources, while the California Air Resources Board is responsible for reducing emissions from mobile sources, such as cars, trucks, and airplanes. The AQMD Governing Board is comprised of twelve representatives consisting of three appointees (one each by the Governor, Speaker of the Assembly, and Senate Rules Committee) and nine elected officials from the Counties and Cities of the South Coast Air Basin, which encompasses parts of Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. The Basin covers an area of 6,745 square miles with a population of 14.6 million.
As the San Gabriel Valley is located within this Basin, air quality within the region is of crucial importance to stakeholders within the Valley. In 2001, the maximum pollutant concentrations (ozone and particulate matter) exceeded federal standards by wide margins. The East San Gabriel Valley, in particular, had high ozone concentrations. The Basin''s severe air pollution problem is a consequence of the combination of emissions from the nation''s second largest urban area and meteorological conditions which are adverse to the dispersion of those emissions. The average wind speed for Los Angeles is the lowest of the nation''s ten largest urban areas. In addition, the summertime maximum mixing height (an index of how well pollutants can be dispersed vertically in the atmosphere) in Southern California averages the lowest in the U.S. The Southern California area is also an area with abundant sunshine, which drives the photochemical reactions which form pollutants such as ozone.
Water
The San Gabriel Valley''s main source of water supply comes from its groundwater basin; in fact, 90% or 280,000 acre-feet of the Valley''s annual water supply come from the basin. The groundwater basin is 167 square miles of surface area, has more than 8 million acre-feet of water, and is pumped from about 200 wells. About 10% of the San Gabriel Valley''s water needs are met by imported surface water delivered directly to customers. This imported water also helps in replenishing the groundwater supply. There are three important groundwater basins. The Main San Gabriel Basin is the largest, and is separated from the Raymond Basin to the northwest by the Raymond Fault, which serves as a partial barrier to groundwater flow. The Puente Basin is a shallow basin that underlies the Puente Valley and is tributary to the Main San Gabriel Basin. These three basins are managed separately.
Water in the San Gabriel Valley is an integral component of its history, having been critical in developing the Valley''s agricultural economy. Later, following a postwar boom in industrial development and the release of toxic industrial chemicals into the groundwater system, a number of serious water quality issues surfaced. Significant concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were discovered in the Valley''s groundwater in the late 1970s and remain the main focus of current groundwater cleanup. Other water quality issues involve nitrates, perchlorate, and other emerging contaminants - all with serious public health consequences. Besides contamination, other water supply challenges include: groundwater storage opportunities, infrastructure to maintain water levels, use of recycled water, consumer water conservation, and storm water capture.
The Valley''s water needs are served by a number of private water companies and public water agencies. These entities include the California Department of Health Services (water quality regulation); Los Angeles County Department of Public Works (capture and conservation of river flow and storm water); San Gabriel Basin Water Quality Authority (groundwater treatment programs); Main San Gabriel Basin Watermaster (management of basin pumping and supplemental water purchase); Metropolitan Water District and various Municipal Water Districts (provision of supplemental or imported water); and Retail Water Agencies (delivery of water to consumers).
The Future
The Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) forecasts that from the years 2000 to 2030, the San Gabriel Valley will add 620,000 more people. In order to accommodate all the new residents, the San Gabriel Valley needs to add 190,000 new households and 200,000 new jobs. This growth will occur in a geographical area that is 99% built-out. The challenge all of our cities and communities face is accommodating this growth and change while protecting the high quality of life that characterizes the San Gabriel Valley and serves as the attraction for current residents and employers.
In addition to housing and employment, there are a number of others issues that need to be addressed, such as alleviating traffic congestion, cleaning the air, ensuring an adequate supply of clean water and energy sources, and developing a solution for solid waste. On its own, each of the 31 cities and the three large unincorporated communities may find this task impossible. However, working collectively, we can plan for a better future for the San Gabriel Valley and its future inhabitants.
