Citizens Committee to Save Elysian Park v. City of Los Angeles

In the late 1980’s, CLIPI went to court to prevent the LADWP from covering up Elysian Reservoir located in the midst of Elysian Park. LADWP proposed to cover the reservoir with an “ugly tin roof” as the cheapest means of meeting new water quality standards. More expensive alternatives that could meet those standards (e.g., cleansing the water in a mini-treatment plant after it leaves the reservoir, etc.) were not analyzed in an environmental impact report or elsewhere.

CLIPI’s litigation efforts soon revealed that LADWP envisioned covering almost all of Los Angeles’ reservoirs. Led by homeowners living near Hollywood, Stone Canyon, Encino, Silverlake and other reservoirs, a firestorm of political protest swept City Hall. LADWP backed down and agreed to pursue, for each reservoir, an extensive mediation process with various citizen groups representing both the public at large and nearby homeowners. LADWP agreed to explore all feasible alternatives and to appropriate sufficient moneys to implement the agreed-upon solutions. 

Pursuant to that process, LADWP constructed two giant underground 1.5 million gallon water tanks to supply water previously supplied by the Hollywood Reservoir. With the giant new tanks buried at Hollywood, LADWP simply took the beautiful reservoir out of service, while maintaining its water levels at historic elevations. Similar new underground tanks were constructed to allow the Silverlake Reservoir to be taken out of service while remaining full, and, with the reconfiguration, a 6-acre parcel adjacent to the Silverlake reservoir was opened as a new public park. The mediation regarding Stone Canyon and Rowena Reservoir also achieved mutually satisfactory approaches to maintaining water quality, while preserving environmental and aesthetic values.