Eagle Rock Gears Up To 'Take Back The Boulevard'

A meeting of Eagle Rock community leaders, business people and property owners is scheduled Wednesday at 10 a.m. at the in what is being billed as the launch window to a neighborhood initiative that could well be a model not just for Northeast L.A. but for all of California and beyond.

Titled “Take Back The Boulevard,” the initiative is aimed at improving and revitalizing the Eagle Rock stretch of Colorado Boulevard, part of the traffic corridor through which historic Route 66 still passes and whose scenic landscape has been much loved by generations dating back to the area’s first Tongva settlers.

Initiative's Aims

“TBTB,” as the community endeavor could be neatly abbreviated, seeks to generate broad-based community participation and input to transform Eagle Rock’s main traffic artery into a more bike-friendly and pedestrian-oriented thoroughfare.

The idea is to transform Colorado Boulevard not only into a safe, self-sustainable and vibrant street but to shape it into a corridor that spurs economic growth in the entire community while at the same time increasing public safety and preserving the most cherished aspects of the area’s historical and communal character. (See photos to get a better idea of what Colorado Boulevard looks like today—one black-and-white historic photo shows what it once looked like.)

Who's Behind It All?

Take Back The Boulevard is composed of a coalition of Eagle Rock community leaders spanning the gamut from (The Eagle Rock Association) and (CERB) to the Eagle Rock Community Preservation & Revitalization Corp., the , and the Eagle Rock Chamber of Commerce—all of them in a partnership with the office of and with the support of local organizations such as the and the Eagle Rock Valley Historical Society.

More than 300 invitations have been mailed or personally delivered by Take Back The Boulevard’s eight-member steering committee of volunteers to business owners and commercial property landlords along Colorado Boulevard for the September 14 meeting at the Coffee Table Lounge.

Wednesday’s will be the first in a series of at least five get-togethers, “each with a different purpose”—but designed to build on the previous meeting—said Bob Gotham, chair of the initiative and the president of TERA.

Second Meeting on Sept. 21 Open to Community

The second meeting—which is not by invitation and is open to the public—will be held September 21 at 7 p.m. at the . The meeting will present information about the current conditions along Colorado Boulevard—everything from high-speed traffic to the proliferation of a variety of restaurants in recent years—and invite community feedback about potential improvements.

“This effort has the potential to be one of the most transformative changes in Eagle Rock in many years,” said Gotham, inviting community members to participate in the public meetings, starting September 21.

“Colorado Boulevard is in the heart of Eagle rock and supporting it is very important to me,” said Councilmember Huizar, who regularly patronizes restaurants on Colorado, especially and . “Take Back The Boulevard offers us a chance to make this great street an even better place for residents and businesses.”

Take Back The Boulevard Schedule:

September 14: Coffee Table and Lounge, 1954 Colorado Blvd., 90041, 10 a.m. By invitation.

September 21: Twentieth Century Women’s Club of Eagle Rock, 5105 Hermosa Ave. (cross street Colorado), 90041, 7 p.m. Open to the public.

Stay tuned for more coverage of Take Back The Boulevard.