City officials are seeking the public’s input in the design and planning process for a park that will sit underneath the new Sixth Street Bridge. Separate meetings are scheduled today in Boyle Heights and tomorrow in the Arts District –on the Eastern and Western edge of the bridge, respectively– hosted by Los Angeles City Councilman José Huízar and the City of Los Angeles Bureau of Engineering.
The green space’s official name is the Sixth Street Viaduct Mobility Park, Arts and River Commons, or M-PARC for short. It’ll be 12 acres large, extending west to Mateo Street and east to the 101 Freeway, connecting the Arts District, LA River, and Boyle Heights together. The park will lay underneath and next to the new Sixth Street Viaduct that’s being built.
The Sixth Street Viaduct Replacement Project, in charge of the bridge construction, has just released early renderings of the park area, showing the green space from various angles.
The old Sixth Street bridge was torn down due to concerns that it would eventually crumble because of a chemical reaction that was believed to be inevitable. Conceptual plans for the new bridge and the M-PARC were shown at a city party thrown on the bridge in October as a way to say farewell to the iconic landmark.
The new bridge will reportedly cost $482-million, with the M-PARC adding $22 million to the bill. The new bridge is now set to open in 2020, almost two years later than what was originally announced.
Tonights’s meeting will be hosted at the Puente Learning Center at 501 S. Boyle Avenue starting at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday’s meeting will be at the Sci-Arc Keck Auditorium at 960 E. Third St. also taking place at 6:30 p.m.
