Fishing for Trout in Echo Park Lake?

Throughout this week, Echo Park Lake is amongst other Southern California and Eastern Sierra waters to be stocked with rainbow trout by the Department of Fish and Game. Rainbow trout is generally stocked during the cooler months of winter through late spring, while catfish are stocked during the summer, and will join other fish like bass and maybe even some perch.

I personally enjoy rainbow trout – growing up, my family and I caught them in the mountain lakes in Northern California. My mother would wrap the fish in foil and cook them on our campfire, making some incredibly fresh dinner for our camping trips. But this isn’t the High Sierras – this is Echo Park Lake, which is considered a catch-and-release site for recreation only. Poor water quality keeps me from imagining anyone enjoying fish from the lake as a meal – the lake is in fact a flood control basin that catches all the urban run-off in the area, along with a collection of pollutants like ammonia, copper, lead, trash, and more that have accumulated in the lake.

However, I have been reading that the fish are safe to eat – the CA Department of Fish and Game told the Eastsider LA in November last year that most are caught within 1-3 months and are safe. I personally expect someone to discover a three-eyed Simpsons fish any time now, but I’ll leave it up to you whether or not you’ll be dining on some Echo Park Lake delicacies.

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New Yoga Classes for Kids at Echo Park Yoga

Denise over at Echo Park Yoga just started teaching yoga classes for kids every Sunday from 5:00 to 6:00 pm.

I began this class at the beginning of April because I love Yoga and love working with children. I  got certified in teaching Kid’s Yoga last Fall and decided to provide my community (I live in Echo Park) with an outlet for kids to have fun and learn something new.

Echo Park Yoga’s studios are located in the Jensen Rec Center at the entrance on Logan (1161 Logan Street).


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Cigar Box Beauty at Miss Scarlet in the Parlor

Opening reception for a new show entitled “Cigar Box Beauty” tonight Saturday, April 24 from 7:00 to 11:00 pm at Miss Scarlet in the Parlor.

They have style, they have face. Drawing influences from fashion and propaganda, the art of Cigar Box Beauty explores the concepts of style and appeal with aplomb. The exhibit features an international group of young guns, including Jeremy Forson (US,) Eliza Frye (US,) Naja Conrad-Hansen (Denmark,) Soey Milk (US,) Yana Moskaluk (Russia,) and Mateu Velasco (Brazil.) Suave, complex, and admittedly fetishistic, the pieces in Cigar Box Beauty engage in a conversation exploring the exploitation and exaltation of beauty.

Admission is free and “seraphic” (light? sweet?) refreshments will be served. Miss Scarlet in the Parlor is located at 1282 W. Sunset Blvd.

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Echo Park Beautification with Garcetti’s Office

The first Echo Park Beautification was scheduled for late February, but all that rain interfered with the events.

This time the Beautification project will take place on Saturday, May 1, 8:45 am at the Echo Park Walgreens parking lot (1625 W. Sunset Blvd). Join Council President Eric Garcetti, members from the Positive Energy Group, Echo Park TAP, GEPENC, and volunteers from Kaiser Permanente and the Big Sunday Organization.

The morning will start out with refreshments and instructions, followed by a couple of hours of some beautification labor, all for the purpose of continuing to make Echo Park a little brighter.

Download the flyer here.

Please contact Field Deputy Alejandra Marroquin of the LA City Council at Alejandra.Marroquin@lacity.org, or call 323-957-4500 for more information.

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Bake Sale Fundraiser at Mooi in Echo Park

On Saturday, April 24, Bake Me Up LA is holding a bake sale at Mooi Food on the corner of Logan and Sunset in Echo Park. The bake sale proceeds will benefit cats and dogs via PAWS LA and Kitten Rescue.

Bake Me Up is part of the “Worldwide Vegan Bake Sale” and will be holding bake sales on occasion to raise money. They still need help baking all the goodies, so if you’re interested please sign up here.

Bake Me Up Fundraiser
Saturday, April 24, 2010
11:00 am – 5:00 pm
Mooi Foods at 1700 Sunset Blvd.

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Friday Night In Echo Park

Everybody Was In The French Resistance…Now, Ezra Furman and The Harpoons at The Echo:

9pm. $8. 18+

If you don’t know the gimmick yet, Everybody Was In The French Resistance… Now is all about rewriting the biggest mistakes in pop history. Whether it’s telling Avril Lavigne to back off or correcting the likes of Bob Dylan on “Think Twice (It’s Not Alright)”, they’ve corrected some grave injustices in the popular musical landscape. But if you’re still not sure what’s going on, you can get a first-hand look when the band, lead by Art Brut’s Eddie Argos and The Blood Arm’s Dyan Valdes, tour the U.S. and Canada this April and May.

The tour kicks off April 23rd in Los Angeles, CA and darts all across the U.S. and into Toronto and Montreal before wrapping up on May 26th in Phoenix, AZ. In an interview with NME recently, Argos said he was excited to get out on the road, especially to get ahead of work on his day job band.

“I’m really looking forward to the tour,” Argos said. “Unfortunately Dave Newton, who played the European tour and SXSW shows, can’t make it. We have Ian Catskilkin from Art Brut instead, which will be useful for writing the next Art Brut album.” – Consequence of Sound

with resident DJs spinning the best in Brit / Indie / Soul / Twee / Madchester / Punk / Glam

Find out more at ClubUnderground.net.

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Announcement For Our Email Subscribers

echo park now logoAnnouncement!

Do you subscribe to Echo Park Now via our email service? If you do, I’d like to inform you of a small change to the schedule. Instead of receiving the email between 7am and 9am with all the prior days posts, emails will now be sent out between 5pm and 7pm with all the current days posts (plus anything posted after the previous day’s email went out).

I hope this change will make the emails more current and useful. Why wait for tomorrow to read today’s news?

If you don’t like this change, feel free to comment in this post. If majority rule wants to return to the old time slot we will do that!

Wait, I can read EPN in my email? Yes! If you would like Echo Park Now delivered daily to your inbox, you can subscribe below. Emails are sent once a day with all the posts from the previous 24 hours. When you sign up you will receive an email containing a link to active your subscription. You will not start receiving emails until you click on that link. You can cancel your subscription at any time by scrolling to the bottom of any daily email and selecting the unsubscribe now link. How risk free is that! Don’t worry, we won’t share your email address. If email is not your thing, you can subscribe to EPN using any standard blog reader. Just click here!

Enter your email address:

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Joel Osteen Event at Dodger Stadium on Saturday

On Saturday, April 24 started at 7:00 pm, Dodger Stadium is hosting the Joel Osteen Ministries event called the “Night of Hope.” Noel Pallais, Neighborhood Relations Manager for Dodger Stadium, sent out some details on how the Stadium will handle the traffic and timeline:

  • Set-up will commence on Wednesday, April 21st in the parking lots immediately adjacent to the Stadium – during the set-up stadium lights will be on;
  • A sound check for the event will commence at approximately 3:00 pm on Saturday;
  • Parking gates will open at 5:00 pm, event will start at 7:00 pm and the will conclude at approximately 10:00 pm;
  • The event is expected to be a sell-out and all parking gates will be used for inbound traffic. However, to minimize the impact on the community please note that the Scott Avenue gate will not be utilized for outbound traffic and the City will not close any streets but the “Local Access Only” barricades will be placed at the previously agreed upon locations;
  • Event breakdown will commence on Sunday, April 25th and will be completed on Monday, April 26th – as will be the case for the set-up the stadium lights will be on.
  • Finally, you may contact our Neighborhood Focus line at 323.224.2636, should you have any questions, require additional information or to report any security concerns.

As it turns out, the Scott Avenue gate will in fact be open for outgoing traffic, and while Noel’s announcement indicates there will be Local Access Only barricades, it hasn’t been confirmed whether or not there will be traffic officers around to help the flow of traffic at the intersections.

Jenny Burman of the Chicken Corner might be saying a prayer herself about the potential traffic issues: “…here’s to the hope that for Osteen’s nighttime service the traffic and crowd flow through the surrounding neighborhood is managed more effectively than we’ve seen at the ballgames. Or maybe say a prayer to that effect.”

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Listening Party Tonight (Friday) At Origami Vinyl

Friday, April 23rd

8:00 pm

Origami Vinyl will be premiering ‘Together’ by The New Pornographers

Free drinks and goodies.

Stop by for your chance to win tickets to see the New Pornographers at the Music Box on July 20th.

RSVP: gettogetherla@gmail.com

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Rock For Renters’ Rights At The Echo

Wednesday, April 28

7:30 pm

The Echo

$15

18+

featuring:
Mayaztek
LA Fog
Chango
Chicano Batman
Allan Ides with DJ Phatrick

100% of the proceeds go towards keeping Eviction Defense Network

To Purchase tickets, or for more information, please call 213.385.8112 or email info@evictiondefensenetwork.org

The Eviction Defense Network (EDN) is a network of trial lawyers, advocates and tenants dedicated to defending the right to affordable housing and ensuring access to justice in housing matters to tenants in Los Angeles County. EDN is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides legal assistance and representation to tenants facing eviction. – EDN website

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Earth Day: Taking Advantage of “Green” Rebates

Today, April 22, marks the first day of the CA Cash for Appliances rebate program. If you buy an eligible appliance during the rebate period, recycle your old appliance with a certified recycler, and fill out the rebate form, you get $200 for refrigerators, $100 for clothes washers, and $50 for air conditioners. If you’re interested in the program, get started soon – it continues through May 23, or until the rebate funds run out. Just about anyone is eligible, just be sure to check out the website for details to make sure you’re one of them.

The LADWP also offers rebates through the Residential Drought Resistant Landscape Incentive Program when you apply online. The rebates will help you get high efficiency clothes washer units, residential drought resistant landscaping, high efficiency toilets, weather-based irrigation controllers, rotating sprinkler nozzles, and synthetic turf. Click here for more information on what the rebate offers.

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Earth Week: Angelenos Are Conserving Water

An LADWP press release last week announced February’s water use was the lowest recorded water use in 32 years, also marking 31 consecutive months of reduced water use.

“In a time when water resources are scarce throughout the state, Los Angeles is taking the lead and setting an example on how to conserve water and maintain a sustainable water supply,” said James McDaniel, LADWP Senior Assistant General Manager – Water System. “The more we can rely on our City’s available water resources, the better prepared we are to get through this water crisis as a state.”

The department claims Angelenos have cut water use by 30 billion gallons over the past nine months, and 50 billion gallons since July 2007.

But it’s almost summer, and soon enough those heavily landscaped areas will need watering in the hot desert sun. As a reminder to our readers, Los Angeles county water restrictions start June 1, after which it is “illegal” to:

  • Use sprinklers on any day other than Monday and Thursday
  • Water landscaping, including lawns, between 9:00 am and 4:00 pm
  • Water using sprinklers for more than 15 minutes per watering station, 10 minutes for other irrigation systems
  • Use water on any hard surfaces such as sidewalks, walkways, driveways, or parking areas
  • Allow runoff onto streets and gutters from excessive watering
  • Allow leaks from any pipe or fixture to go unrepaired
  • Wash vehicles without using a hose with a shut-off nozzle
  • Service water to customers in restaurants unless requested

Click here for the full list in PDF form.

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Earth Week: Green Shopping and Services in Echo Park

There are a bunch of business in Echo Park that offer eco-friendly goods and services. Here are just a few:

  • E.P.I.C (Echo Park Independent Co-op) sells locally-made fashions and one of it’s co-founders, Rhianon Jones, is a huge supporter of eco-fashion.
  • Warwick on Sunset is all about recycling household items and re-styling vintage clothing.
  • Tavin boutique offers vintage collectibles and new local eco-designs. And through the end of the month, they’re offering free shipping on all Etsy orders.
  • Feeding Birds Boutique is a vintage store in Echo Park that carries unique clothing (including organic tees), accessories and decorative objects.
  • This week at Vons, they’ll deliver your groceries for free if you buy five earth-friendly products online.
  • Masa uses lots of organic, local produce in their foods, and they’ve started to use eco-friendly packaging and doing away with plastic bags for take out (unless you’re desperate).
  • The Echo Park Time Bank conserves energy in a very unique way: by getting rid of the middle man and the use of currency.
  • Aisling Walsh is the Maid on a Moped. She’s got both an online local vintage store and she offers eco-friendly cleaning services.
  • The Echo Park Film Center has an eco-friendly option for film education – the Echo Park Film Mobile is an old school bus transformed into an eco-friendly mobile cinema and educational facility, providing free documentary film screenings and filmmaking workshops in non-traditional venues.
  • Delilah’s Bakery recycles all of their food waste through a Los Angeles-based company called Athens Waste Management. The company also supplies Delilah’s with its compostable packaging for take-away orders, and offers an oil waste collection service as well.
  • The Green Beacon Foundation, located in Elysian Heights, focuses on environmental educational, teaching you how to lead more sustainable lives through workshops and lectures. The next workshop called “Intro to Urban/Suburban Ecoliteracy” is in May, visit the website for more info.
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Earth Week: Biking in Los Angeles

“Are you an avid cyclist or looking to ride your bike more often?” Google Maps took a step in a more bike-friendly direction about a month ago when they added biking directions as a transportation option. One can both get directions for traveling via bike and view which streets are safest for cycling. The project is still in the beta phase, however, and the directions and the suggestions for the best biking streets are not definitive.

Click on the image above to view the interactive Google map

But, as you can see from the map above, Los Angeles is not exactly Amsterdam. The green lines translate as follows: a dark green line indicates a bike path with no cars, a light green line indicates a street with a bike lane and a dotted green line indicates a street without a bike lane but which is less busy and safer for cycling. Google Maps also takes into account changes in elevation and suggests routes that don’t feature very steep streets.

There are several other resources out there for fans of two-wheeled transportation:

  • LADOT has both a bike blog and a guide to biking in Los Angeles in PDF form that features rules, regulations and suggestions.
  • LA Metro has a guide to biking routes in LA (pdf).
  • Gmaps Pedometer is a great resource for cyclists who are also on a mission to burn calories. Just click on the map to create your own route. It will tell you how many miles you’ve traveled, how many calories you’ve burned (really?) and changes in elevation.
  • On the second Friday of every month (along with a variety of other rides throughout the month), Midnight Ridazz organizes a night-time bike ride throughout Los Angeles.
  • LA Streetsblog follows news and events in all things bike riding.
  • Echo Park Cycles is, you guessed it, a local bike shop where you can get new gear or a tune-up. Prices are reasonable and the staff friendly!
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Earth Week: Eric Garcetti’s House In Dwell Magazine

Photo by Misha Gravenor for Dwell

I think sometimes it’s easy to forget that our politicians are also our neighbors. Therefore, I thought I’d share some pictures of the beautiful and earth friendly home councilman Eric Garcetti shares with Amy Elaine Wakeland. Their home was featured in the 2008 July/August issue of Dwell magazine. The house was designed by Daniel Dworsky (who designed the Bradley terminal at LAX!) in the early 1950s. It was then adapted by architect Elissa Scrafano when Garcetti and Wakemen purchased the home. You can see more pictures and read about all of the ecologicaly friendly renovations on Dwell’s website.

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