The Los Angeles River, known for its concrete channels and often shallow streams, has found new life among urban adventurers traversing the area on foot, bicycle – and even kayak.
Much of the activity is centered in and around a neighborhood known as Frogtown, also known as Elysian Valley, a once gang-riddled area that sits below Dodger Stadium along one of the most lushly preserved stretches of the river. While developers have taken notice of the neighborhood, which is less than 1 square mile, a group of nonprofits and businesses has been trying for more than a year to capitalize on the riverside area’s increased popularity.
One business that’s swooped in already is Spoke Bicycle Café, which opened in May of last year on Coolidge Avenue. The café serves sandwiches, coffee, and smoothies, but it also doubles as a bike repair and rental shop catering to recreational visitors. The business has staggered the launch of its various offerings over the last year.
“Our business is growing as more people become aware of the river’s value,” said Spoke co-owner Laurie Winston, 36, who opened the business with partner Richard Latronica, 37, after the pair discovered the site was for lease while on, fittingly, a bicycle ride.
“It kind of looked like a little prison off the bike path,” Winston added. “All you could see was a graffiti-covered, barbed wire-covered, chain link-covered wall.”
Businesses such as Spoke are building on the foundations set by LA Conservation Corps, a downtown nonprofit that launched a program in 2011 allowing visitors to explore the river by kayak. The 1.5-mile guided excursion along Frogtown costs $30 a person. The service operated at capacity in its first two years and the group said it had to add trips to accommodate demand.
That success has drawn competitors: L.A. River Expeditions offers $65 kayak trips down a 2.5-mile stretch of the river, while LA River Kayak Safari, which operates in collaboration with nonprofit Friends of the Los Angeles River, hosts similar excursions for $75.
“Now we’re competing, so our social enterprise piece also becomes an important differentiator,” said Wendy Butts, LA Conservation’s chief executive. “This infusion of dollars on the river means the potential to create projects driven by our mission while generating a little extra money to continue operations.”
Friends of the Los Angeles River, whose headquarters sits just across the river from Frogtown, launched a pop-up restaurant called Frog Spot two years ago that counts itself as the first licensed business to open the river. The eatery, which sells snacks, coffee, as well as beer and wine after 2 p.m., operates from Memorial Day to Labor Day. It also features free Wi-Fi, live music, art and educational events, and yoga.
“When we set up Frog Spot, there wasn’t even a bathroom along the bike path in Frogtown,” said Shelly Backlar, the group’s vice president of programs. “Perception of the river is shifting significantly.”
General Manager Johanna Hackett, who works with assistant Sara Burton at Frog Spot, said foot traffic has doubled since the restaurant opened in 2014. Two summers ago, the restaurant would serve about 350 people a weekend. Now in its fourth weekend of operation this year, Hackett said about 650 customers come through on Saturdays and Sundays.
Awash in business
Interest could grow even more if Friends of the Los Angeles River gets its way. The group and city officials received approval from the Army Corps of Engineers in 2014 for a more than $1 billion plan that would divert the river’s flow into channels, widen tributaries, and remove concrete from the riverbed along an 11-mile stretch. Much of the natural habitat would be restored, while wetlands and pathways would be added.
Should it get congressional approval, analysts believe the project could attract up to $5.7 billion in commercial and residential development to the area.
“People beyond the locality of Los Angeles have started to recognize how important the river is to the L.A. community,” said Yuval Bar-Zemer, manager at Linear City Development in downtown’s Arts District and a member of Friends of the Los Angeles River’s board.
Yet there are challenges to new development in Frogtown. More than 100 commercial parcels in the neighborhood carry building height restrictions of 30 feet, and development on those parcels is limited to 60 percent of the lot’s size. The City Council enacted these changes last year to prevent a swath of large buildings looming over the river.
In addition, the riverside is specifically designed to restrict car traffic, which is another hindrance to big commercial projects.
“The main street is kind of the river and the bike path,” said Spoke’s Winston.
