Lawndale : Trellis Will Stand In for Arches at Gateway

A trellis--looking somewhat like the arches rejected by county and federal officials--will become the centerpiece of the city’s Gateway Project on the Hawthorne Boulevard median at Rosecrans Avenue.

Assistant City Manager Paula Cone said the trellis, because it is incorporated into landscaping, has been approved by the officials who had rejected the arches. Cone said the new design is intended to frame the name of the city, which will hang from the trellis, and is not an effort to circumvent the federal restriction.

The two arches, one 24 feet high, the other 18 feet high, had been ruled an ineligible use of $44,000 in federal redevelopment money because they did not alleviate blight. The new plan was unveiled at Tuesday’s council meeting. In addition to landscaping at Hawthorne and Rosecrans, trees, shrubs and flowers will also be planted at the intersection of 147th Street and Hawthorne and shade trees will be set along sections of the Hawthorne parking median.

The city will begin accepting bids for the work on Sept. 8. Officials must sign a contract with a builder by Sept. 30 or lose the federal grant.